Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Hospital....Again
Thursday I began to get the extreme chills which indicated (as back in April) that I probably had a high fever and should go to the emergency room.
I didn't want to go to the emergency room.
So I took ibuprofen, and by the next morning my fever was back down. I had a conference to go to Friday at which I was to participate in two presentations. In my car, waiting for Barbara to show up to carpool people to Lansing, I started having violent chills. I took my temperature and it was 102.4. I heaved myself into Barbara's car and eventually (between bouts of violent tooth-chattering) told people I was feeling cold and had a fever. "If I can't move my hands without jerking them," I told Joel, "you might have to move the mouse." Beth let me wear her knitted wool scarf.
During the opening remarks, Barbara got someone to find me a blanket. By noon my temperature was about 104. I eventually stumbled into the presentation room with Joel, and we gave a presentation on "Google Analytics in the Web Opac" I hope people found interesting. I might have babbled.
The next presentation didn't require me to talk much, so I sat in the front with the blanket.
On the way home, Barbara suggested I sit in the heated passenger seat. Why aren't all car seats heated? Sigh. I was able to drive myself home from the carpool meeting site and called the cancer center. The triage nurse spoke to one of the nurse practitioners (and very wisely did not put that particular person on the phone with me) who said, "Go to the ER."
So I ended up at the ER with an initial diagnosis (after chest ex-ray) of a small touch of pneumonia.
Thursday my mom brought birthday cake, stuffed peppers for dinner, and presents! Presents! Ah loves me some presents. I got a glass murano-style giraffe from the zoo, a handmade cashmere hat and sweater, a penguin trivot, and some other things.
But testing resumed, and a blood culture showed rampaging E coli. Lucky me, either way! I stayed in the hospital long enough to get another paracentesis (they wanted to check to be sure whether the infection is in my belly fluid or not). My belly got so incredibly bloated it was causing my ribcage to expand painfully.
Once the tap was done and they decided what antibiotic I needed, the discharge people planned to let me go with a styrofoam cooler full of antibiotics I can administer to myself. They will be sending a visiting nurse to make sure I have all the steps right. (This is good as I am not at all sure I have the steps right).
Freedom! Sort of...
I didn't want to go to the emergency room.
So I took ibuprofen, and by the next morning my fever was back down. I had a conference to go to Friday at which I was to participate in two presentations. In my car, waiting for Barbara to show up to carpool people to Lansing, I started having violent chills. I took my temperature and it was 102.4. I heaved myself into Barbara's car and eventually (between bouts of violent tooth-chattering) told people I was feeling cold and had a fever. "If I can't move my hands without jerking them," I told Joel, "you might have to move the mouse." Beth let me wear her knitted wool scarf.
During the opening remarks, Barbara got someone to find me a blanket. By noon my temperature was about 104. I eventually stumbled into the presentation room with Joel, and we gave a presentation on "Google Analytics in the Web Opac" I hope people found interesting. I might have babbled.
The next presentation didn't require me to talk much, so I sat in the front with the blanket.
On the way home, Barbara suggested I sit in the heated passenger seat. Why aren't all car seats heated? Sigh. I was able to drive myself home from the carpool meeting site and called the cancer center. The triage nurse spoke to one of the nurse practitioners (and very wisely did not put that particular person on the phone with me) who said, "Go to the ER."
So I ended up at the ER with an initial diagnosis (after chest ex-ray) of a small touch of pneumonia.
Thursday my mom brought birthday cake, stuffed peppers for dinner, and presents! Presents! Ah loves me some presents. I got a glass murano-style giraffe from the zoo, a handmade cashmere hat and sweater, a penguin trivot, and some other things.
But testing resumed, and a blood culture showed rampaging E coli. Lucky me, either way! I stayed in the hospital long enough to get another paracentesis (they wanted to check to be sure whether the infection is in my belly fluid or not). My belly got so incredibly bloated it was causing my ribcage to expand painfully.
Once the tap was done and they decided what antibiotic I needed, the discharge people planned to let me go with a styrofoam cooler full of antibiotics I can administer to myself. They will be sending a visiting nurse to make sure I have all the steps right. (This is good as I am not at all sure I have the steps right).
Freedom! Sort of...
Labels: Brian, E. coli, ER, hospital, paracentesis, pneumonia, work
