Home from the Hospital...Not quite the same
Hello to each of you, thanks so very much for your prayers, thoughts, concerns and caring. Because of you all I'm back home. A little less ability in my hand and knee but otherwise satisfied to be alive and can still do for myself.
They let me go Sunday with a diagnose of no stroke but unexplained lesions in two spots on my MRI that they will not call stroke related. I had about every test and scan possible. I bet Medicare is wondering what on earth were they looking for with this patient when they look at that bill from the hospital doctors.
Best I remember, I had MRI, MRA, Scan, One with wires hooked to every part of my head and upper body, then one with my neck called carotid ultrasound. They ran so much fluids through my veins they gave me a urinal to let it out. I had IVs in both arms. They could see the fluids passing through the veins looking for any stoppage anywhere.
The big thing in my mind was my hand was tingling up to my elbow, am I having a stroke? Well, when the ambulance arrived and they hooked me up he said "listen buddy, you gotta go to Scott and White Hospital where they can handle your situation." I thought I could just go to our local hospital 10 minutes away which he said they were not equipped to handle my condition. That scared the S**t out of me, turned on the lights and away we went 25 miles away.
The doctors were standing by and my room was already ready. I had the usual cat scan and some more stuff while in the ER, but they immediately called in more doctors in different fields of medicines. I kept looking for the Chaplin to read me my last rites. I said this is worse than first thought to myself.
I tested almost hourly then up to my room where I was able to communicate with you all on my laptop. Next day more test. I can see why some patients cannot be determined as to cause of their strokes. They could see there was no brain bleed and see the old blood from my stroke 3 years ago. What was new and undetermined was the two lesions spots on the MRI and where the fluids went around those spots, not through them. Had the fluids went through the cause would have been "Stroke" number two for me.
Otherwise there were no blockages to be seen and my heart rate was very study and in normal rhythm. I wore a heart monitor for two days. After all the medical conferences by the doctors who read the test results, they could not agree or see a cause of stroke. Their explanation of why I lost the use of my hand and knee was peripheral neuropathy and PTSD secondary to HTN and HLP what ever that means. My arthritis was an overwhelming factor as well along with my age.
Now I have to make follow-up appointments with all my PCP doctors and continue my medications. I am concerned with the loss of my hand function and my knee. When I sit and stretch my leg out, I have no way to draw it back accept to catch my pant leg and drag it back. My hand cannot grip as I once could to hold my fork or open a packet of sugar to put in my coffee.
Now I await the bill they sent to Medicare and my secondary insurance to see what the total was for them deciding I have more deficits in walking and eating but no stroke.
I'm happy to be back among all of you and once again thank you for the many prayers God heard and answered. I'm still with you all. Thanks so very much everybody!
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