Things are looking up…way up!

I had blood work done Wednesday afternoon, the day after I left the hospital. I could not believe how much higher my counts were. The two I have been keeping track of are the neutrophils and hemoglobin. On Tuesday afternoon when the did blood work at the hospital my neutrophil count as .7 and my hemoglobin was 81. One day later my neutrophils were 1.6 and my hemoglobin was 91! What a difference a day makes. I think it was because I was home and I could cuddle with my sweetie and my poopers. I had more blood work today and I cannot wait for the results!

Pancytopenia

Pancytopenia is the official diagnosis of why I ended up in the hospital for a week. The reason I developed it is because I was taking imuran for my colitis. Imuran depresses the bone marrow. My dose was doubled 2 months ago to help cope with a colitis flare that was brewing. I am not sure if it was completely the imuran that caused the problem or if the H1N1 flu I had exacerbated the situation. I guess we will never know.

Dealing with pancytopenia has not been a walk in the park. When I was admitted into the hospital I was in critical condition. The scariest thing was my neutrophils (a form of white cells) were at .2. The normal range is 2.0-7.0. Given that these white cells are among the first to respond to any kind of infection it is a miracle that I did not come down with anything. My hemoglobin was at 81. Normal hemoglobin is between 120-150. While in the hospital, my hemoglobin plummeted to 68. At that point I was given a pint of blood. The experience of getting a blood transfusion was rather surreal. It took about 4 hours to run in because they were not sure that my IV would hold. Watching blood that was once in someone else flowing into me was a bit bizarre. If you can give blood, I urge you too. You never know when someone you know or love will need a blood transfusion.

Dealing with the low hemoglobin is quite difficult. I find it really difficult to walk any distance (think to the bathroom) without feeling like my limbs are moving through concrete. I am sleeping a minimum of 12 hours. My pallor is grey. I have very little motivation – especially to eat. However, I need to have good nutrition so that I can continue to make all the blood cells. I find that doing too many tasks in a row where I am moving around is impossible. Luckily, I have been able to sit and work this week. I even worked in the hospital.

The big question is what is going to happen with my colitis. The answer is unknown at this time. I have a new GI who has started me on a new protocol and we shall see what happens. Hopefully this break from my immune system will allow my colon to heal. I have to admit that I am simultaneously cautiously optimistic and deathly afraid.

So for now, I am not supposed to go out except to the lab when I have to wear a mask. I can’t really drive until my hemoglobin is up. But being in isolation at home is way better than the hospital!

I am home…

It was a bit of a saga this morning. When they did my morning blood test my neutraphils had gone to .5 which was most frustrating. I had so hoped to go home today, I was missing being with and I was desperately missing the dogs. So when I got the news that they had gone I just about lost it. They gave me the injection that is supposed to encourage their growth. We decided to do another test at 2 and they had gone back up to .7.

Then the issue became getting a hold of all doctors involved to let me go. The resident had to talk to her senior, then the attending for their unit, the hematologist and the gastroenterologist all had to agree. It seriously looked like it would take until tomorrow but she was able to pull it off and I am very grateful.

I have to say that my experience in the Royal Columbian was quite good. I didn’t get to see much of the place as I was not allowed to leave my room, ever! As a lesbian couple we always expect some kind of homophobia when dealing with large institutions. The staff there were so good that I didn’t realize until we were coming home that there had been no homophobia. All the staff who worked with us knew because Deb and I are too big to fit into a closet.*

I am still pretty week. My hemoglobin is about 81 which makes me fall asleep when I am comfortable. Walking from one end of the house to the other is trying. My limbs feel like lead but this too shall pass. Last week I was noticing I having trouble walking from the car to the office and thought I better get back on my treadmill. I am holding off on that at least until I hit the low-end of normal for hemoglobin.

I am off to go and cuddle with my dogs and my sweetie if the dogs will let us.

 

*I think I stole that line from Deb.

Short post

Counts are up. I need .2 on the neutraphils and I can go home.

Which came first?

So I have a team of doctors here – they call themselves the CTU. When I was first admitted I was told I was being assigned to the CTU team and there seemed to be some reverence in that statement. The team is comprised of 2 residents and one senior doctor. They seem to argue but generally they get things done. Now I am wondering what came first – these teams of doctors or House?

Well-meaning people

This post is still brought to you by me from my hospital bed. And who says I don’t take my commitments seriously!!

Today I would like to talk about well-meaning people. You know the ones. Your arm may be falling off and they suggest that you get some herbal remedy for that. Well today it was about a naturopath. I am sitting in the hospital because my white blood cell counts are so low that I would likely not be able to withstand an infection or bacteria should I come into contact with it. My hemoglobin is at 71 and, well, you get the picture.

