April 30, 2021

Drained

Update I wrote elsewhere so sorry that there's some overlap from yesterday's entry...

After they realized both abscesses were still actively oozing an alarming amount, even after the one on the right was drained, they decided to put me under and I had surgery on both arms so they could clean them out thoroughly. They put me out with a painful injection. I'm pretty sure I passed out yelling about how much it hurt because that's the last thing I remember before waking up 4 hours later. ...at least 2 hours longer than they said the surgery would be AND they had taken me down early (scheduled for 12:30, went down at 11, got back to my room around 4)

Been all wrapped up today in thick bandages which they decided to leave on, but it hurts less on the left side without the fluid buildup. The tramadol and oxycodone help somewhat. The surgeon said there's something called a bursa in the elbow and they pulled a huge plug of pus out of it that was stuck in the sac which is what caused all of the swelling in my elbow, which is back to its bony not-softball-sized self, or close to it from what I can tell through the thick layers.

They're supposedly unwrapping them tomorrow now and I have a feeling with the pain coming back and itching that they're still gross. They said I may need to have another surgery, but it depends.

Since my arms are a mess they have my IV for fluids, antibiotics, and the tramadol in my left foot, they take my blood pressure on my right leg, and draw blood from my left hand.

I was told I may be released tomorrow if the wounds look good, but then someone else said they want to keep me on the IV antibiotics over the weekend, and another person said it could be another week if I do need additional surgeries until the infection is under control.

If they do release me they want me to do my own IV antibiotics at home for 3 weeks... I told them I can't do that, I'm supposed to be moving out on the 8th and I'll be homeless by the 20th... Not to mention needles make me squeamish and I would have to make sure to look at it to make sure I'm in a vain and I don't think i can do that, especially multiple times a day.

Today they bathed me with antibacterial wipes and soap again and changed my linens since this disease is so infectious. That alone completely wiped me out. I've been eating well and haven't had a fever, but even with help doing everything without my arms and having to be super careful about my left foot is exhausting. I can put some weight on my left arm now and have my full range of motion back. Less so than earlier now because the pain is getting bad again, so I'm a bit worried.

Anyway, just waiting on night meds now to put me out. Hopefully better news tomorrow... I have a new nurse tonight, she's studying abroad from Liberia, which is pretty cool, so she's being taught how to do everything in the system here. She said I'm very lucky to be treated in a US hospital and that everything will be ok.

I did look around on fb marketplace again earlier and found a room for rent in Coatesville for $500. ...and we have a mutual friend- my friend Brett who is supposed to be helping me with the move! The place isn't available until July, but it's the only lead I have right now. That would mean I just need to find a place to crash for a little over a month. Coatesville is a bit far away from here though and idk that it's really near anything I could walk to so it might still be a no go... No response yet, so I guess we'll see.

Written by iyazo

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Comments
JustMegawatt
Posted On May 02, 2021

Dude just picking off and damaging your own skin caused this serious emergency event... Please don't do that again!

Seeker
Posted On May 02, 2021

That sounds like it was pretty serious, I hope you get better soon! and I hope you're able to find housing soon too!

iyazo
Posted On May 02, 2021

@JustMegawatt I know, but I didn't do it to intentionally get sick 😞 I have a skin picking issue, even if it was just a scab or blocked pore that got bacteria in it, it was pretty much just an unfortunate accident. I know stress wasn't helping and I was scratching a lot, but I never meant for it to get this bad 😭 I'll be sure to be more careful in the future.

@Seeker Yeah MRSA is no joke- it's highly contagious and difficult to get rid of. It's been a rough few days so far. Hopefully things get better all around soon 😥

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