Hospital day 11

I know, I know, I missed a few days.  My explanation (not excuse) is that I’m in hospital, not on a rest cure, so sometimes my body declines to participate in activities!  That’s all I’ll say on that!  Jerry has not yet chosen to forgive me for being away, and works diligently to knock the phone away from Don when we’re talking and to communicate his ongoing displeasure by not responding to me when I talk to him.  He simply pretends that I’m not there, and doesn’t show even the tiniest reaction to my voice, except to be more affectionate to Don (who pretends to be annoyed but secretly loves it.)  His team has performed abysmally in the playoffs; they have a “mathematical chance” for a comeback, but it’s not one any betting person would take, nor is it one that has any historical precedent of ever working.  So he’s now onto the CFL…

So I had a little drama in the past couple of days.  Most notable was when I suddenly started to cough and couldn’t catch my breath, so I was temporarily hooked up to oxygen for several hours.  Then my radiation treatment was yesterday, and it wiped me out completely.  I got back to my room, had a quick shower, climbed into bed and was out for several hours — plus I had a fever for most of those.  My nurse was super sweet and very apologetic that I couldn’t get anything for the fever (not a good idea in a cancer patient undergoing treatment) so I was wrapped in several heated blankets and my temperature was checked frequently.  The other side effect of note is my loss of appetite (again) just as I was starting to develop one.  Between us, it’s not difficult to skip hospital meals, but it is frustrating to not even want to look at food or drink.  I’ve been drinking water, as my kidney needs the protection, but I didn’t want food.  The kitchen staff were very solicitous, and they brought me snacks in case I got hungry at night.  

Last night I lay in bed watching a truly spectacular lightning storm play out.  I’ve got a panoramic window with sweeping views and the sky put on an awesome display.  The football game had to be stopped with 2 minutes left to play because of the lightning; I would simply have declared that score the final and asterisked the game, but no… they went back to play the 2 minutes when the storm finally moved off.

Yesterday, too, a dear friend dropped by with a hamper full of home made Trinidadian food in an effort to spark my appetite.  I can’t tell you how exited I was to receive that, nor how thankful I am for their thoughtfulness. It was very kind.  My doctor’s nurse also offered to do a lunch run for me, so I could get a meal that I’d enjoy (they were all very traumatized by the kitchen’s offering of “pasta in a creamy sauce” which looked — in the politest terms possible — regurgitated!)  So I got a Thai basil stir fry with chicken, that was delicious and which made 2 meals the day before radiation was scheduled.  Yesterday I had breakfast, couldn’t eat lunch because I felt off, then slept through supper, nighttime snack delivery and other meal opportunities until this morning’s breakfast.

But you probably are more interested in my progress.  I’m now being monitored to ensure that my readings stay stable after we’ve radiated me and begun to reintroduce my anticoagulants.  If I stay stable, I’ll be discharged on Monday and return home to my boys who will be simultaneously happy I’m home and marginally annoyed that their bachelor days are ending!  (Food is less likely to be deep fried when I’m home!)  I’m not in any pain, but for the last week I’ve been feeling gassy and bloated, which I find annoying, even more since there’s no apparent cause!  I’m also able to walk around fairly easily without having to gasp for air, and I’m delighted!

Asking for ideas again — what gift can I supply to the nurses, orderlies, support workers and others who have been looking after me for the past 11 days?  Last time (a few years ago) I provided some very nice pens to the nurses on the ward, but they don’t use them much any longer.  They scan the patient’s tag and everything is directly entered into the system.  I thought of coffee /tea gift cards, but a casual inquiry revealed that they tend to bring in their own.  I’ve run through several other thoughts, but none seem appropriate, so if anyone has an idea, please share!

That’s it for today.  The nurse will be along in a moment to poke and prod, so I’m off.  Good night!