My lovely 26 hours in Cork University Hospital
So what happened this week?
I started my new job on Monday morning. It was with a little bit sadness that I took my iMac and rolled it through Apple from CR to ER, but also with a lot of excitement. :) Chris had been nice enough and move most of my stuff on Friday when I was home sick.
Happy me!!! So I started with explaining the fact that I only would be there for two days since I would be on holiday wed-tue and we agreed that I would start some reading of procedures and stuff but not the real training.
I was all excited and happy and the team is great!! They are happy to have me there too I think.
After work I was exhausted and I didn't feel too well so I didn't have the energy to clean, I went to bed before 21. Woke up in the middle of the night and started vomiting. And I couldn't stop. In the end I fell asleep again and I felt better in the morning (I thought), so I went to work, but realized there, that I must have a fever or something since I was freezing something crazy. I was sitting fully dressed and with two fleece blankets and still ice cold, and I could barely keep my eyes open.
I decided to wait until my manager got in and when she saw me, she sent me home.
I went home to bed and slept and vomited for the next ten hours. I was fully dressed under two duvets and two fleece blankets, still freezing.
And I could barely breathe. I had had that problem for a few days, but I thought it was something from my last fit, but it was really bad, I couldn't take a deep breath or move my arms in certain directions.
So I called mom on Skype and she told me to go to the hospital, which I did, even though I believed that it was completely unnecessary. The taxi picked me up at 22.05
In the emergency/accident department, I explained everything and it took about 20 min before a nurse called me in to a room. I explained everything and they took me in to the emergency dept. She told me that they would need blood from me (!!) and I started to feel panic right away.
The nurse was really nice though and she managed to draw blood right away and decided to keep a line in since they might need to give me some injections or stuff later on and instead of poking me with needles and things the whole time I could have that. It was horrible!! I could see it sit in my arm and the only thing I could think of was the needle in there. Silly me! Then she left me and said that a doctor would come by later. And I was waiting and waiting.
Another nurse came and decided that they would need more blood, from the other arm. They thought it might be a blood clot in the lungue. :( I got a bit scared then. I thought it was a cold.
A doctor took the blood while the nurse calmed me down since this one hurt like hell.
And I waited.
They took me for X-ray of my lungues to check if they could find anything.
At 05.15 ish they told me that I could finally go to sleep. The blood tests had been good and they couldn't find anything unusual on the X-rays but they needed to wait for the morning consultant something who probably would discharge me, but who needed to have a look at the X-rays first.
They woke me up at 08.30 and told me that they needed the bed and that I would have to go and take a seat in one of the chairs over by X-ray (very comfortable ones) and that I was gonna do an X-ray shortly.
A nurse told me that they needed new blood samples and that someone would pop by. A nurse with everything on a wheely thing came by and said that she was gonna take some blood and I told her that I needed to lay down because otherwise I faint. She had to get another nurse, who was SOO unfriendly and questioned me. I told her "It's fine, I can sit up if you want to, but I will very shortly be on the floor anyway, since I will faint". She then left and found me a bed. And they stole blood from yet another vein in my arm.
Told me that the X-ray shouldn't be too long now. This was around 10.
13.30. Nothing.
14.30. Nothing. A male nurse asked if I still hadn't been called. He went and checked. Nothing
15.45. I was advised by the same male nurse that I would be down for scan latest at 17.00.
16.55. Nothing.
17.15. The male nurse was back and stressed and wheeled me down to the basement for a chest scan.
I was told that it wouldn't take too long before I would get in.
18.10. They opened the door! Yey!
And now the terror began. With my line, they attached the thingie for the contrast solution, which is needed for the scan. The nurse was the most unfriendly bitch ever. I was sooo stressed up, tried to breathe normally, but couldn't. And breathing normally during the scan and also holding your breath is the most important during the scan.
They did the scan and then told me that it didn't work since I had been breathing too fast. The bitch came and said "Just think that you lie on a beach" and I answered "I have had an extreme phobia for this for over ten years, you don't think I have tried EVERYTHING? And also, it is very easy for you to say, since you're not afraid" She left and brought a doctor who was very handsome and very friendly. He told me that I actually had done very well but that I just needed to hold my breath a few more seconds and that I could do it. THAT is how you're supposed to take care of a patient who is afraid.
And they wheeled me back. And I was told after about an hour, sitting in my lovely chair again, that I needed to get drop, since they had given me twice the amount of contrast solution which is toxic for the kidneys. And that hurt like hell!!
In the end, I almost fainted, another patient called a doctor, who took out the drop, and we agreed that if I only drank a litre of water, which they put in a jug in front of me, then I could go home.
Apparently I had TWO chest infections. Don't ask me how I managed to get both of them. So they prescribed two antibiotics and two pain killers. And I could leave the hospital around midnight that night.
I went home and cried. I was completely mentally exhausted, my body ached, my arms were (are) bruised from all the needles and no one was there to comfort me.
Tore was my emergency contact. Not anymore. I got hold of him when I got home from the hospital. He hadn't even bothered to call me to check on me, even though he knew that I went in to the hospital to chech what was wrong with me the evening before.
And I realized, that I'm alone. My cats were glad to see me, but still, I would soo much have needed someone to come by and hold my hand when I went through all these horrible things. But I guess that I grew with this experience, I am supposed to be an adult.
