By Olivene Godfrey

COLONSCOPY and BROKEN TOE

Written August 14, 2003

Well, folks, I am having a bad week, to say the least. I checked out of the hospital yesterday afternoon after spending two days and a night there. And, at seven P.M. last night, I went to bed and fell into a deep sleep for eleven hours. And no wonder! I had been awake 48 hours and was about to pass out. This all started a few days ago when I had an alarming experience with rectal bleeding at three A.M. in the morning. The sight of anyone's blood makes me feel queasy but seeing my own blood terrifies me.

I had a similar episode a few years ago that was never explained after tests. And now the new episode threatened me. My son, Barry, took me to the hospital in the wee hours of the morning where I was examined by the ER doctor who said blood was accumulating on my colon but he didn't know why so I was admitted to the hospital. My doctor came by to check on me in a little while and said she would send a surgeon to see me about setting up a colon scope which was what I had been worried about.

I've had stomach problems all of my life and a vivid memory of my childhood is the "pin k medicine" that my mother kept on hand for my nervous stomach. So, over the years I have had countless tests and later scans and ultrasounds and the like to no avail. I won't go into the gory details of being prepped with laxatives for a colonscopy . If you have had one, you will know what I mean. I was up most of the night going to the bathroom and being attached to an IV machine didn't help my mood. The previous day I had been given a liquid diet and I felt like my stomach was empty. Boy! Was I wrong!

Finally, the time for the dreaded test arrived and the bad time began as I am allergic to Demerol and Morphine and other sedatives that have been tried haven't worked for me. So, I was wide awake despite a sedative that was given to me during the entire procedure which wasn't pleasant. The surgeon didn't find a reason for the bleeding so we were back to square one.

I can't sleep in hospitals and hadn't slept a wink during my stay there. I was becoming annoyed by little things, such as the blood pressure machines that torture patients with their tight grip on your arm where the cuffs are and other minor things. The nurses were very nice and patient with me so I tried to be nice to them, too. Since I have been at home my mood has improved although I am still apprehensive about the blood incident and the possibility of another colonscopy. I feel like I am too old to go through those kind of tests but I do need to know what is wrong with my body.. I have an appointment in two weeks with my doctor so I can have some time to recover from the past week's experiences.

Now I have another small but painful problem. I have broken my left little toe and it is swollen and black and blue and hurts something awful. I am having to hobble around and it is taking forever for me to do my normal chores.

This bad week followed a really nice Sunday when a column was published, written by the editor, about me and my writing background and my entry into the world of blogging in my old age. I had told the editor that I would be happy to be the Grandma Moses of writing.

I will keep you posted on the outcome of my medical problem and keep your fingers crossed, and maybe say a prayer, that it will come out well in the long run.

So, long, for now.
olivene21@netscape.net