Author: Peg

Carlton’s surgery started noonish. A little after 1PM the surgeon called me and said he was all sewed up. We left hospital at about 6PM. It took him a long time to recover enough to make it home and he is seriously not able to do anything. He doesn’t seem to be able to get himself in and out of bed. My only “medical” care-taking task is to attend to his JP drains. (2 of them)

He had to allow me to drive his car home. But, instead of me getting mad and him getting frustrated – we made a game out of it. I told him that it was a voice operated car. And, all he had to do was give directions. Lights On. Drive around that pothole. Shift into 3rd NOW. Speedup. Shift into 4th NOW. Slow down. Park here. It was game. But, not one that I want to play too often.

In the spirit of fairness – I have been showing these iPod pictures of Mr. C in hospital. Here is one of me – taken just after I took the above photo.

Carlton Status Report: Waiting… waiting for the big surgery tomorrow to close up the huge hole in his chest. He is definitely feeling better – too bad he has to start feeling a lot worse tomorrow. But, maybe he’ll be started on the right path.

Surgery is at noon. I don’t see us getting home until late afternoon. If at all. They might keep him – since they had so much trouble with him last time. But, I’ll try to put up a report for all of his friends.

Have I mentioned lately that I hate my ISP. Well, I do.

Daily Carlton Report: Went off to Wound Care this morning. Also saw “The Closer”. She wants to close on Thursday. She is going to “lift” the pecs from the chest wall. And use pec muscles to cover the sternum. Then I suppose she will graft skin from his none to meaty thighs to help close the hole. His tits will be relocated in the process. That will end his career as a swim suit model for AARP magazine. Doctor has admitted that Carlton will be one hurting puppy for a while after this is over. I just hope we can avoid any trips to the ER. Big challenge will be getting him to Out Patient Infusion.

I passed the test as a WWI combat medic. The doc changed the dressing solution from diluted Clorox to full strength salt. Mr C says the salt treatment hurts.

And now for a little something nicer – saw these blown tulips on my walk home today.

 

 

Another picture that Carlton’s California Dreamin girl friend sent. I am playing with the color a little. This raincoat looked purple in her version. I think I remember that raincoat. Heck – it might still be in his closet. It was black. Color film wasn’t very stable back in the day. But, neither was Carlton.

The patient had an uneventful day. Tomorrow we see “the closer”. I’d like to get him sewed up. A stitch in time saves nine.

Carlton Report: No new issues today. He went to Outpatient infusion and then to AA at the hospital, by bus, this morning.  That was about it for Carlton. I changed wound dressings and brewed up another batch of Dakin’s WWI Antibiotic Solution. That and doing the laundry and a little grocery shopping about did it for me.

We are both sort of battered about the edges over this medical drama. So, it was good to rest and read trashy novels on our Kindles today.

My balcony attracts birds: starlings, pidgeons, and crows to be exact. Of the three I much prefer the starlings. The starlings try to keep the other birds run off. But, a crow is hard to budge.

The Daily Carlton Report: He took himself to get infused this morning. He is not anywhere near well. He has a huge hole in his chest. Exposed all the way down to this breast bone. But, for now, the infectious disease doc has gotten the sepsis under control. As for the staph  infected hole in his chest – hopefully the World War I antibiotic solution that I brew up in the kitchen is doing the job. Next doctor’s visit – Tuesday. Nevertheless – I am treating him like a well person. A weak and wimpy well person. But a well person.

Every time I go to Amazon.com (and I go there way too often), I see this “ad”. 

I guess this refers to some “reality” TV show about which I am blessedly ignorant. When I think “Prepare like Bear” I think about eating vast amounts of salmon sashimi and salmon roe and all the wild blueberries with in a 5 mile radius.

I think they made some progress on the Monument this week. Taken with the Panasonic Z15 from my balcony.

Also think Mr C made some progress today. If we make it to 8PM it will have been an entire week since we were in the Emergency Department.

We went to Outpatient Infusion this afternoon. Took the bus. That was his choice. The process started on time and once the paper work was done, it took 30 minutes. He will be getting some sort of IV antibiotic every day for the foreseeable future. He has appointments scheduled for the next two weeks or so. He had a PICC line installed while he was in hospital – so he just pops in the chair and they fill him up. He has promised to check the bag that they hang every time to be sure it is The Right Stuff.

Unlike chemo, this is a rather benign process and I will let him go Outpatient Infusion alone.

 

After a series of events which I am too fatigued to mention right now, Mr C was sprung from hospital at 2PM this afternoon. At 2PM tomorrow afternoon he shows up at Out Patient Infusion – to start a daily 6 week run of IV antibiotics. We might have 24 hours without a medical procedure. If you discount my combat corpsman job on his chest wound.

