Did That Just Happen?

I just spent 3 nights in the hospital....again. This time I knew the pain was inevitable but I did not expect it to progress so quickly.

I had been feeling lethargic and having moderate pain since last weekend (the 15th) and knew the new cold weather was to blame. I went to a routine growth ultrasound on Tuesday for baby and the ultrasound was so painful on my left side that I nearly jumped off the table. The ultrasound tech mentioned it to my high risk specialist and he was concerned. He told me that my uterus (and baby) were pushing up against my enlarged spleen so the pressure is causing the increased discomfort and pain. I asked how baby was doing and he tells me, "It's not the baby I'm worried about." 

The plan of action was to go in to the hospital if the pain was too much to bear at home and to make sure that he was contacted. I was told that I needed to make it through Thanksgiving (as I mentioned in my previous post) and that baby would be born in December at the latest.

Fortunately, and unfortunately, as I was at the hospital visiting my friend and her beautiful newborn I couldn't even sit considering the pain! The good news is that I use the same hospital and I walked over to labor and delivery. Within 40 minutes I was in so much pain I could only cry.

I was upset because for that period of time I was allowed to writhe in pain while the doctor was in on a delivery. I come in so often there should be some type of protocol and by not even offering me oxygen or fluids caused the pain to escalate. 

It was a FIASCO!

I was finally put on oxygen, given an IV for fluids and morphine. However, the doctor didn't want to call my doctor, then the morphine pump wasn't even WORKING. I kept telling my nurses I was getting no relief. I suffered this way through the night until the next day when a thorough nurse took apart the pump and saw it wasn't even hooked up right.

I just laughed. What else could I do?

I had to get a chest x-ray because my left lung wasn't sounding good. That came back clear but my lung still hurt bad. Turns out the fantastic spleen is responsible for that too! Due to spleenic sequestration (the enlargement of my spleen due it trapping my abnormally shaped blood cells) the bottom of my left lung is being pushed against my rib. After an abdominal ultrasound they saw that my spleen had decreased, but only by 2cm since last month when I was sent to University Hospital.

Great.

After a few days of doing my time I am finally able to handle the pain with oral medication. Baby is fine. And I'm sure there will be many more hospitalizations to come as he continues to get bigger. 

But such is my life at the moment.