Related posts:

1. Hospital Update I'm scared about tomorrow.  Tomorrow I have to get a feeding tube put in.  But...
2. Sjogren’s Syndrome Awareness Month As the month draws to a close, I am reminded that April is Sjogren's Syndrome...
3. Patience in the Hospital Though I am a Novel Patient, patience isn't my strong suit.  But patience is what...

Related posts:

1. Patience in the Hospital Though I am a Novel Patient, patience isn't my strong suit.  But patience is what...
2. Fear Fear and OCD are a bad combination. It's bad enough to have a fearful thought...
3. Fear and Liver Failure Fear still creeps up now and again. And it has certainly crept up today. Today...

Related posts:

1. Reporting from the Hospital I hoped for the best, but prepared for the worst, and unfortunately the worst won...
2. Fear Fear and OCD are a bad combination. It's bad enough to have a fearful thought...
3. Better Enough? I'm well on my way on the road to recovery. I've been doing more and...

© Novel Patient for Novel Patient, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Antibiotic, appetite, attempts, autoimmune, autoimmune pancreatitis, blog, bruises, Church, doctor, Doctors, ER, Facilities, family, flare, flickr, health, hope, hospital, infection, ivs, Kidney, kidney infection, life, Medication, medications, Medicine, nightmare, novel, one day at a time, pain, patience, patient, Peripherally, picc lines, place, poem, Prednisone, severe upper abdominal pain, specialist, steroid, title, treatment, upper abdominal pain, vitals, week

I’m sweaty and running a fever.  I haven’t washed my hair or shaved my legs in days.  But there are some things you can do to maintain your sense of femininity while in the hospital.

1. Sponge Bath

   No, its not a the same as a shower, but having the nurse help you with a quick sponge bath can help you feel refreshed even if you aren’t feeling well.

2. Shampoo Caps

   These Shampoo Caps allow you to wash you hair in the hospital without ever leaving your bed.  I’ve used them countless times during long hospitalizations to get my hair feeling and smelling clean again.

3. Deodorize

   This may sound extremely basic, but using a little extra deodorant has helped me feel and smell a little more ladylike when I wasn’t up to a sponge bath in the hospital.

4. Nail Polish

   I’m not really one to polish her nails at all, but having a friend or family member give you a manicure or pedicure while you lay in your hospital bed can give you a much needed sense of ladylike pampering when you aren’t feeling you best.

5. Girly Attire

   One size fits all unisex hospital gowns don’t really make me feel like a lady, but if you are allowed you can bring your own more feminine pj’s from home.  You can also buy designer hospital gowns like Dear Johnnies that specialize in better hospital gowns for women.

Recent Comments:

• Deborah Anderson commented on 10 Ways To Stay Organized With A Chronic Illness As a professional organizer, I can offer these tips in helping you be organized while managing pain.
• KatieM commented on Visualizing Symptoms Hi Lauren, thanks for this. I am working on a similar project and would love to talk to you about st
• Meditours commented on Scrapaganza Meditours is committed to providing medical treatments of the highest medical standards today by wor
• 68mu79d commented on Fear
• anna y commented on An Update and a Big THANKS!!! you inspire me. i have no idea how i came across your blog… probably through some of my crazy goog

Related posts:

1. Reporting from the Hospital I hoped for the best, but prepared for the worst, and unfortunately the worst won...
2. Fear Fear and OCD are a bad combination. It's bad enough to have a fearful thought...
3. Better Enough? I'm well on my way on the road to recovery. I've been doing more and...

© Novel Patient for Novel Patient, 2010. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Better, countless times, cure, dear johnnies, deodorant, Deodorize, designer hospital gowns, ER, family member, femininity, fever, health, help, hospital, hospitalization, Hospitalizations, infection, Kidney, kidney infection, legs, manicure, Medicine, nail polish, nails, nurse, patient, pedicure, running a fever, shampoo, sponge bath, vengeance

I’m back in the hospital again.

I woke up Thursday morning feeling pretty horrible.  Fever, chills, dizziness, and worsening kidney pain.  After three days of oral antibiotics, my kidney infection was getting worse not better.  I called my doctor who agreed it was time to head to the hospital.

By the time I got the ER, fever, pain and dehydration had conspired to give me tachycardia (racing heart rate).  I suppose one of the upsides of being really sick is being seen right away.  Despite the crowded waiting room, they found me a bed in the ER straight from triage.

They ran some tests.  Not surprisingly my white blood cell count was way up due to infection.  The ER doctor quickly explained that though they send home 95% of patients with kidney infections, there were multiple reasons he felt I needed to be admitted.  I’m immunosupressed from all the Prednsione I’m on, I have multiple chronic illnesses, the oral antibiotics at home didn’t work, and so on.

So I was admitted.

I received two different IV antibiotics over the next several days.  My veins weren’t happy about it and I went through 6 IVs in as many days.  But overall my stay has been uneventful.  Mostly I’ve been too tired to do anything but sleep.

I had several visitors who helped break up the monotony.  My mom and dad spent the most time here with me.  Sunday I was pleasantly surprised by a visit from two friends from church, Liz and Halee.  Then yesterday an old friend from high school Jenny paid me a visit followed by Christy and Brad from church.

