The night sky is especially black right now, but I cannot say why. Blacker than a black ink pen? Perhaps it is.
I shouldn't be awake right now. And really, nobody should. But I am contending with a particular kind of pain. An old familiar. The Bile Flesh Burn. It's a deep skin erosion trauma that mostly strikes well into the night - after bile has repeatedly run a repeating path across the same real estate.
I awaken. I wipe away. And then I hope the damage isn't extensive enough to keep me awake. Tonight, it is. And I most assuredly am.
The second particular kind of pain is a recent onset event. It only occurs while in my power wheelchair, when I am upright, folded at the waist. And this pain is part of the reason why I found myself in the emergency room yesterday.
This is the Pain of Compression. Or the Pain of Obstruction. Or better yet - the Pain of Occlusion!
This one builds up slowly, but only while seated. And it has much to do with my duodenum not being allowed to empty. Pooling bile released, then immediately stuck, then festering within as a result of this compression.
Intestinal bloating is the biggest factor. I suspect. But I'm not sure on any of this. No doctors will touch my theories. Nor the fact that my transverse colon is equally afflicted. Restricted. Whatever.
Sometimes both types of pain combine, multiplying the effect - and it's time for liquid codeine. Which, of course, exacerbates the bloating issues.
Anyway…. I was at the hospital for an infection of sorts. My stoma area and beyond. And I was given Keflex.
This may also help reduce the sudden swelling within and around my suddenly swollen left eye. Yes, unrelated - yet simultaneously arising.
So, I am taking action, as I'll also temporarily switch feeding formulas, in an effort to reduce the painful bloat. Pending approval from above (and beyond).
Check This Out (Encouraging Stuff)
Dateline: yesterday
I got out of bed by myself. Then I got back into my bed by myself in order to climb onto the stretcher. Then out of the stretcher into the hospital bed. Then out of the hospital bed onto the CT scan platform. Then slid off the CT scan platform back into my bed. And then, onto the stretcher for the return ambulance trip home. And then back into my bed, and then immediately back into my wheelchair… before climbing back into bed late in the evening.
YES! I did all of that without suffering any P.E.M. of any sort.
And my energy levels continue to gradually increase over time, despite losing weight (avoiding 'food'), and not sleeping much. So hooray for intense daily desert sunlight exposure, right?
I've also recently added daily doses of magnesium citrate to my regimen. And really, that's it.
Cut Deep
At long last my muscle biopsy took place. It's the original reason why I came to the nursing home back in October of 2021. And compared to the other pain I've been experiencing of late, the post-surgical pain was absolutely nothing at all. Despite the 3-inch incision, it felt no worse than a bad Charlie Horse. Or like a deep bone bruise. Something like that.
And now I wait for one month. Or two months hence. I await the results - "What's wrong with my muscles?" Perhaps an answer is in the making. A solution. A course of action to be taken.
And Now This
Yesterday at the hospital the guy who did my ultrasound, the one who inserted my IV, remembered me from a previous visit, back in 2019. He remembered most everything about me, and the conversation we had four years ago. I was impressed. And I'm always impressed that so many people at the hospital remember me each time I come in. Even if it's been years since they last saw me.
A Different Me
It was also quite strange going into the hospital feeling like a New Howard. That is, a way different physical specimen versus the last time(s) I was in the emergency room, dating back any number of years - back when I was so weak and unwell that I was barely able to lift my head (or legs). Unable to scoot my body along, or simply twist and turn without exhausting myself. And also, having little hope for recovery.
@Tammy @lenora re: previous blog entry
FYI - I posted images of me being outside late at night watching the traffic move along the highway
There's actually no curfew, nothing formal, but I'm not really supposed to be outside at night either way… Not since they lock the front doors at 8:00 p.m. every night.
It's a new practice. Under the new ownership. But I still wander off on my own, because… that's what I need to do. And much due to the ever-increasing heat, it's the only time to go outdoors and move about the neighborhood.
I mostly keep to the bike trail and stay nearby. Relatively speaking. But there's nothing doing inside the building, nothing at all, inside a nursing home after 8:00 p.m.
Not that there's much happening during the daytime either, but you know what I mean.
Because I was stuck in bed for seven years consecutively, I'm not all that worried about my safety. And really I'm not concerned at all, the fact that I know all the people who everybody fears. My homeless friends. They offer to help me at every turn.
As an example, offering to go up to the store and buy things for me if I need them.
And also, pretty much everybody who utilizes the bike trail knows me by now. Or at least, they are aware of me. The hospital staffers, the folks at the fire station, too. People always ask me if I'm the guy in the bike trail, saying I look quite familiar. Which makes sense.
Oh yeah, as an example, yesterday's ambulance drivers were familiar with me as well.
So yeah. I am relatively safe out and about.
