No more!

The procedure on Tuesday (draining the beast) seemed like major overkill to me considering I've had the beast drained before at the weight loss center and they just poke a needle in and drain it.   When I went to the hospital on Tuesday, I had a team of nurses, talk about sedation and being a five hour procedure, CT/Ultrasound assisted, putting in a drain, etc.  Yikes!  Not that a drain would be a bad idea.  I've thought of that before.  Even the radiologist was doing it himself rather than a PA.  Anyway, I went into the room and they did a preliminary CT scan.  The radiologist came back in and said the fluid was right under the surface and stuck a needle in and drained it.  Hmmmm... much ado about nothing (well, not really nothing) perhaps?  Probably a $4000 procedure, rather than a free one at the weight loss center.  I may still have to have the procedure to get the drain put in if the cultures come back showing infection or it fills right back up again.  As it turns out, I got the results today and the culture looked pretty good.  My abdomen is not flat because he still couldn't get all the fluid out but I wouldn't say it has filled up again.  While I was there, one of the nurses mentioned that it looked like my ankles were swollen so I debated about it but took a diuretic when I got home.  I'm supposed to take them as needed when it looks like my ankles swell up.

Not sure that I wrote yet about the problems I've been having with my hands and legs.  Several times I have had my left hand (more often than my right) totally seize up so I can't move them and be unable to support weight.  It hurts a lot, and I've had fingers either cross each other or be pulled in towards my wrist.  I have to use my other hand to straighten them out since they can't straighten themselves out and then kind of support my left hand so that it doesn't happen again.  Until Wednesday, when this has happened it has lasted for about 15 minutes (long minutes because it is extremely painful and scary) and then everything goes back to normal.  I've had brief episodes in my right hand as well, but not sustained like in my left hand.

Then, on Wednesday I had this happen over and over for hours thru-out the afternoon and evening and I was in tears by the end of the day.  It started while I was at Target, all of a sudden my shins hurt so bad besides having both hands freaking out, to the point that I couldn't walk and we had to abandon the carts and Kim drove the car around to take me to the ER.  By the time we got there, it wasn't really happening anymore, so I decided it wasn't an ER thing and went home and just rested.  My biggest fear is that my toes will start doing what my left hand is doing-- don't know how I would handle that since it would be harder to straighten them out and support them.  Luckily, that hasn't happened although I have had charlie horse type pains in my feet and legs.

Called the doctor on Thursday because I think this is a side effect of the antibiotic.  I had called last week about the same thing.  They insist that isn't likely and told me last week that it is more likely an electrolyte imbalance and made suggestions about supplements and staying hydrated.  I've been doing all of those things.  On Thursday, they said it was still more likely to be the diuretic than the antibiotic.  I didn't take the antibiotic on Thursday (a little too scared) but took it today.  Didn't have major episodes but had several minor ones during the day when I was making certain movements with my hands.  This afternoon I called the doctor and said that I didn't want to take either of these medications anymore (since they think one is causing it and I think the other) and to find out what alternatives there are.  They are looking into it and getting back to me since the doctor was gone when the coordinator called me back.

Not sure I am doing the right thing taking a stand like that against both medications, but I don't know what else to do.  I certainly don't want to have another day like Wednesday!

So, this is all pretty boring probably.  Sorry about that...  I have started doing some fun and exciting things-- almost like a cruise.  Well, maybe not quite like a cruise but at least getting out of the house.  We made a successful trip to Target, saw Harry Potter (loved it), fired up my new grill and made hamburgers, tried several new reduced sodium recipes, saw Zookeeper (hated it), dropped in at work to get my paycheck, and went walking tonight.  Planning to go to Trafalga in the morning for some miniature golf and dippin dots!