2007.04.26 My Dad Is An Alien

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This was written by my dad:

A brief summary of my hospital experience 04-04-07 to 12-04-07

Wednesday 04-04-07

I have a rare bone marrow disease that causes the production of large quantities of damaged and mal-formed platelets in my blood. The spleen functions as a filter and repository for this excess; over time it becomes enlarged. My doctors recommended that I have the spleen removed last fall but I insisted on waiting to the end of the ski season despite the obvious risk of rupture. This spring, I was admitted to Kelowna General Hospital for a Spleenectomy. Dr. Kluftinger knew I had a greatly enlarged spleen but even he was surprised to find a 12 pounder. He also repaired an umbilical hernia while he had me open.

After the normal stay in the recovery room, I was transferred to the third floor around suppertime. I had an IV lock in my arm, a hemovac in my abdomen and a catheter in my bladder. I was feeling tied down.

Late in the evening, I told the nurse I was feeling rather peckish, as I had not had any thing by mouth since supper Tuesday. She gave me a wonderful cup of tea. As I sat in bed sipping the tea, I felt a sudden wet and warm sensation down my side. Did I spill the tea? No, a look at my side showed blood pulsing out of the dressing. I rang for the nurse and she peeled back the dressing and saw copious amounts of blood she and several other nurses tried to stem the flow with pressure until the ER Doctor made it to the room. He had me lay flat while he popped a couple of staples and found the artery that had blow its cauterization; the blood was squirting 3 or 4 inches into the air. He sutured the artery and closed the incision with a couple of sutures. While I was flat on my back, I had some reflux but thought nothing of it. I spent the rest of the night peacefully.

Thursday 05-04-07

I woke up feeling good in the morning but did notice that my feet and ankles were very swollen. Dr. Kluftinger came by on rounds and told me he was going away for the Easter weekend but I seemed to be recovering well and if I got my self mobile, I could probably be released on the weekend. After the catheter was removed, I began going for short walks in the hall. After supper I took a longer walk twice around the floor. When I got back to my bed I was dizzy and weak and collapsed on the bed in a fit of coughing. I coughed so hard I popped one of the stitches in my belly button. My lungs were filling up and I was coughing more and more. The nurse called a doctor and he told her to administer some diuretics to reduce the fluids in my body. I spent the night curled up at the foot of the bed coughing and peeing; I was drowning in my own fluids and sinking fast.

Friday 06-04-07

A Respirologist McCauly and Cardiologist Dr. Halpern examined me in the morning and determined I had pneumonia and congestive heart failure. I was transferred to the Critical Care Unit. There I was hooked up to a plethora of monitors and given massive amounts of antibiotics. A blood count found that my platelet count was at an astronomical 1.56 million g/L compared to a normal 150-400 K g/L; In other words, my blood was basically a platelet slush. With my heart losing its pumping efficiency due to congestive heart failure, the doctors were waiting for massive blood clots to form and cause a heart attack or stroke. The ICU doctor (Dr Holmes - nice lady) spent most of her time at my bedside and a crash cart was outside my door. An IV lock was inserted into my jugular vein with a catheter into the aorta so that the administration of medications was more direct. I was given oxygen and a moist air mask to help me breath. Numerous ECGs, chest ex-rays, blood tests and blood cultures were done through out the day and Dr. Halpern had an ultrasound done on my heart. I was visited by the doctors on their rounds and Dr McCauly told me that he thought I had aspirated anaerobic bacteria that caused the pneumonia and he was treating that assumption. Dr. Halpern told me the ultrasound showed a healthy heart except for a couple of leaky valves. He said that I have Pulmonary Hypertension that would account for the leaks. I continued to sink during the day and had the classic near-death experience. What I saw was not the ‘Tunnel of Light’ usually reported but a well-lit porthole of an alien craft. The beings in the light were benevolent and reassuring; they gave me the choice to go with them or to stay, I decided to stay. That marked the point of beginning to recover. Through out the rest of the day I could still see the window but it became smaller and smaller; if I close my eyes even now I can still see a spark behind my eyelids. It was shortly after this experience that my son Clay phoned, I was too emotional to speak to him at length but I am sure he understood. I had a restless night.

Saturday 07-04-07

A day of improvement, the antibiotics and diuretics are doing their thing. What a joy it was to look up from my bed and see my wife Carol and my Daughter Melissa in the doorway. The lift to my spirits probably did as much for me as all the medications being pumped into me. I had a very restful night.

Sunday 08-04-07

I continued to improve all day and after supper, they transferred me back to the third floor. This time they put me in a semi-private where the attention was a little more intimate.

Monday 09-04-07

While I was in the CCU, my regular meds were given through IV but back in the ward, I was back to oral meds. When I received my dosage of prednisone I noticed that it had been cut in half, I asked the nurse to check and she said that was how it was written. Since prednisone is carrying the load of my RA symptoms, the RA began to flare during the day and I was suffering inordinate amounts of pain. The nurse followed up on the dosage change and discovered it was a transcription error and had it corrected for the next dose. Not an enjoyable day or night, I swallowed many 642s.

Tuesday 10-04-07

The proper dosage of prednisone made a big difference and the pain abated through out the day. In the afternoon I was sent down to Nuclear Medicine for a lung scan to make sure there were no blood clots in my lungs; the results were good.

Wednesday 11-04-07

This day I was scheduled for an angiogram, an incision in the femoral artery and a catheter inserted so that dye could be injected into the heart. The results were very good; a strong heart muscle with no blockages. I had to remain flat on my back for the rest of the day so that the femoral would not spring a leak.

Thursday 12-04-07

I am finally being released today. I phoned Carol to come and get me, but, it took all day to get all the releases in order, Dr Kluftinger saw me still waiting at 4 o’clock so went and expedited the paper work so I finally escaped. I am very happy that I decided to have the Spleenectomy done in Kelowna because I am sure I would not have survived in a smaller Hospital like Trail; the resources, mainly specialists is so much greater in a large hospital.

There was an awful little stretch of time before he went in for surgery where our communications got crossed, and I was gripped by an amazingly saddening fear that he might not have gotten my message of love and appreciation. It disturbed the very roots of my soul to think that I might have missed my last chance to say something to him in this life. Then, when I heard thirdhand about him being in trouble after the surgery it nearly drove me crazy with worry.

Crazy enough to take up that hated device, the phone, and track down the hospital, the ward, the relevant nurse, and have her patch me through to him for that brief but poignant conversation.

I have always revered my father, I loved him with fearful awe as a child, and I love him tenderly now that I'm an adult. However, it wasn't until this little episode that I fully appreciated just how much he means to me.