Message to Michael - GET WELL SOON, BUDDY!

[James_OldeTowne]

I am happy to report Michael is back at home, and "weak but OK".

That's an improvement, and a positive sign!

 

(thumbs u

 

[CHABSENTIA]

Get well.Hope you fell better.

[rbrown4]

Michael,

 

Glad you are back home and hoping that you get well very quickly. Take care.

 

Rey

[just-john]

its good they found the problem and not having anything to eat in a hospital is kind of a blessing.Get Well

[EZ_E]

This ode to a fart is dedicated to His Royal Fart Connoisseur Himself: Michael:

 

A fart is a pleasant thing,

It gives the belly ease,

It warms the bed in winter,

And suffocates the fleas.

 

A fart can be quiet,

A fart can be loud,

Some leave a powerful,

Poisonous cloud

 

A fart can be short,

Or a fart can be long,

Some farts have been known

To sound like a song.....

 

A fart can create

A most curious medley,

A fart can be harmless,

Or silent , and deadly.

 

A fart might not smell,

While others are vile,

A fart may pass quickly,

Or linger a while......

 

A fart can occur

In a number of places,

And leave everyone there,

With strange looks on their faces.

 

From wide-open prairie,

To small elevators,

A fart will find all of

Us sooner or later.

 

But farts are all bad,

Is simply not true-

We must never forget.......

Sweet old farts like you!

 

Kinda brings a tear to your eye - right?

 

[Coin]

:cloud9: :cloud9:

 

Great news Michael ! some real food , and bed rest , hospitals scare the bejeevers outta me , glad you are at least home to recuperate .

Best Wishes

-John

[WoodenJefferson]

Kinda brings a tear to your eye - right?

Yes, it does!

 

Glad to know you are home and progressing! TC

[rrantique]

Glad to see you have made it home Michael and remember how to get instant relief.

[stinkycheese1]

Michael, I really appreciate all your efforts to help me with my coins on MSN messenger. You help out those poor orphan kids and that is a great thing to do!

 

I had no clue that you were having health issues. I Hope you feel better soon!

 

 

[michael]

thanks for all thje thoughts expressed

 

i truly apprecaite it

 

i went to the emergency room last night also

 

three times in less than a week and then hospitalized for 3 days

 

i am not looking forward to the finalized bill

 

but the office woman at the hospital said not to worry they will and can always find me if neeed be and there are payment plans that superceide even death

 

 

[MikeKing]

glad to see you're back, Michael!

[Hoot]

i have a bad ulser in my esophogus

 

Too many spicy girls in your diet Michael.

 

Get well!!! Hoot

[michael]

too many spicy coins

 

but i am still in pain but pain i can stand and i am on a strick diet currently it is all liquids

 

 

if i knew i was going to live this long i would have taken better care of myself

 

thnaks hoot; and all!!!!! for the kind words on this thread it has helped me get through this

[BULLY]

Here I am thinking the word was out about my accident and re-injury, but I knew it probably wasn't me. Only my family calls me Michael. Most people "out there" call me Mike, and I am not ill so much as injured.

 

My story is not so fun, but I'll share, while wishing Michael my best as well, and maybe I can share some positive vibes.

 

Some of you may have heard, some may not have.

 

Sunday, 24February2008, I was in a bad car accident.

 

I am not known for my brevity in storytelling, so this is what happened.

 

I was up, and hungry, the ball and chain was still asleep.

 

I made sure the phone wasn't in the bedroom, so in the event of a stray odd-ball, early Sunday morning call, no one would be awakened. Little did I know that early call would be about me and I'd need the phone to be answered; but I digress already.

 

Anyway, so I got my breakfast, smelling so good on the seat next to me, including some cinnamon that was just OH so good smelling, but I was waiting patiently until I got home to indulge.

 

To make a long story short (too late, I know), I nodded off at the wheel. Frightening, but true. There was a slight curve in the road, which I didn't make, which was apparently where I went off the road, according to the police report. That is also how I then hit a VERY LARGE oak tree. The police report said that my statement to the officer of being asleep at the wheel was consistent because there was no evidence of tire/skid marks on the road, nor that I tried to swerve in the snow to avoid the tree.

 

The impact of hitting the tree, however, woke me. Fortunately, I've been wearing a seatbelt now for over 27 years, thanks to my wonderful mother, who starting me wearing one long before it was the law or "fashionable." Wearing the seatbelt and the airbags in the car, while causing some injuries, saved my life.

 

Once I was conscious, it was a struggle, but I was able to reach into my coat pocket and get my cell phone and call 911. The first police officer was there within minutes. Others shortly thereafter, along with several fire trucks and ambulances. This is part of small town life: such a thing is quite an event, EVERYONE on duty (some even OFF duty) shows up to check out the action. It was a little overwhelming, as if I wasn't in enough shock.

