Part I
Saturday, November 25th
[Grammy Hoffman Birthday, Altoona ER]
Grammy Hoffman's Birthday Present
Early Saturday morning, November 25, 2017, we all went over to Grammy Hoffman's house to give her a birthday present. What do you get a 96 year old lady? We got her a sweatshirt with a saying that gram says ALL the time....
"Call me when your 96 and let me know how you feel!!" -Gram
Special shout out to my sister-in-law, Erica!
(Purple is Grammy Hoffman's favorite color!)
Altoona ER
After we gave gram her present, Adam and I went home to tackle the daunting task of...decorating the house for Christmas. My pain in my abdomen continued to get worse through out the day. By 4:00PM, I couldn't get up off the floor. Finally, the pain got to be severely bad, Adam made the final decision..
...off to the Altoona ER!!
When we got to the ER, they did a CT scan, labs, and gave me medications. Lab test showed that my potassium was critically low. The ER doctor said regardless of the CT results, he wanted me to be admitted in order to treat the hypokalemia. When the CT results came back, the radiologist recommended further studies be done. However, there were a few possibilities ...Strictures, partial bowel obstruction? Abdominal hernia?
Ambulance Ride to Pittsburgh
The Altoona ER doctor talked with my colorectal surgeon from Pittsburgh and Dr. Watson agreed to admit me onto his services. They would be transporting me via ambulance. (It's so pathetic that this the second ambulance ride in two months!!!)
It was too dark to take an "in-the-ambulance" picture.
So this is my lock screen shot
Finally arrived to my room...Ahhh...
One of our many walks...Feet Picture
Pam...IBD Connect Specialist.
Sad Face
Apparently, I must have cooties
Me--Distracting Adam from doing his work
After my first shower... Exhausted, but glad to feel clean.
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Sunday, November 26th
[spoonie va-cay, hospital/hunting]
"Spoonie Va-cay"
A spoonie is someone living with a physical chronic illness. Healthy people can't always understand what it's like to live with a chronic illness day after day. By using a handful of spoons, it helps demonstrate how every activity costs one spoon. You start the day with a certain number of spoons, and plan your day around not running out of spoons.
For example, daily activities that healthy people tend not to think about take tolls on people with chronic illness. Socializing might cost spoons, using the stairs might cost spoons, lifting things might cost spoons, etc.
Va-cay is short for the word vacation, which means an extended period of time, especially one spent away from home or in travel. A hospital stay definitely qualifies as "an extended period of time" and obviously far "away from home". A hospital admission, is a pretty good chunk of extended time... and thus why we say it's my hospital va-cay.
Together = Spoonie Va-cay
Spoonie Vacay = Hospital Admission
Hospital Stay vs. Hunting Season
Monday was the first day of deer season. While the McCracken family had deer up to their eyeballs, I was stuck in the hospital. Early Monday morning my GI doctor (Dr. Binion...he also has Crohn's/IBD) stopped in to see me.
My "God Wink" for the day? Dr. Binion was on rotation for the whole week; meaning... He would come visit me EVERY DAY doing his rounds!!! Knowing that he was going to be in charge of managing my plan of care. It was such a relief to have a familiar face. It was such a wave of calmness.
Dr. Binion ordered an iron
infusion since my levels were low. In response to the critically low potassium level, they ordered 4 bags of potassium, 2 (40mg) tablets, and 2 packets of potassium powder mixed in juice. In case you were wondering...it is GROSS!!!! If you would like to try some, I have a whole buttload of packets (: Dr. Binion scheduled a dilation surgery and colonoscopy for Tuesday (28th)
They had a very hard time getting my pain, nausea, and yorking under control. Most of Sunday and Monday was spent holding an emesis basin in my lap and dry heaving. Upon my arrival on Saturday, they put my TPN on hold. First thing Monday morning my dietitian coordinator & pharmacist analyzed my lab work. By using those numbers, my TPN was adjusted accordingly. The "Jill Concoction" (TPN) for Monday and Tuesday ran without lipids (to minimize my pain and nausea) and they plan on adding the lipids back to my normal TPN "Jill Concoction"in after a few days.
When we first started talking to each other and I came down with
shingles. Adam researched and studied everything there was to know
about shingles. When he told me how much he "learned" during his
googling sessions. He seriously found treatment options, signs and
symptoms, how long the virus lasts, what the difference is between a
virus and a bacteria, and what medications would work best. I knew that
if Adam was researching and learning all about shingles, he could
handle my Crohn's. Shingles was a little "blip" in my medical life; yet
he really put his whole heart and soul into knowing everything that he
could learn about my little "blip" called shingles.
Adam has been so great though everything. During the 5 hour wait for the ambulance, Adam sat beside me, rubbed my back, touched my face, but never once did he complain at all!! It doesn't register to me why he picked me to be his wife. How did I get to be the luckiest girl in the whole wide world? I can honestly say that God knew what He was doing when he made Adam for me. Zero regrets. Looking back at our relationship and how it has grown, I can't remember life without him. There are many times that Adam has had to miss different social things so he could stay home and take care of me. He's missed a lot of work on my account, but his work has been super amazing and let him do his work "at Jill's home" (Haha..my home is the hospital, apparently.)
Whenever I'm in the hospital, it's very hard for Adam. Hospital admissions are worse on the family rather then the patient. There are countless hours spent driving back and forth from the hospital, many a sleepless nights on the soft/comfortable recliner chair, staying up till all hours of the night, and all the crying and comforting in between. My brain still can't compute that Adam picked to marry me. It is very difficult for me to understand that he would chose me AND my Crohn's. He could pick ANY girl...pick a HEALTHY girl... As you can see, I can't seem to wrap my head around this!! All I can do is thank the Lord for my Baby Love.
Adam is the best thing ever...
I love this guy...
Thank you to all who so faithfully pray!!
THE END!!!
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