Interestingly, just when I had sent my wish out there to the universe for my life to be simplified, it became more complicated. Last Friday night when I was minding my own business, taking a shower at about midnight, I leaned over and my lower back spasmed and froze. BAM! Just like that.
I did manage to call for Jonathon who helped me to shuffle slowly to the bedroom, where I was able to find some comfort in lying down. But about two hours later, when nature called I was unable to get out of bed. After much crying and carrying on that the new year shouldn't have started this way, I gave in and we called the ambulance. Half an hour later, and after an attempt to breathe in some painkilling, but cough-inducing medicine, they gave me a swift jab in the arm and then stretchered me out to the ambulance, luckily undercover of night, so the neighbours weren't gawking.
Off I went, somewhat out of it, and ended up in bay 14 of the emergency department of Joondalup Hospital. So my back was stuffed but, after being given some codeine type painkillers I was able to at least use a commode (low level of dignity here, but desperation had set in and I just could not get my head to let me use a bedpan.) So after an x-ray which showed I would just have to slowly heal, I was encouraged to get up and out of there.
But, my blood pressure had plummetted and, spectacularly, I collapsed in Jonathon's arms.
After remembering back to a previous incident, we realised that I am actually allergic to codeine and the docs decided I would have to stay in hospital until my blood pressure went back up, and the codeine was out of my system.
So to add to the fun, I was put on a drip. Don't you love it when they jab you with a needle for about ten minutes trying to find a good vein? No, you don't love it.
Anyhoo, they were all pretty nice about it, and hey I'd been up all night so I was pretty dozey. And my hubby was with me. My best friend Emma came by about 3pm, and Jonathon left to get some sleep at about 7pm.
Once my blood pressure had gone from about 86/56 up to 100/60, they took me upstairs to a ward, and it felt like I was in a scene from Grey's Anatomy as faces swam past and clinial grey walls rushed by. Needless to say by the time I got to my room I was feeling rather squeamish, and laid there looking and feeling green for about an hour. Then I promptly threw up about six times (I just
knew you wanted to know that) into a nice deep plastic bag which was great because there was no splashback (hey, I'm trying to find the bright side of this), and buzzed for the nurse on duty to help me recover from that.
After a few more bouts of vomiting, I was able to feel relatively normal and had a nap. Now that I was on a different painkiller and anti-inflammatory I started to come good, but eventually went through four drips to be sure my blood pressure was stable.
The rest of my time there was pretty much a blur, and by Sunday arvo I was home. Since then I have basically been couch-ridden, with my two beautiful boys watching over me, and making sure I am fed and watered and loved. Thank goodness for family and friends. And actually, thank goodness for the ambos and the doctors and nurses at Joondalup who were all very helpful and nice to me.
I guess I will have to take it pretty easy now, so my big plans for
A Project A Week may have to slow a bit. Maybe I'll just end up doing A Project A Month. As it is, it is taking me forever to go through all my magazines. I'm about half way. Phew! But, after looking at all the pretty pictures, I've pretty much decided on how I'd like to update our kitchen, which is a start. And that is one of my projects to achieve this year.
Well anyway, enough of my rambling, it's back to the couch for me, now that I've had this visit to the computer chair.
But a word of advice: be careful bending over.
