Where I've Been - Not Fun
Feb. 15th, 2017 03:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
puss_nd_bootsSo the first weekend in February, I started having belly cramping. I had my period at the time, so I dismissed it as a particularly rough time of the month. The pain solidified, got sharper, and seemed to center on my right ovary, so my first thought was ruptured ovarian cyst. I proceded to go to a walk-in clinic, where the doctor also suspected a ruptured ovarian cyst and sent me for an ultrasound.
I took the ultrasound to my primary care doctor, who took one look at the results and sent me to the hospital for a CAT scan. That revealed my appendix had ruptured. I had shown NONE of the typical signs of appendicitis - no nausea and vomiting, no high fever. The diagnosis shocked the hell out of me.
I ended up in the hospital for the next week. The doctor said the body had, thankfully, contained the rupture within an abscess; the procedure in that case, the doctor said, is to wait for the abscess to get big enough to be drainable. When that happens, they install a drain and let it drain itself out while giving heavy antibiotics. When "everything in the belly settles down," as he put it, about 6-8 weeks later, what remains of the appendix is removed
They were finally able to put in the drain Saturday (it was supposed to be Friday, but it was delayed a day when someone sent the team doing the procedure the wrong version of my latest CAT scan). Until then, I mostly felt feverish, miserable, and slept too much. I improved a lot once the drain was put in, though. They sent me home yesterday, drainage bag still in my stomach - not sure how long it has to stay there. I'm just glad that I am HOME, and that I'm not constantly being stabbed with needles and having blood drawn. (My arms are basically two huge bruises).
So, that's where things are. Not sure when I'll be able to return to writing - still not quite up for it physically, still couldn't sit at a computer for long periods of time. (I'm officially on medical leave from work, btw).
I took the ultrasound to my primary care doctor, who took one look at the results and sent me to the hospital for a CAT scan. That revealed my appendix had ruptured. I had shown NONE of the typical signs of appendicitis - no nausea and vomiting, no high fever. The diagnosis shocked the hell out of me.
I ended up in the hospital for the next week. The doctor said the body had, thankfully, contained the rupture within an abscess; the procedure in that case, the doctor said, is to wait for the abscess to get big enough to be drainable. When that happens, they install a drain and let it drain itself out while giving heavy antibiotics. When "everything in the belly settles down," as he put it, about 6-8 weeks later, what remains of the appendix is removed
They were finally able to put in the drain Saturday (it was supposed to be Friday, but it was delayed a day when someone sent the team doing the procedure the wrong version of my latest CAT scan). Until then, I mostly felt feverish, miserable, and slept too much. I improved a lot once the drain was put in, though. They sent me home yesterday, drainage bag still in my stomach - not sure how long it has to stay there. I'm just glad that I am HOME, and that I'm not constantly being stabbed with needles and having blood drawn. (My arms are basically two huge bruises).
So, that's where things are. Not sure when I'll be able to return to writing - still not quite up for it physically, still couldn't sit at a computer for long periods of time. (I'm officially on medical leave from work, btw).
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