Be well,
Howard
Night Lights
Cluttered
I shouldn't be awake right now. And really, nobody should. But I am contending with a particular kind of pain. An old familiar. The Bile Flesh Burn. It's a deep skin erosion trauma that mostly strikes well into the night - after bile has repeatedly run a repeating path across the same real estate.
I awaken. I wipe away. And then I hope the damage isn't extensive enough to keep me awake. Tonight, it is. And I most assuredly am.
The second particular kind of pain is a recent onset event. It only occurs while in my power wheelchair, when I am upright, folded at the waist. And this pain is part of the reason why I found myself in the emergency room yesterday.
This is the Pain of Compression. Or the Pain of Obstruction. Or better yet - the Pain of Occlusion!
This one builds up slowly, but only while seated. And it has much to do with my duodenum not being allowed to empty. Pooling bile released, then immediately stuck, then festering within as a result of this compression.
Intestinal bloating is the biggest factor. I suspect. But I'm not sure on any of this. No doctors will touch my theories. Nor the fact that my transverse colon is equally afflicted. Restricted. Whatever.
Sometimes both types of pain combine, multiplying the effect - and it's time for liquid codeine. Which, of course, exacerbates the bloating issues.
Anyway…. I was at the hospital for an infection of sorts. My stoma area and beyond. And I was given Keflex.
This may also help reduce the sudden swelling within and around my suddenly swollen left eye. Yes, unrelated - yet simultaneously arising.
So, I am taking action, as I'll also temporarily switch feeding formulas, in an effort to reduce the painful bloat. Pending approval from above (and beyond).
Check This Out (Encouraging Stuff)
Dateline: yesterday
I got out of bed by myself. Then I got back into my bed by myself in order to climb onto the stretcher. Then out of the stretcher into the hospital bed. Then out of the hospital bed onto the CT scan platform. Then slid off the CT scan platform back into my bed. And then, onto the stretcher for the return ambulance trip home. And then back into my bed, and then immediately back into my wheelchair… before climbing back into bed late in the evening.
YES! I did all of that without suffering any P.E.M. of any sort.
And my energy levels continue to gradually increase over time, despite losing weight (avoiding 'food'), and not sleeping much. So hooray for intense daily desert sunlight exposure, right?
I've also recently added daily doses of magnesium citrate to my regimen. And really, that's it.
Cut Deep
At long last my muscle biopsy took place. It's the original reason why I came to the nursing home back in October of 2021. And compared to the other pain I've been experiencing of late, the post-surgical pain was absolutely nothing at all. Despite the 3-inch incision, it felt no worse than a bad Charlie Horse. Or like a deep bone bruise. Something like that.
And now I wait for one month. Or two months hence. I await the results - "What's wrong with my muscles?" Perhaps an answer is in the making. A solution. A course of action to be taken.
And Now This
Yesterday at the hospital the guy who did my ultrasound, the one who inserted my IV, remembered me from a previous visit, back in 2019. He remembered most everything about me, and the conversation we had four years ago. I was impressed. And I'm always impressed that so many people at the hospital remember me each time I come in. Even if it's been years since they last saw me.
A Different Me
It was also quite strange going into the hospital feeling like a New Howard. That is, a way different physical specimen versus the last time(s) I was in the emergency room, dating back any number of years - back when I was so weak and unwell that I was barely able to lift my head (or legs). Unable to scoot my body along, or simply twist and turn without exhausting myself. And also, having little hope for recovery.
@Tammy @lenora re: previous blog entry
FYI - I posted images of me being outside late at night watching the traffic move along the highway
There's actually no curfew, nothing formal, but I'm not really supposed to be outside at night either way… Not since they lock the front doors at 8:00 p.m. every night.
It's a new practice. Under the new ownership. But I still wander off on my own, because… that's what I need to do. And much due to the ever-increasing heat, it's the only time to go outdoors and move about the neighborhood.
I mostly keep to the bike trail and stay nearby. Relatively speaking. But there's nothing doing inside the building, nothing at all, inside a nursing home after 8:00 p.m.
Not that there's much happening during the daytime either, but you know what I mean.
Because I was stuck in bed for seven years consecutively, I'm not all that worried about my safety. And really I'm not concerned at all, the fact that I know all the people who everybody fears. My homeless friends. They offer to help me at every turn.
As an example, offering to go up to the store and buy things for me if I need them.
And also, pretty much everybody who utilizes the bike trail knows me by now. Or at least, they are aware of me. The hospital staffers, the folks at the fire station, too. People always ask me if I'm the guy in the bike trail, saying I look quite familiar. Which makes sense.
Oh yeah, as an example, yesterday's ambulance drivers were familiar with me as well.
So yeah. I am relatively safe out and about.
Be well,
Howard
Night Lights
Cluttered