 

Anyway, while the first police officer was there, I was able to at least take off my seat belt which was slicing into my neck, it left quite a deep and sore cut, which no one told me about, and which I didn't see until I saw myself in the bathroom mirror in the hospital that night - and screamed fairly loudly. I had some other facial lacerations as well, some severe bruising on my chest, hematoma on my right pectoral, again from the seat belt presumably. I also got to see the several inch wide bruise around my waist, from the seat belt, no wonder I was so tender, and my chest hurt so much.

 

HOWEVER, I SKIPPED A BIG PART.

 

The EMTs had a heck of a time getting me out of my car. The front end was crushed quite severely (my family) took some photos later while it was in the impound yard while I was hospitalized), so I could see for myself, because I didn't get to see it at the time, you see, I was flat on my back when they finally got me out of the car, not knowing what injury I MIGHT have they put a neck-brace type thing on me, and my eyeglasses were missing, so I was immobilized and pretty much blind as a bat.

 

Anyway, the problem was that I couldn't open the door from the inside, though they were able to open MY door from the outside, thank goodness, because with the car batteries in my hybrid dead, they could NOT open the passenger side door at all, making it all the more difficult to get me out of the car, only being able to work from one side, and with the front end being crushed over me a bit, not to mention that I was in a great deal of pain, my lower back, my left side especially.

 

I should add that it was a VERY COLD morning, and the accident took place at 7:24am according to the police report, and the car wasn't exactly heated while all this took place for an extended period of time, so I was shivering, even with the blanket that they got for me.

 

Sorry to be jumping all around in the story, but I guess it's sort of how that day was for me, all over the place, so my story telling is not unlike how I felt that day: JUMBLED.

 

When I was on the phone with the dispatcher, I tried to get them to call home, they tried several times, but could only leave messages, because you may recall that the phone was not in the bedroom. Mind you, the accident took place probably less than 1 mile from the my home. So, with so many police officers on the scene, I begged for one of them to go to the house and alert my family. They obliged. Again, a benefit of small town life.

 

Now, the ball and chain didn't immediately know where I was (I often sleep weird hours) so I could have been anywhere in the house and didn't see me when answering the door. Seeing a policeman at the door, the first thoughts that came to mind were of parents, who live here in town, and are getting older. To his surprise, and shock, the repeated doorbell ringing and knocking to wake him was about me.

 

While en-route, the EMTs were talking to me the entire way, tending to the urgent needs, oxygen, etc. Now, here's something that while annoying in a way, will inject a bit of comic relief into this otherwise tragic tale, You know how your parents always told you to wear clean underwear in case you were ever in an accident? Well I'm here to tell you that IT DOESN'T MATTER! First, they started with my coat -- my WARMEST jacket. Mind you, I wasn't out walking or anything, so it wasn't buttoned, and it was loose, so it was already practically hanging off of me from when they had to PULL me out of the car, so I BEGGED him and said "it will just slide right off." To which he replied "Well it will slide off even easier now" as he cut the entire thing right off of me. Then my shirt, my pants, and yes, even my underwear. So clean underwear in case of an accident? IRRELEVANT! They cut everything off! They want to check you for injuries without moving you and causing harm, thus, they cut the clothes off. It really makes sense, but it just wasn't thrilling at the time. Not to mention I was FREEZING to the point of shaking. And to those who know me well know I LOVE IT COLD, know I barely venture out in the heat, I like the a/c set to 60 degrees in the summer, and barely like using the heat in the winter, but I was FREEZING. They wrapped me in blankets, but it wasn't enough for some reason - maybe shock.

 

Every turn the ambulance made, even though I was strapped down very securely, caused me extreme pain in my lower back near my buttocks, and my hip, my shoulder too, as well as my chest. It made for a VERY long ride, even though the ride was not long at all, it just felt it.

 

Upon arrival at the hospital, a TEAM of doctors and nurses was waiting for me and went into IMMEDIATE action. There were x-rays, movement back and forth, you name it, they did it. They most difficult thing was trying to get blood out of me. For weeks I had marks from where about 6 different people tried and failed, including the arterial vein in my thigh. I told them not to try in my arms, that the veins there fool people EVERY TIME, that it has been that way for decades -- they insisted they knew better, they had EXPERTS who NEVER failed. Their experts failed. The experts who they call in when those experts fail, failed too. I told them to call over to Quest (a block away) and get one of my "regulars" who never misses and takes the blood from the back of my hand. This was about the only sticking point I had with the ER staff - but I get that anywhere, which is why I refuse to go to any lab other than the Quest a block from Baystate. I didn't really have much choice in this circumstance.