Well, at least I got out of this alive, my life is still awesome and I will tell you more about my awesome week :)
I started my new job on Monday morning. It was with a little bit sadness that I took my iMac and rolled it through Apple from CR to ER, but also with a lot of excitement. :) Chris had been nice enough and move most of my stuff on Friday when I was home sick.
Happy me!!! So I started with explaining the fact that I only would be there for two days since I would be on holiday wed-tue and we agreed that I would start some reading of procedures and stuff but not the real training.
I was all excited and happy and the team is great!! They are happy to have me there too I think.
After work I was exhausted and I didn't feel too well so I didn't have the energy to clean, I went to bed before 21. Woke up in the middle of the night and started vomiting. And I couldn't stop. In the end I fell asleep again and I felt better in the morning (I thought), so I went to work, but realized there, that I must have a fever or something since I was freezing something crazy. I was sitting fully dressed and with two fleece blankets and still ice cold, and I could barely keep my eyes open.
I decided to wait until my manager got in and when she saw me, she sent me home.
I went home to bed and slept and vomited for the next ten hours. I was fully dressed under two duvets and two fleece blankets, still freezing.
And I could barely breathe. I had had that problem for a few days, but I thought it was something from my last fit, but it was really bad, I couldn't take a deep breath or move my arms in certain directions.
So I called mom on Skype and she told me to go to the hospital, which I did, even though I believed that it was completely unnecessary. The taxi picked me up at 22.05
In the emergency/accident department, I explained everything and it took about 20 min before a nurse called me in to a room. I explained everything and they took me in to the emergency dept. She told me that they would need blood from me (!!) and I started to feel panic right away.
The nurse was really nice though and she managed to draw blood right away and decided to keep a line in since they might need to give me some injections or stuff later on and instead of poking me with needles and things the whole time I could have that. It was horrible!! I could see it sit in my arm and the only thing I could think of was the needle in there. Silly me! Then she left me and said that a doctor would come by later. And I was waiting and waiting.
Another nurse came and decided that they would need more blood, from the other arm. They thought it might be a blood clot in the lungue. :( I got a bit scared then. I thought it was a cold.
A doctor took the blood while the nurse calmed me down since this one hurt like hell.
And I waited.
They took me for X-ray of my lungues to check if they could find anything.
At 05.15 ish they told me that I could finally go to sleep. The blood tests had been good and they couldn't find anything unusual on the X-rays but they needed to wait for the morning consultant something who probably would discharge me, but who needed to have a look at the X-rays first.
They woke me up at 08.30 and told me that they needed the bed and that I would have to go and take a seat in one of the chairs over by X-ray (very comfortable ones) and that I was gonna do an X-ray shortly.
A nurse told me that they needed new blood samples and that someone would pop by. A nurse with everything on a wheely thing came by and said that she was gonna take some blood and I told her that I needed to lay down because otherwise I faint. She had to get another nurse, who was SOO unfriendly and questioned me. I told her "It's fine, I can sit up if you want to, but I will very shortly be on the floor anyway, since I will faint". She then left and found me a bed. And they stole blood from yet another vein in my arm.
Told me that the X-ray shouldn't be too long now. This was around 10.
13.30. Nothing.
14.30. Nothing. A male nurse asked if I still hadn't been called. He went and checked. Nothing
15.45. I was advised by the same male nurse that I would be down for scan latest at 17.00.
16.55. Nothing.
17.15. The male nurse was back and stressed and wheeled me down to the basement for a chest scan.
I was told that it wouldn't take too long before I would get in.
18.10. They opened the door! Yey!
And now the terror began. With my line, they attached the thingie for the contrast solution, which is needed for the scan. The nurse was the most unfriendly bitch ever. I was sooo stressed up, tried to breathe normally, but couldn't. And breathing normally during the scan and also holding your breath is the most important during the scan.
They did the scan and then told me that it didn't work since I had been breathing too fast. The bitch came and said "Just think that you lie on a beach" and I answered "I have had an extreme phobia for this for over ten years, you don't think I have tried EVERYTHING? And also, it is very easy for you to say, since you're not afraid" She left and brought a doctor who was very handsome and very friendly. He told me that I actually had done very well but that I just needed to hold my breath a few more seconds and that I could do it. THAT is how you're supposed to take care of a patient who is afraid.
And they wheeled me back. And I was told after about an hour, sitting in my lovely chair again, that I needed to get drop, since they had given me twice the amount of contrast solution which is toxic for the kidneys. And that hurt like hell!!
In the end, I almost fainted, another patient called a doctor, who took out the drop, and we agreed that if I only drank a litre of water, which they put in a jug in front of me, then I could go home.
Apparently I had TWO chest infections. Don't ask me how I managed to get both of them. So they prescribed two antibiotics and two pain killers. And I could leave the hospital around midnight that night.
I went home and cried. I was completely mentally exhausted, my body ached, my arms were (are) bruised from all the needles and no one was there to comfort me.
Tore was my emergency contact. Not anymore. I got hold of him when I got home from the hospital. He hadn't even bothered to call me to check on me, even though he knew that I went in to the hospital to chech what was wrong with me the evening before.
And I realized, that I'm alone. My cats were glad to see me, but still, I would soo much have needed someone to come by and hold my hand when I went through all these horrible things. But I guess that I grew with this experience, I am supposed to be an adult.
Well, at least I got out of this alive, my life is still awesome and I will tell you more about my awesome week :)
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