Jeanne C.
Complication Nightmare
Jul 23, 2009
I just returned from being in the hospital since Monday.
I thought I was doing pretty good, but this past weekend was really bad for me. I developed diahrea on Saturday. Then it seemed everything I sipped tasted very weird. I usually have no problem with my protein drinks, but for some reason I just couldn't get any down. Even water tasted strange. I must have tried 6 different drinks over the weekend, but every one of them tasted weird to me. I started to worry when the diahrea didn't stop and I was sure I wasn't getting in enough liquid to compensate for what I was losing. I also started getting a very strange bile taste in my mouth....so bad I kept gagging! Then I had a burning pain in my upper abdomin. I went to a support group meeting on Sunday, but couldn't stay because I felt so bad! I kept running to the bathroom all night.
Finally, I called the surgeon's office at 6am on Monday and the covering doc told me to go to the ER. I really do hate emergency rooms! They started an IV and then the waiting game started. Eventually a doc from the surgeon's practice came in and said they wanted to do a CT scan to make sure there wasn't any problems with the surgery. The CT scan showed a large gallstone in my gallbladder, but other than that, everything else looked okay. They had no idea why I had diahrea, so they decided to admit me overnight to watch me. 12 hours later, they finally found a room for me. They had me in quarrantine because they weren't sure if I was contageous. The trips to the bathroom were absolute agony! My bottom was so irritated and sore that every time I went, I would bleed. Then the diahrea was so spontaneous, I couldn't even make it out of bed. I ended up wearing a Depends....how humiliating is that?
During morning rounds on Tuesday, the PA from the surgeon's practice came along and told me that since all my tests came out negative, I would be going home. I burst into tears. How could you send me home when I can't control the diahrea? How would I not get dehydrated? And why would you send me home in worse shape than when I got there?
Then to make matters worse, I couldn't get a nurse to come in to get me another Depends. 5 hours later and numerous rings on the callbell, I finally got the attention of a nurse's assistant and told her I was going to call a Patient Advocate. I guess that was the magic words. A "mental health" nurse came in and said that the nurse on duty thought I needed a visitor! Can you believe it? I was so pissed! I told her that since I've been in, there were so many mistakes made and so little attention to what I needed, I was so frustrated.
First, the kitchen sends up a tray of liquids for me. The tray consisted of 8 packets of sugar, two apple juices and a regular jello. Okay, are they trying to kill me???? And what was I supposed to put the sugar in anyway?
Then, I asked over and over if I could get some kind of cream or ointment for my butt since I am bleeding and raw from going so much. Nothing.
Well....apparently she has some power there, and by the afternoon, I had a packet of baby wipes, a container of Tucks, a tube of this really amazing cream for ulcerated skin, a bag of about 10 Depends and a tray of acceptable liquids for me to drink.
I'll finish this later.....gotta go lay down....sigh!
