Hope For Less Worry Soon.

Scatterlings.

Jacquelyn Berl.
http://jacquelynberl.blogspot.com/

Since Friday I have been taking the Urispas tablets, they are to stop the bladder having spasms.

It seems to be working already to a certain extent, but of course it is early days, have only taken them now for three days, believe it is about two weeks before it works well.

My op is on the 26 November, which will come around quickly enough now; I know that the op to have the SP catheter is the only way to go,

Sadly it is the only way to go, seems a weird idea to have an op to make life easier that gives me a perpetual open wound that needs special care and attention.

But it is the only other option, seeing as I have had the Foley since August 2007, I now need to move no to the SP catheter.

Know that I have had the Foley for long enough now so have to make the switch, am actually in lots of ways looking forward to it being done.

Just wish that at night at the very moment I put my head down on the pillow and am just about to drift off and then each time, I think about the SP op and am wide awake right away.

Shame that there are no other options, wish there were research as to whether there are better ways to facilitate urination.

Another way so that there is not an open wound which has to be managed carefully and kept clean and sterile at all times.

Years ago I worked briefly at The Dairy Research Institute in Reading, where my job was to look after calves that had canulas with lids, in their stomachs so fluid could be taken out for investigation.

It was not pleasant looking after these animals; the whole project was to find out if calves could live on artificial milk so that cow’s milk would be for human consumption only.

I know it is not the same but keep seeing the unhealed calves flesh around the canula.

And the stomach fluids that would ooze out and dry rock solid which I had to clean off without causing too much pain.

Not a nice job hurting animals and killing them off once they were between 6 to 10 months and getting a new batch to feed artificial milk to.

I left after 6 months as I would not believe the official line that animals have no feelings and could no long bear hurting them daily.

That was 1974 and here it is 36 years later I too will have an open wound in my lower stomach.

All I hope is that it will be less worry than the Foley catheter is right now.   

Still Very Optimistic About Life.

Wheelchair Adaptation.

An interesting article on pain relief through cannabis.

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/features/up-in-smoke-cannabis-gave-me-my-life-back-2041640.html

Slept surprisingly well last night, much better than I had expected seeing as Sunday night was such a very bad night.

It was almost as if all my worries had been reviewed many times over and from many angles on Sunday to Monday that I did not have to do it again.

Perhaps I am also being practical as I realise that I can do nothing but keep optimistic and hope healing happens quickly and well.

As it is August now the chances of getting healed and back outside are pretty slim nevertheless I still hope it happens.

Ever the optimist glad that I am an optimistic person, think if I were not like that my life would be worse.

Tomorrow Ton Peeks will be here at 11.30, glad he will come round but also sad as we said goodbye last week we thought for at least a few months not one week.

I am well aware that once you have a pressure sore the skin becomes very fragile indeed; my sore in 2008 was very deep so took ages to heal.

Took from 21 August 2008 to 6 October 2009 for it to heal, I got the adapted seat end of November and sat until 14 January.

When a new cushion on the shower chair caused bad friction which removed the skin this healed end of April when I had my first trip outside, it was 25 to 26 degrees lovely and warm.

The next setback was 16 May when I sat briefly on the catheter tube this healed in two weeks.

The next time was 18 July and it healed on 25 July and Ton confirmed this on the 28 July and the latest was this Sunday just gone the 1 August.

20 day before it is two years that I have been confined to bed, pressure sores are terrible and something that everybody needs to be vigilant to stop getting it.

Once you have had it the skin is fragile and it can and will keep happening, basically I will need special care from Richie to keep me healthy and stop the wound becoming infected.

Heard that it was an infection of his pressure sores that killed the actor Christopher Reeve,
Richie is doing all he scan to prevent infections.

I have a healthy diet of lots of fresh vegetables, fruit, and oily fish: herrings, mackerel, anchovy etc and the occasional chicken curry.

Plus laughter and exercises all of which plus all the tender love from my darling Richie helps me to live and live well despite being in bed.