 

During this time, they gave me LOTS of pain medication. First they gave me 4 (whatevers -- I don't remember how it is measured) of morphine. I got no relief from the pain, all it did was make me drowsy. I was in and out of consciousness. The doctor ordered 6 MORE (whatevers) of morphine. I still did not get relief from pain -- just more drowsy. The doctor would give me a form to sign, and as I would be reading it (I always READ before I sign), I'd fall asleep with the pen in my hand. I explained that I have a high threshold for pain, because of my migraines and other things I live with, some which might debilitate the average person, but along with that, I have a higher threshold for pain relievers. The doctor then ordered a COMBO of two DIFFERENT pain relievers, neither of which was morphine, both in high doses -- I finally got SOME relief.

 

Soon we learned WHY I was not getting much relief, because I had some SEVERE injuries...not just bumps and bruises and lacerations...

 

At some point they did a CT-SCAN, I don't remember when it fit into all of this. In fact, I think they did two. I don't remember why. I was medicated after all.

 

Well, all the x-rays were in, it seems I had a couple of problems:

 

My severe lower back pain?

 

I had dislocated my left hip.

I had a few fractures in the same area.

Based on the pain level, I MAY have a few small fractures in my ribs that xrays did not reveal.

the hematoma on my right pectoral

Lacerations and bruising galore (example, my entire left butt cheek was BLACK). Sorry, that was probably too much information. I didn't see THAT until I got HOME a few days later actually, because I only had sponge baths in the hospital, and only saw my FRONT in the mirror in the hospital bathroom, so similar to the scream when I saw my face that 1st night in the hospital, the first night at home seeing my behind in the full length mirror in my own bathroom made me scream. I got to see how bad all my bruises really were, and this was after several days of healing! But again I digress...

 

What next?

 

Well, they were going to do a procedure to put my hip back in place. This procedure is done with an anesthetic that keeps me awake, but is supposed to cause amnesia, so you don't recall the procedure at all. I asked, and the doctor said it has about a 70% success rate. I wasn't thrilled with the odds, but discussing it with the doctor, I was convinced that it was a reasonable alternative compared to the risks of general anesthesia, if general anesthesia could be avoided.

 

By this time, my other half had already made it to the hospital and had been in to see me in the ER. I wasn't terribly lucid with all the pain meds, so we all knew what was going to happen. He came, prepared with my Living Will, because you just never know.

 

So, I had the procedure, and the doctor was right, I didn't remember even having it --a GREAT thing in my book. Here's the bad news. I was one of the unlucky ones for whom it was unsuccessful.

 

This means that I needed the procedure which requires general anesthesia. I am not sure of all the sequence of events here, but I had some time before I was wheeled off, and I was blessed that he even brought my tote bag which had a spare pair of eyeglasses! My mother would be coming up to our house, and that he'd go get her there, and bring her up to Baystate, since she doesn't know the area at all. It was nice to know she was coming too.

 

So, technically, the procedure is not surgical, in that it is NOT invasive - there is no incision or anything. However, apparently RE-LOCATING a hip is apparently not a pleasant thing, nor an easy task, and requires general anesthesia accordingly, though it is a relatively BRIEF procedure. It had a name, I forget what it was called, but I think it lasted 45 minutes or less.

 

Once I was in the recovery room, I could again have visitors. I did, however, keep falling asleep during conversations. I never got sick or anything, though that night I was STARVING and the doctor had only ordered LIQUIDS and didn't change me to solid foods until the middle of the night (long after the meal service ended). Fortunately for me, there was a VERY NICE night nurse who made me a couple of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and some graham crackers, and some chocolate pudding to tide me over -- remember, I had not eaten in almost two days (ok, a day and a half) at this point, since I hadn't had breakfast the day before, so you think about dinner Saturday night, and here it is the wee hours of Monday morning.

 

Then the good news: The hospital has sort of this odd thing where they basically have a menu. As long as you aren't on a restricted diet (like liquid, low salt, whatever), you can order whatever you want, though just ONE entree, so you can't order entrees for visitors without paying for them). That said, it was like a menu at Applebee's or Friendly's or one of those kind of places. They had build your own sandwich kind of things, including burgers, build your own salads, they had an AMAZING chocolate cake desert that I had with EVERY meal, breakfast, lunch, and dinner (you could order everything at any time of the day -- so burgers for breakfast, omelets for dinner, it didn't matter!!). If you aren't having something that would require a restricted diet, I recommend Baystate (Springfield , Mass) for the AMAZING menu selections! You just call your order (like room service) and it arrives in about 45 minutes or less.

