I've lost about 80% of my memory of the week following my return home. My migraine induced seizures bring about short term memory loss and fatigue. What I do recall is the faces of the wonderful people who took turns caring for me, and the continued presence of my wonderful daughter.
The return home began with a near immediate rejection of my body of the pain medication, followed shortly after by the start of seizures. By Tuesday I was back in the doctor, on a new antibiotic which worked much better, and on over-the-counter Tylenol for the surgery pain and headache. Early Thursday morning brought a new development with evidence of some significant bleeding coming from my sinus. I talked to multiple doctors and the consensus was a trip to the ER for a head scan. Despite my better judgement, and the advice of prior physicians to never go to the ER when I was having seizures (for fear they give me anti-epilepsy drugs, which in me actually increase the seizures), I headed to the ER with the help of a friend.
24 hours later, after an overnight stay, the neurologist arrived and pronounced the triumphant good news that I didn't have epilepsy. Of course, we already knew this and I explained to her that I had told the ER doctor that immediately, gave him my medical background and migraine seizure diagnosis from the Mayo Clinic, and, asked to have only the bleeding and the headache treated which would put an end to the seizures. She informed me that they had, in fact, given me anti-seizure drugs in the ER, part of their "headache cocktail". This explained my lack of consciousness for most of the last 24 hours. After answering questions from my daughter and friends, the neurologist left, looking a little bemused but encouraging me to connect with their headache clinic and informing us she would send in someone to look at the sinus. Within 30 minutes a different doctor arrived, announced the earlier CAT scan was clear, took a quick look at my sinus and stated I had evidence of a prolonged bleed, most likely caused from the oxygen during surgery and dry air at the hospital. He sent me home with directions on how to prevent and treat any future problems.
I arrived home Friday afternoon, under the care of my cousin and still with a pronounced headache, fighting off seizures, but managing to keep things at bay. On Saturday, my wonderful friend and massage therapist arrived and worked to relieve the stress and tension in my head, neck, and back, and the swelling in my arm. The result? Relief. No headache. No seizure battling. Peace. After a short evening relapse, quickly solved, I was now headache free and feeling more myself than I had in a week.
My memories are spotty, but my heart is full. Despite the darkness and nightmares that fill my sleep while I am fighting through the migraine seizures, my memories will always remain of the faces of my friends and family. My daughter, writing and reviewing care instructions with each person arriving for the first "shift" of the day; and the last beautiful, calming, angelic face I saw before I closed my eyes to sleep at night. My many friends sitting with me, caring for me, watching over me and caring for my daughter. Friends from church, work, neighborhood. Dear friends I've known for many years, and those I've more recently become acquainted with. The goodness of people, their willingness to help and support us is evidence to me of God's divine love.
No comments:
Post a Comment