A Week in the Life of Dollycas – Hospital Edition

I know it’s Monday but no Reading Itinerary today.
Hopefully next week.

I am home but it has been a tough couple of weeks. If you follow my blog you know I hate March, especially mid-March. On March 13, 2020, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. On March 14, 2001, I became a hemiplegic after a motor vehicle accident. On March 15, 2015, I lost my oldest son to suicide. So why not add more drama to March?

On Thursday, March 13, I took what I thought would be a quick trip to urgent care to have someone look at a wound on my elbow. With my history of having a bone infection about 18 months ago, they weren’t taking any chances. They ran tests and took X-rays. A couple of hours later I was in the back of an ambulance headed about 90 minutes away to a larger hospital.

Friday morning I was squeezed into the orthopedic surgery schedule where they opened up my elbow and cleaned out any bad bone, tissue, and fluid. While it wasn’t pretty it was not as bad as last time. After surgery, I was started on a broad course of antibiotics while cultures were analyzed. The orthopedic surgeon also decided to be proactive with my care. He scheduled surgery for this past Wednesday with a plastic surgeon, one of the best in the state. Together they decided to open up my forearm and move so muscle to protect my elbow. They also planned a skin graft from my thigh if necessary. When I met with the plastic surgeon he explained that a skin graft would add 5 – 7 more days to my hospital stay and I begged him to avoid it if at all possible. Turns out I had plenty of good tough skin to work with at the site so no skin graft was needed.

By the time the surgery was completed the infectious disease doctors learned the infection was the same I had before so their plan was to do the same this time. At home antibiotics through a pick line in my good arm. So Thursday the pick line was inserted and the doctors agreed to release me on Friday with the promise, that I would go straight home to my recliner and not go directly to my computer to catch up on all the things I missed. I followed their directions and spent a few hours at the computer over the weekend with breaks. I know I will build up more endurance every day but I can’t believe how quickly I run out of energy right now.

I really need to thank not only my doctors but the nurses, CNAs, and all the other staff at the hospital. I had a couple of bad days not only with my physical health but my mental health as well. Marking the 10th anniversary of Kris’s death by myself was hard. One of the nurses took the time to listen to my story and let me tell her about my son and my family. She was extremely busy but she took the time. Caught crying a time or two others asked and gave me some much-needed hugs. But every day there they were kind, compassionate, and professional. They work hard and sadly they are not always appreciated. I heard a male patient yell at them, belittle them, and be just plain mean. It hurt my heart. The staff remained calm, tried to comfort him, and went above and beyond and continued to give him excellent care as well even though the words and actions did hurt them. There truly are angels everywhere.

Thanks to the wonderful care I received I am home, back with Mr. Dollycas and my puppy Daisy. Son #2 brought Athena along to pick me up and bring me home with a small pitstop at Pizza Pit. I was craving my favorite after the small unseasoned portions at the hospital. Athena was a hit at the hospital and just the little face I needed to see to make the day perfect.

I have to thank Mr. Dollycas for holding down the fort here on my blog and with the book tours, even creating posts to fulfill as many of my commitments as he could. He couldn’t write my reviews so I have a few of those to get caught up on.

My posting may be a little sporadic as I get my strength back and have some follow-up appointments, so please bear with me. I hope to get everything back to normal soon.

Thank you for following me and Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book. You are the reason I do this and the drive to get back to you gave me the push to advocate for myself, listen to the doctors, and strive to get well. There are plenty more escapes coming!

Have a wonderful day!

Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent