An Update from WIF - Day 10

This is the voice of WIF again, and we are now one third of the way through this initial process, the 30-day hospital stay.

Also, a shout out to Scotland – “Hi Scotland and thank-you!!”  

May 5, 2012

Canmancan started the day in an inauspicious way, waking up on the bathroom floor at 5:30 a.m., his undignified posture due to the fact that he had fainted on the toilet and fallen off.  Not content with that, a few hours later C-man was sitting on the side of the bed, where someone was waiting to help him to the bathroom, and fainted again, fortunately falling backwards onto the bed this time.  They called a “code blue” (cardiac arrest) and then cancelled it when they realized he was okayish.  Not content with this level of attention either, C-man fainted yet a third time, while sitting up in his bed for a chest x-ray.  Enough already!  Stop being such a diva!

The night had been better because loud-speaking-in-tongues had been sedated for part of it, so C-man was much more alert today.  Fever still up and diarrhea had started, so we’re in partial isolation, and everyone has to be gowned and gloved to be in his cubicle.  His blood pressure was way down (hence the fainting) and he was forbidden to get out of bed.  Got both oral and IV potassium, and two rounds of broad-spectrum antibiotics.  The Hickman line is wonderful – all the inputs and outputs go through that.  When his doctor visited she saw the rash on his face and suspected Shingles.  Oh good, we need that.  However, the infectious disease specialist who visited later thought it was just a heat rash, and not Shingles, so better news.  Blood pressure is improving.

C-man has been wearing his own clothes and looking quite beachy in shorts and casual shirts, but the last few days it’s been those attractive hospital nightgowns all the way.  I think looking at them makes you feel sicker.  He’s also attired in attractive anti-embolism hose, which only serves to reinforce our total lack of interest in cross-dressing.

His platelet count is very low.  As in four (4) (IV) (quatre).  Normally it should be between 150 and 450, so C-man is a clear underachiever.   He received a platelet transfusion, which seemed to stop him from peeing blood.  Did I mention that?

A brief digression now.  I am so proud to live in a country where our blood products are not paid for, but come from the kindness of strangers.  And I’m fiercely proud that C-man himself has been one of those kind strangers over 50 times - something you’ll probably never hear from him.  A scant three months after trying to donate platelets and finding the problem with his counts, he’s found himself on the flip side of that particular coin. 

End of digression.  Surprisingly, after letting us plummet all day, the roller coaster ride improved in the evening, and when I called C-man was listening to music (first time in 2 days) and reading a book (first time in 3 or 4 days).  Time to take a derivative and see if we’ve reached the minimum for this particular parabola.