Tomorrow will be the 34th anniversary of my birth. Yep, with crappy timing my birthday has rolled around again.
Last years day was pretty awesome. We took the children and 10 week old bump to Disneyland Paris to meet Mickey Mouse and generally have fun and experience something new. This included quite a lot of train spotting, luckily our accommodation was close to a railway line and learning lots of new words especially Pomme for Apple.
The year before, 2011, I'd been diagnosed with the cancer and had my date for chemo starting which was 2 days after my birthday. So my actual birthday was spent with some friends enjoying the last of the sunshine before 2 days of PICC lines and oxaliplatin infusions.
This year I fear will be another wash out.
I had my endoscopy on Friday 27th, actually I kind of had 2. I opted initially to not be sedated and have the local anaesthetic. I thought I coped remarkably well with the tube being put in and did not have to much gagging or choking. However when it came to it I just could not tolerate it for too long, so the tube had to be withdrawn and I had to be cannulated and sedated.
It turns out that there was still a lot of fluid in my stomach despite not eating or drinking anything for more than the prescribed time.
I have to say the local anaesthetic is nasty, it is supposed to taste like banana. If that was my first taste of banana, I'd never have it again. It burns and tastes most unpleasant, but it does numb your throat and makes you dribble everywhere!
After a short time in recovery we saw the consultant. Finally I was going to get some answers. Or not.
There is an area of inflammation in my stomach, which he has sampled and sent off for histology. In order to investigate further I will need yet another CT scan.
Since the endoscopy I have been in almost constant abdominal and back pain. Now I know that there is inflammation in my stomach I can't take anymore NSAIDS, so ibuprofen is out for pain relief and I am relying on trusty paracetamol and constipating cocodamol.
The last few nights have been so bad I have managed about 3 hours sleep a night.
So, with all this behind and in front of me, I am not looking forward to tomorrow as a special day, but as one more day towards answers.
About this Blog
This blog started as an online diary and place for me to rant about annoyances in my family.
However since July it has become a place for me to catalogue and express my views and opinions on the treatment I have recieved following the diagnosis of a potentially cancerous tumor in my bowel.
On 3rd August 2011 I was told that it was cancerous. In April 2012 I was given the all clear.
October 15th 2013 I was diagnosed with peritoneal disease and liver metastases. The cancer was back and this time it is inoperable.
It is a little bit out of date as the NHS doesn't tend to have a WiFi connection in hospital and I can only post when I get home and posts take a while to write.
It is NOT about individuals or the nursing profession. It is about some of the inadequacies in the system and the way the NHS is failing some people.
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