I am still very optimistic about life.

Still Looking Forward To Good Times.

Drive By Truckers

Sadly I have another open pressure sore so had to stop sitting right away yesterday until it heals again, hopefully before the end of summer.

My estimation is that this, like in January will take a few months so I guess summer will be well gone by then, but of course I still hope that it will heal before then.

Richie saw it when he showered me yesterday afternoon, we are both shattered by this discovery.

We are trying to regain our optimism which is difficult to do under these circumstances, both of us had a very bad night last night.

Every time I was nearly dropping off to sleep I would find myself thinking about this new wound and how it had happened and so quickly too.

This happened every time I woke up, each time I woke and each time I would try to focus on something else, would try to visualise a flower or a favourite place.

But each time I woke the first thing in my mind was the horror of another pressure sore in the same place.

What we both find very worrying is that we do not know how it happened; this is very worrying especially for Richie.

Had hoped to sit longer this time but after just three days I have to stay in bed until it heals again.

Sat exactly three times, the longest was four hours on Friday, each day there was no signs of there being anything wrong.

Hope that it heals up again soon and that I can sit for long enough to get out to see the market and other favourite places in Amsterdam.

We have plans to go to a Drive by Truckers gig at the Paradiso in November which would be brilliant for us both.

Really hope it can still happen, feeling very down today, what a difference a week can make, last Monday Richie confirmed that the skin damage had healed.

We were both very happy, looking forward to getting out of the apartment together and having a life outside.

This Monday I have an open wound and have to do my best to stay in the here and now and be optimistic.

Anything else would be not be good for either of us as we need to get through this with positivity.

Still looking forward to the good times that I hope are still to come.

Snowy Afternoon in Amsterdam.

I am doing my best to keep optimistic, despite being told by Richie last night that the wound has slightly re-opened again.

Boo hoo hope it heals quickly as I have plans to get out as soon as this cold snap is over.

What a setback, especially now when we thought, there was no danger of it opening again, not after being healed up for three months.

Who would have thought, that the ex wound would open again.

Boo Hoo so need to see the nurse quickly for his advice, I mailed him last night and he will be here tomorrow.
,
Ton will be here in the afternoon together with the ergotherapist Ludwine, hope they will be able to work out what the hell happened to cause this to occur.

We are both quite paranoid now, especially Richie who has done nothing differently than he has been doing since I have been in bed.

Very pleased that both Ton and Ludwine, from the Amsterdam Rehabilitation Clinic (RCA) can come here tomorrow, as they are so very good.

So no sitting round in the wheelchair for me, certainly not until we have spoken to the experts tomorrow.

Find if really shit we do not know how it happened, Monday it was fine and then yesterday there it was abit of blood and its a tiny bit open again.

I did not ask Richie for all the details, but did manage to ask if it was a crater again and he said no, said that maybe the skin was very dry and fragile and had torn slightly.

Then he spent some time cleaning and bandaging it up/

I am trying to stay optimistic.

Took a sleeping tablet to ensure I did not lie awake all last night thinking about that and the fact Spike is ill.

He went to the vet’s and they did x-rays and a scan, he has arthritis in three places, the knee is inflamed and pretty sore, he has a spot where he hurt his spine and up by his neck.

Poor little gut is now on medication for the next two weeks.

Boo!!Hoo!! on both counts.

Wishing I could sit right now, funny have noticed again today how I always want what I can’t have, guess I can’t be so different from everyone else.

That helps, me remembering that I am only human, thanks Cranky @ Musings of a Cranky Caregiver
http://musingsofacrankycaregiver.blogspot.com/2009/12/yep-im-human.html

for writing about that in your recent post ‘’ Yep I’m Human’’

Difficult to relax today, but will take it as easy as possible this evening, I may need another pill to help me sleep otherwise I could lay awake all night worrying and second guessing what Ton and Ludwine may say tomorrow.

Have to stay in the here and now.