By the way, Amazon Overnight Delivery came thru. When we got back from the hospital – the boxes were at the desk for me. And, the boxes contained the stuff that I ordered. Now, if only Amazon ran hospitals…

 

Here he is in the hospital. As far as hospital rooms go – it is fine. He got a picc line installed this morning. He was interested in the procedure so, it went fine.

All you need to know about peripherally inserted central catheter lines here. Now, several questions remain unanswered. What will be going in the picc line? Who/were will whatever it is that goes in take place. At home, done by me? At home, done by some visiting medical person? Back at the hospital “outpatient infusion center”? And for how long? I know you AA friends are yelling One F-ing Day At A Time.

As I hope I mentioned, tomorrow’s surgery is off until the infection gets tamped down. I put in a order for “battlefield dressing” pads, good tape, etc with Amazon today for next day delivery. Cheaper, even with next day delivery, than getting the stuff from a medical supply ripoff service. And, I have been directed to brew up a batch of Dakin’s Solution. This is water, bleach and baking soda. It was all the rage during WWI – honest.

All I have to do is get Carlton out of the hospital. I think that will happen tomorrow. It is about too late for it to happen today.

Carlton really has a wicked good infectious disease physician. But, this is his office.

That is the Front Desk. Didn’t take a picture of the 4 ratty chairs or the duct taped carpet in his “reception area”. He has no staff. We suspect he has a zombie that comes in from time to time and does billings. He has no electronic gizmos. Apparently all he has is a brain and a habit of making his rounds after midnight. He might be a vampire. But we are glad that he is heading up the Disinfect Carlton effort.

Wore my skinniest jeans today. To remind myself that “My eating will in no way help Carlton recover. So, step away from the cookies.)

 

 

The light at the end of the tunnel was a train. Big time not good.

This afternoon the plastic surgeon said “Who do you want for your ID Doc?” Carlton hadn’t a clue as to what she was saying. She explained that SHE was a surgeon and HE had a serious blood infection and an infectious disease specialist was required. Well, it just so happened that I did know a darn good ID Doc. We trotted up to his office. This doctor is sort of different. He has no staff. Zero. So, when he came out to get his next patient, he said to wait until he had a break. In about 30 minutes he had an empty waiting room. He called the nurse in wound care. And with in 15 minutes we are trotting over to admitting to wait for an empty hospital bed.

Got Carlton installed in his room. Got him some supper. Tried make him feel less scared. He has completely lost faith in the “medical profession”. I hope the ID Doc can stop the train and get Carlton on a course to recovery.

Carlton kept trying to get me to “go home”. I can get home as late as 12:30AM on the bus. But, he wanted me to leave. So, at 7:45PM I left him. And went to the bus stop. Alone.

 

 

This is Carlton is 1972 in his wild and crazy (pre AA) days in San Francisco. This nice former  girl friend sent some pictures in honor of his upcoming birthday.

On the medical front.
First the good news. The catheter is out and he can pee like a real man again.

Next the not so good news. Seems like an infection is setting in. Maybe in his sternum. And, that means he most likely will not be sewn back up for another two months. More on this dreadfulness after we know more. I sent him off to “wound care” on his own this morning because I thought it was just to get a dressing change and then he would go off to see the urologist on his own – that being a manly thing. I am sorry that I let him go anywhere alone. My bad. It will not happen again. I was in the hospital. I wish he had called me when the wound care nurse started talking about this infection. The infection that may have invaded the bone.

I must say, I am not real happy with “my” hospital. At the instant – I wouldn’t take my dog there if I had any options. Maybe I am just a dissatisfied customer. Maybe I am just a careless wife for letting him go ANYWHERE alone. 

No, I am not picking out funeral statues for Mr C! I went on a little mental health walk thru the residential area down to our local cemetery. I was tired of trying to take pictures of tulips – so I decided to try something different. Beloved Panasonic L1 with the cheap-ass  70mm prime lens.

Carlton report:

I am not willing to say that he is getting better. But, I don’t think his temperature is going to spike up as bad this evening. At least I hope that is the case. He seems to be in considerable pain. He is OK as long as he is flat on his back. But, he doesn’t like to stay in bed. I am carefully dispensing his Hillbilly Heroin. Don’t want him to have to start going to Narc Anon when his is over.

Yesterday evening, I sort of had caregiver meltdown. I was so paranoid that I slept in my clothes, sure that a trip to the ER would be required. I am better today. The light at the end of the tunnel still might be a train.

Tomorrow – another challenge. Getting the catheter out and being sure he is fully functional in the area before leaving the urology office. And, he absolutely has to get his dressing changed. It was supposed to last until surgery. It isn’t.