Sunday, January 27, 2013

Weekly Wrap-up for Janaury 27, 2013: The Nightmare.

I had really big plans for this week-starting my new classes, beginning discussions on World War II and The Great Gatsby (I was SO EXCITED to talk about the green light).

All of that was thrown away when I came home on Wednesday to find Matt in bed shivering and looking horrible. I woke him up to talk to him and learned that he had been vomiting since BEFORE he went to work the previous day (Note: On Mondays and Tuesdays, we work opposite schedules. He goes to work at 4 in the afternoon and works through the night). So, Matt had been getting sick for over 24 hours.

I let him sleep for a couple hours, then woke him up with a hot bowl of soup. It didn't go well. He couldn't keep it down, and looking at him, I just knew something wasn't right. We decided to go to an urgent care facility a little down the road to get him looked at. I was concerned about his blood sugar level, since he is a type 1 diabetic. I was right to worry. After they got us into a room, I mentioned his diabetes, which got them moving (I should have mentioned it when we walked in). They tested his sugar and he couldn't even sit up. His sugar was at 402 (which is HIGH). Immediately they told me to take him to the hospital, so over to the ER we went.

After being admitted, they took us back almost immediately to a small room and got him hooked up to IVs, etc. His blood sugar was higher, he was still getting sick, and it was horrible. He was so dehydrated that they couldn't get into his veins to give him medicine and insulin. At one point, his blood sugar was so high (over 500) that when the nurse asked him to identify me he said, "I have no idea."

They made the decision to put him into the ICU after that, so we traveled upstairs. The meanest nurse told me to go "Wait somewhere" while they set him up. At that point, it was super late, I was alone, hysterical, and just wanted my husband to be okay. I may have lost it a bit in the waiting room, and eventually she came to tell me I could come see him.

It was so scary to see him hooked up to a lot of machines. They were worried about his heart rate since it was so high. But at least he was awake and talked to me a bit. The room had one chair, so I sat down and settled in for the night. I kid you not, that mean nurse told me at least ten times to go home (Matt agrees that she was really rude). I was not about to leave my husband alone in the ICU. Thankfully, another nurse brought me a blanket and tried to make me comfortable so I could sit with him during the night. I slept a little, but woke up every time they checked his sugar. At around 5, I snapped awake and Matt was awake too. He looked so much better, so we talked for a little while. I had to run home to feed the animals, call in for a sub, and sleep for a couple hours.

I was back by 9:30, and they decided to move him out of the ICU since his sugar level stabilized. At that point, it sank in he would be okay. From there, we spent the next two days waiting for his other levels to regulate themselves and getting some food in his stomach (he hadn't kept anything down since Monday night). He was finally able to come home Friday.

I am so glad to have him home. He feels a million times better, and it's great to see him looking like himself. He has a lot of bruises on his arms from all the needles and bloodwork, and the tips of fingers are bruised from them testing his sugar so much.

I feel really drained (emotionally) from everything that happened, but I am so grateful for my co-workers. They really helped me pull together lessons and make sure the subs were comfortable with my classes. The media specialist, a good friend of mine, stepped in and taught my history classes on Friday so the kids would have a break from book work.

The kids have also been quite sweet. I posted on my webpage that I wouldn't be in, simply saying my husband was in the hospital, and I've gotten some very concerned and sweet e-mails hoping he gets better.

I'm so happy to have such a warm and supportive group of people around me, but most of all, I'm glad Matt is home with me and on the mend.

12 comments:

  1. What a scary and stressful week. I am SO happy to read that your husband is home and on the mend, and it's awesome that you have such wonderful student and colleagues. I hope next week is much more relaxing. :)

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  2. Wow that's terrifying! I haven't been online much lately, and I only saw that he was coming out of the hospital - I had no idea that it was something so major and terrible! I'm so glad he came through it okay and that your coworkers were able to help you so much. *hugs*

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  3. Wow, that must have been really scary and I'm sure that mean nurse was absolutely no help. I'm glad that your husband is okay.

    You have such wonderful students. I'm glad that other teachers stepped in for you and that you do have a lot of support.

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  4. Dear Allie. Please send Matt my best, and give yourself a hug from me! That nurse sounds awful. There was a mean one where my Dad was in ICU. Another one was there when my grandma was dying. She talked right over her about how "she'd be gone in a few days" as if she was already gone! I was furious. But -- I know there must be far more excellent, caring nurses, than mean ones. x

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  5. I'm so sorry you and Matt had to go through all of this, Allie. I'm so happy to hear he's back home and feeling alright again. All my best wishes for the two of you.

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  6. Oh no... I know that is so scary and I hate that helpless feeling that I get when I have a loved one ill in the hospital. I hope Matt gets lots of rest and starts feeling better soon. You too, lady, lots of rest!

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  7. What a trial! I'm so happy that your husband is on the mend and that you've got some wonderful people there to lend you a hand. I'm so sorry you had to go through all of this. Don't forget to take care of yourself throughout all of this, too!

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  8. I'm sorry to hear that you had such a frightening time this week, but I'm glad to hear that Matt is getting better. I hope Matt is completely recovered soon and that you have a much better week this week.

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  9. It is great he is feeling better! My thoughts and prayers go for you.

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  10. That sounds incredibly scary, I'm glad Matt's ok now. There was a particularly mean nurse in the birthing centre when my sister had her baby, doing the same "yours" did, though they were not at all busy. Glad that you had supportive people helping you there as well, though.

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  11. Just horrible, I am so glad he's ok and back home with you!

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