 

Anyway, I had a few problems during my stay, including a basic personality conflict with one of the day nurses -- the conflict being that she didn't have one. Also, when I was in pain, she didn't give me my pain medication, saying it wasn't time yet. When the shift change happened and I mentioned my pain to the nice night nurse, she saw that the doctor had changed my pain medication to a higher dose and MORE FREQUENTLY. Nurse Ratchet day nurse didn't follow those instructions and left me to suffer with no pain medication for SEVEN HOURS (the new prescription was every THREE HOURS). And they say I can't take pain? In my best Chris Matthews voice...HA!

 

Needless to say I filed a complaint about her. Another problem was that no matter HOW many times I told the nursing staff (who wrote it down and read it back to me,, but then went and entered it into the computer), they could not get the names, dosage, and frequency of the medication I was taking correct. They got SOME right, but they got more wrong than right. It just made for hassles at odd hours of the night when they had to page doctors to write prescriptions for medications I have been taking for years. It seemed so silly.

 

So, I was hospitalized for a few days, but came home by the middle of the week, and am relatively ambulatory. The doctor was really good about involving me in the decision. We talked about perhaps staying longer or going home. Frankly, with that evil day nurse, I would be more comfortable at home. Not to mention that I have some experience with this and managing at home, from last year due to a broken ankle almost a year ago, right around the same time as this actually. Next year at this time, I am locking myself in my room!

 

I'm still having my share of pain, but the bruises are healing remarkably well. I have two decent narcotic pain killers, one is "long lasting" I take that twice a day, and one is short-term to be taken in more frequent doses, so between the two I get some relief. It doesn't make it go away though. I am in sort of a constant ache, hurting more at some times than at others.

 

4 weeks into my return home, I had a fall. Without getting into the details, let's just call it a "bathroom injury." I fell and was home alone, writhing on the floor for a good 20 minutes before I was able to pull myself up. I was in excrutiating pain, but since I was able to walk on it, with my cane of course, I got the idea that I probably didn't dislocate my hip again, so I didn't call 911 or call the other half to go to the ER. I DID, however, call the surgeon who agreed to see me first thing in the morning.

 

He did some x-rays, and I was right, no problem, but it was a setback. So, at LEAST six more weeks before he will even consider allowing me to start physical therapy. He also prepared me for the likelihood of arthritis in that hip in many years to come. Also, he said, that since the thigh bone no longer has a round top going into the joint, and has a rough edge, depending how this first year goes will really tell the story. If it goes well, I may be good for a few years, or five years, or longer. If it goes badly, I may need a hip replacement at the end of a year's time. Did I mention that I am 37 years old?

 

So over the last six weeks or so, I've been dealing with the fun stuff:

 

Dealing with the auto insurance (my car was DEFINITELY totaled, there is no question about it). We had a rental in the meantime, since my insurance pays for it -- not like I could drive it anyway, but the other half enjoyed it.

 

The medical bills which are starting to roll in (all the people who didn't have my insurance information because they aren't part of the hospital) -- the ambulance, the anesthesiologist, etc. So I am filling out LOTS of forms and sending lots of copies of insurance cards everywhere.

 

The insurance company was actually good about it's offer on the car -- more than I could find for a price on Kelley Blue Book (private sale, low mileage, in excellent condition) or the other price source which is escaping me at the moment. So, I didn't need to haggle at all.

 

It turned out that the rental car company (Enterprise) sells its cars for below Blue Book value, and they have a "no haggle price" program. So, we checked them out. I ended up finding a lovely car, 2007 model with only about 15,000 miles on it, less than a year old according to the Carfax report, still with original manufacturer's warranty to boot.

 

Just like the rental, I am not allowed to drive yet, but the other half is enjoying the new car. Meanwhile, I shop for coins on eBay and watch TV and get waited on hand and foot because I am not allowed to up and downstairs more than is absolutely necessary.

 

So, there you have it, my tale of woe, but as I keep repeating: I survived.

 

 

 

 

[thebeav]

Boy, I hate to hear of anyone hurting. I mean, here we are, talk about coins and such.....

What's really important

 

Hope you guys are well !!

 

Paul

[EZ_E]

Dang, Bully, I'm sorry for your troubles but...whew!...that was a long read. But I read it all. It is awful, I know. Think of the what ifs. But you were lucky that it wasn't worse. Believe me. I'm an x-ray tech and I've seen plenty of trauma. Most trauma comes from either falling asleep or from recklessness. There was only one thing shocking to me in your whole story--you're only 37? I put you in your mid fifties. :þ Well, best of luck to you, Mike. Rest up and follow the doctor's instructions.

 

[font:System]Get well soon![/font]

 

[Zoins]

Glad to hear you're hanging in there.

 

Best wishes on returning home and recovering quickly.