I get this email from someone who says while she knows I was really sick and in the hospital had I considered a naturopath. I just about died. Ya, k, I will get right on that! Now before all my friends who are proponents of natural healing get all mad it me let me make something clear. I am not against natural healing methods. I know that herbs etc have natural healing properties. I know that massage therapy works because it works for me. I know people who have had great success using naturopaths etc.

My point is that it is all about degree and severity. You see a doctor and go to the hospital when your arm is falling off and you see a naturopath when you need help feeling better overall or dealing with allergies.

Short post…

I am still in Royal Columbian and finally got out of emerg after 2 days. Most of the nurses have been good, a few have been outstanding a couple could give lessons to Nurse Ratchett. I have a really bad case of flush which is what happens in your mouth when you do not have an immune system. It is very painful. I asked for some more of this mouth rinse that would numb it for a bit and give me some relief. She would not fucking give it to me. I could have morphine or tylenol 3 but not this rinse made no sense. I now had it beside my bed.

This Post is Brought to you by the Letter i

Hopefully I have not entered the NaBloPoMo hall of shame. I did not blog yesterday. I blogged multiple times on other days so I am hoping to have that taken into consideration.

I didn’t blog yesterday because I spent the day in my doctor’s office, then out for a bite to eat and then being sent to the hospital. I will spare the gory details but, for all intents and purposes, I hav no immune system. All of my counts are profoundly low – especially my white blood cells which were at .6. They should be between 4 and 11. I am not exactly sure what has happened – whether it was the increase does of imuran or the flu really wiped out. I am not sure they know yet either.

A little explanation about the title. Deb brought me my MacBookand I have tethered it tomy iPhone in order to get on-line. K, I thought it was funny. I am going to go to sleep now…where I am sure I will be hysterical in my dreams!

Why?

We are having one of our infamous Pineapple Express storms. Basically, during a pineapple express you can expect 150 mm of rain over the course of 24 hours. What I would like to know, is why or why do people think it is necessary to drive like maniacs? I was on the Mary Hill Bypass coming home tonight and some idiot sped past me, followed by a wave. I could not see and almost crashed into the abutment. Ridiculous! It really does not take a genius to slow down and drive safely.

Wonton Soup

I made wonton soup yesterday. I found the recipe for the wontons here and I just made a plain chicken stock from 2 chicken frames, some chicken herbs and spices and a leek. The results were fantastic! We made the prawn wontons and then we made another batch with ground pork and the same spices. Honestly though I could not really tell the difference between the prawn and pork so when we do it  again I will probably only do pork. I modified the wonton recipe slightly by adding some finely diced water chestnut because I love the texture.

I also thought I would take this opportunity to link to some blogs that I love reading.

365 days of Puppy in Pictures – The Food Lady got a new border collie puppy named Dexter. She has promised a year in pictures of Dexter as he grows up. The Food Lady has mad photography skills which she demonstrates in her other blog Three Woofs and a Woo.

Turtle Gardens and SAINTS – both blogs are written by two women who are in the trenches of rescue every day.

Penmachine – Derek has been blogging at penmachine.com for a very long. His topics range far and wide including techie stuff, photography and living with cancer.

Shakesville – is a feminist, left-wing blog run by Melissa McEwen. The writing is sharp and concise with great insight. Among the regular features is: News from Shakes Manor. Quite often these entries involve a conversation wherein Liss will write in Iain’s Scottish brogue.

Talking to Air – Airdrie blogs about her life raising 2 kids, having a husband living with cancer and her own struggles with depression. Since the addition of Lucy, the shihpoo cross, it is turning into a dog blog! Love those dog blogs!

Mashable – it is a great techie blog. They follow tech trends and explain many of the intricacies of social media.

Wandering Coyote – I linked to WC’s cooking blog Retorte which is where I got the wonton recipe from. I really enjoy this blog as WC does not hold anything back. She brings her tattooed, pierced and potty-mouthed mantra to all of her topics. Especially when it comes to the Conservative Party.

Not to be Trusted with Knives – is the blog of Dr. Beth Snow. Famous for her weekly installments about BC’s premiers is very informative. Dr. Beth is the Queen of Footnotes, devoted Canucks fan and the owner of an iPhone, finally! Oh and she is also my one and only NaBloPoMo buddy. Oh and Dr. Beth totally rocks! She gave me a much desired Google Wave Invitation!

The Life of a Prairie Mom – this blog is about the experience of an Oklahoma family who have gone off the grid. She does not update it often as they are living without electricity. I find it fascinating to read about how they live without modern conveniences.