December 24, 2012 we took ZeldaPrincess to the hospital up north. She was having pain, and had a fever of 102. She called her doctor, and he advised this hospital. We had been there when LadyBug had breast cancer, and have always been impressed with the nursing staff. And Dr. Colon was the one who diagnosed LadyBug's gastroparesis, so we know him as well.
They started her on a steroid treatment, but she didn't seem to be responding to that. They were going to do a CT scan, but couldn't find a vein big enough for the contrast. They eventually put in a picc line, which is better for her all around. The CT showed that her heart is slightly enlarged, probably due to the steroids (we hope).
Our boys brought us dinner on Christmas night, and StarGazer and his girlfriend, ArialDancer took us out for dinner the next night. It was nice to have the food, and better to visit with them. StarGazer and ArialDancer also drove to our house (200 mile trip) and grabbed almost all our Christmas presents, so we still got to open gifts on Christmas! With ZeldaPrincess in the bed, with tubes sticking out of her, it wasn't the most joyous occasion ever, but we had the family around, and that is really all that matters.
Last night, they gave ZP a drug to clean her out for the colonoscopy. She was not handling it very well, as it made her nauseous. So they put in a feeding tube through her nose to pump the nasty stuff directly to her stomach. This made her nose bleed profusely, which in turn made her sick. In a trip to the restroom, she threw up all the medication. This made it necessary for them to administer an enema to take care of matters.
After the procedure, the doctor said this is one of the worst cases of UC he has ever seen. He said that if she didn't start Remicade treatments immediately, she could lose her colon. he also said that if she doesn't respond to the treatment, they may have to operate to remove all or a portion of it anyway. Kissa and I will head home tonight, while LadyBug stays with ZP. Then we will come back on Monday after I get my paychecks and see what the situation is. We really don't know what will happen, when it will happen, or anything else for that matter, but we are praying that this will work out somehow. Quickly. Easily.
For all of our family and friends who have been so supportive during this, thank you, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and may God bless you!
Angel Note
"If Music be the food of Love, Play on!" -- Wm. Shakespeare, Twelfth Night
Friday, December 28, 2012
Monday, December 24, 2012
A Hospital Christmas
'Tis the night before Christmas,And all through the wing
All the patients are sleeping,
So don't say a thing.
The stockings are fuzzy,
With nice rubber treads,
But we have to make do
With big chairs for our beds.
Mom in the lounge chair,
And me on the floor,
Are hoping the doctor
Will walk in through the door.
The nurses all chatter
Outside in the hall,
Coming into the rooms
For the patients who call.
We stay near the room,
Just in case there's a need,
And keep Christmas inside,
Where it's most needed, indeed.
For St. Nick will have missed us,
When he went to our house,
Finding only our puppy,
About the size of a mouse
Our present were wrapped
By the white Christmas tree,
And are waiting us still,
So tomorrow, we'll see.
Perhaps Christmas Day
We will be on our way.
Or it may be the next,
We really can't say.
But you'll hear us exclaim,
If you're close enough to hear,
That Christmas is Merry,
With the ones you hold dear.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Troubles for Number Four
Sme already know, but our youngest, ZeldaPrincess, spent the better part of a week in the hospital. Not to go into all the wonderful details, but needless to say, she couldn't keep anything in her stomach. It either came back up or rushed straight through.
After several days of this, she was admitted to the hospital for dehydration. They gave her an IV, and released her when it was done. By the next night, she was right back in the hospital, this time for an extended stay, which included the IV, nausea medication, morphine, and colonoscopy.
After several days, our insurance company CALLED THE HOSPITAL TO TELL THEM TO RELEASE HER! They said they didn't think she needed to be there any longer! I am so glad our insurance company has medical degrees so they know what patients need! The nurses started getting soft foods into her the next day, and let her go home only after confirming that she could keep it down. The doctors said if she couldn't, they would fight to keep her in!
The diagnosis was not what we hoped. She has Ulcerative Colitis, which is a condition that affects people her age, and she will deal with for the rest of her life. For those who may have never heard of colitis, you are not alone. We are finding out so much about it, including just how common it is!
Basically, colitis is inflammation of the intestine, and can limit itself to the colon, or can be randomly spread anywhere in the digestive tract, as in Crohn's Disease. It can flare up for no reason, or can be brought on by eating the wrong food.
What's the wrong food? Who knows? It differs from person to person, and case to case. Some can only eat meat and potatoes, some have to avoid anything acidic. She is supposed to stay away from anything highly fibrous, much like her mother. LadyBug's issue is gastro-paresis, combined with IBS, and is similar to what ZeldaPrincess is goung through.
There are medications you can take, although our insurance company thinks she doesn't need one of them! another new medication is out and making huge strides for patients. But some insurance companies reject it. Another treatment must be done at the cancer clinic, and runs $9,000 per treatment! Copays vary. We haven't heard yet which ones our insurance likes, but they haven't proven to be the brightest lights on the tree yet, so who kows?
And then there is also the fact that Z.P. had to withdraw from some of her classes in college. A few classes are giving her credit, and some of the professors agreed to give her "Incompletes" so she could make up the work later and get the credit still. But she plans to not return next semester, to focus on figuring all this out and getting her health settled. After that, it will be taking things one day at a time.
Take care!
After several days of this, she was admitted to the hospital for dehydration. They gave her an IV, and released her when it was done. By the next night, she was right back in the hospital, this time for an extended stay, which included the IV, nausea medication, morphine, and colonoscopy.
After several days, our insurance company CALLED THE HOSPITAL TO TELL THEM TO RELEASE HER! They said they didn't think she needed to be there any longer! I am so glad our insurance company has medical degrees so they know what patients need! The nurses started getting soft foods into her the next day, and let her go home only after confirming that she could keep it down. The doctors said if she couldn't, they would fight to keep her in!
The diagnosis was not what we hoped. She has Ulcerative Colitis, which is a condition that affects people her age, and she will deal with for the rest of her life. For those who may have never heard of colitis, you are not alone. We are finding out so much about it, including just how common it is!
Basically, colitis is inflammation of the intestine, and can limit itself to the colon, or can be randomly spread anywhere in the digestive tract, as in Crohn's Disease. It can flare up for no reason, or can be brought on by eating the wrong food.
What's the wrong food? Who knows? It differs from person to person, and case to case. Some can only eat meat and potatoes, some have to avoid anything acidic. She is supposed to stay away from anything highly fibrous, much like her mother. LadyBug's issue is gastro-paresis, combined with IBS, and is similar to what ZeldaPrincess is goung through.
There are medications you can take, although our insurance company thinks she doesn't need one of them! another new medication is out and making huge strides for patients. But some insurance companies reject it. Another treatment must be done at the cancer clinic, and runs $9,000 per treatment! Copays vary. We haven't heard yet which ones our insurance likes, but they haven't proven to be the brightest lights on the tree yet, so who kows?
And then there is also the fact that Z.P. had to withdraw from some of her classes in college. A few classes are giving her credit, and some of the professors agreed to give her "Incompletes" so she could make up the work later and get the credit still. But she plans to not return next semester, to focus on figuring all this out and getting her health settled. After that, it will be taking things one day at a time.
Take care!
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