I’mmm baacckk...

I would assume by now you’ve guessed the “maintenance” was for me and not the website.

I can’t sit here at the computer very long, even though Lu did go and find me a good deal on an office chair, so this will have to be brief.

The car overheated on the way to the doctor’s office at 1:30 PM on Tuesday, January 3. I had to go and get some tests done at St. John’s River District Hospital (in St. Clair) This resulted in me leaving my car at River District and taking a ride in an ambulance to St. John’s Providence Hospital in Detroit (They have a neurosurgical team on site there).

Jake, Carla and Whiskey drove up to fix my car (official reason) and to hang out until the doctors determined what was wrong with me. Lu stayed over from her Christmas visit to help me out with the cats and getting me stuff, etc. I’m sure that was not fun as I am not the nicest patient in the world when I don’t feel good (Would you believe it? I get cranky!)

I had an exhaustive number of tests, by an exhaustive number of “teams” (I had a medical team, an infectious disease team, an oncology team, an orthopedic surgery team, a neurosurgical team, a medicinal team, an IV team, etc., etc., etc. – You get the picture).

At one point, I asked a doctor if everyone gets all these teams. He laughed and said, “Well, no, not really. But your case has drawn the interest at the highest levels of the hospital staff!” (Groan).

It turns out that 60% of my 9th and 10th vertebrae and the disc in between have been eaten away and I have a large “mass” around my spine at that point. The official diagnosis is “thoracic vertebral osteomyelitis.”

What is still unclear is the “mass.” Is it an abscess caused by some weird infection, or is it a tumor caused by cancer?

We are starting with the infection first, so I went home with antibiotic syringes, saline syringes, heparin syringes and insulin syringes. All of the above I shoot into my PICC line, except for the insulin which I have to inject into my stomach (it should be my upper arm or my hips, but I don’t have enough fat there anymore, so stomach it is).

I also have 90 MG tablets of slow-release morphine I take every 12 hours and fast-acting liquid morphine I can take every four hours as needed for pain. None of which works, I might add.

I think I went home last Saturday (hey, I said the morphine doesn’t help with the pain, not that it doesn’t mess with your head).

I called Jim about that chair Mom had that helped her to get up (I wanted to know what it cost). Turns out we still have it out at the cottage, so Joe and Kathy graciously went out and got it for me on Monday. They also took away my old recliner! Thanks, guys!!

Sidebar: I told Melissa about the chair and she said, “Well, that should make you feel good, knowing your brothers care enough to get it for you and that Grandma used to sit in it.” I said oddly enough, my first reaction was to think, “Hmmm... the last two people who sat in this chair are dead!”

Jake and company left for home on Friday (I think). BTW, I love that little sock monkey Carla got me (we still sleep together). Lu left for Virginia this morning.

Anyway, my back hurts and I am tired, so I’m signing off now. But, I will try and get back to the everyday posting thing.

P.S. Thanks to everyone for their visits, thoughts and prayers.