I’ve been waiting this morning to find out the results of my latest tests and was just told they are good to go.  I’ve been discharged!  Yay!

I will go home with oral antibiotics which I will stay on long term to hopefully prevent yet another one of these kidney infections I seem so prone to getting.  It’s getting old – ending up in the hospital every few months from these things.  I’m hoping that these long term antibiotics will do the trick and keep me out of the hospital.

Recent Comments:

• Deborah Anderson commented on 10 Ways To Stay Organized With A Chronic Illness As a professional organizer, I can offer these tips in helping you be organized while managing pain.
• KatieM commented on Visualizing Symptoms Hi Lauren, thanks for this. I am working on a similar project and would love to talk to you about st
• Meditours commented on Scrapaganza Meditours is committed to providing medical treatments of the highest medical standards today by wor
• 68mu79d commented on Fear
• anna y commented on An Update and a Big THANKS!!! you inspire me. i have no idea how i came across your blog… probably through some of my crazy goog

Related posts:

1. Fear Fear and OCD are a bad combination. It's bad enough to have a fearful thought...
2. In the hospital… I've been battling a presumed double kidney infection for almost a week now.  Horrible back...
3. Hospital Perspective Just a quick update to let you know I'm alive.  I'm back in the hospital...

Fear that I will end up back in the hospital.

Fear and OCD are a bad combination.  It’s bad enough to have a fearful thought in your head, but with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder you just can’t forget it.

I was woken by pain on Monday morning at 6am.  I felt like I was being stabbed in my left lower back and side.  An all too familiar pain.  The pain of a kidney infection.  AGAIN.  I’ve had far too many kidney infections the last few years.  Several of them have resulted in extended hospitalizations of a month or longer.  So to feel this familiar pain filled me with dread.

That is how the fear started.

I called my doctor as soon as the office opened.  He opted to put me right on antibiotics over the phone.  The first day was truly miserable.  I was in so much pain and my breakthrough pain meds were barely taking the edge off.  Yesterday I seemed to be feeling a tiny bit better.  But today I spiked a fever.

Not good.

Now the fear was escalating.  This infection was not heading in the right direction.  Instead it was following the well worn path that leads to the hospital.

I called my doctor who had me go get a urinalysis done to see where the infection is at.  I’ll get the result tomorrow.  The culture won’t be back though for a few days.

Now I wait and try not to let the fear take over.  But my thoughts are wanting to spiral out of control.

Kidney infection leads to hospital.

Hospital leads to latex exposure.

Latex exposure leads to anaphalaxsis.

Anaphalaxsis leads to another stay in the ICU.

Not fun.

Not fun at all.

Mental illness can sure make it more difficult to deal with a chronic illness.  But I’m trying to calm my thoughts.  Trying to channel my OCD into other happier obsessions.  But really I just want to cry because, though I try, sometimes I just can’t put a happy spin on life with a chronic illness.  Sometimes it’s not inspiring or uplifting.  Sometimes there’s no bigger picture.  Sometimes there’s no underlying lesson to be learned.  Sometimes it just sucks.

Sometimes I’m not a novel patient.  Sometimes I’m just a scared girl who doesn’t want to end up back in the hospital for the umpteenth time.

Recent Comments:

• Deborah Anderson commented on 10 Ways To Stay Organized With A Chronic Illness As a professional organizer, I can offer these tips in helping you be organized while managing pain.
• KatieM commented on Visualizing Symptoms Hi Lauren, thanks for this. I am working on a similar project and would love to talk to you about st
• Meditours commented on Scrapaganza Meditours is committed to providing medical treatments of the highest medical standards today by wor
• 68mu79d commented on Fear
• anna y commented on An Update and a Big THANKS!!! you inspire me. i have no idea how i came across your blog… probably through some of my crazy goog

Related posts:

1. Keeping The Faith Through my chronic illness, I have come to realize how crucial it is to have...
2. Visualizing Symptoms Appearances can be deceiving with a chronic illness.  Looking at a person you usually can't...
3. Full Disclosure Before I was in a wheelchair and now a walker, my illness was pretty invisible....

Related posts:

1. Visible Today is the first day of National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week, and it has...
2. My Own Advocate I always tell people that you have to be your own advocate, but it can...
3. 30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know The illness I live with is:  Sjogren's Syndrome, but I also have Autoimmune Pancreatitis, Autoimmune...

Related posts:

1. Hospital Perspective Just a quick update to let you know I'm alive.  I'm back in the hospital...
2. The Rituxan Gamble Lately I've been gambling a lot.  No, not at the casino, but with my life. ...
3. Venting… I just need to vent.  Feeling a bit sorry for myself.  I'm just so frustrated...

Related posts:

1. Hospital Perspective Just a quick update to let you know I'm alive.  I'm back in the hospital...
2. Busy Busy Busy In an effort to stay constantly busy and stave off boredom (every Novel Patient's ultimate...
3. Rough Patch It's been a rough few weeks since the Rituxan.  Not only have I been worn...

Related posts:

1. Rough Patch It's been a rough few weeks since the Rituxan.  Not only have I been worn...
2. Invisible Illness Week – An Interview With Lisa Copen Lisa Copen joins us today for an interview as the founder of National Invisible Chronic...