The Long Road Ahead (pt 5)

At this point, I'd been in the hospital for almost four weeks - a little over one week at Houston Medical and going on three at Emory. For me to be discharged, we had a few things to accomplish. First, I had to be taken off the morphine pump and manage my pain with oral medication. Second, they needed to make sure my oxygen levels were alright without the use of an oxygen tank. Third, a physical therapist needed to evaluate me to make sure I was able to get out of the bed and at least move around (with or without assistance).

So where were we after being moved back to the oncology floor from the ICU? They removed the morphine pump the next day. In addition to a Fentanyl patch (which had been used as pain management since before I was transferred to Emory), I was using Tylenol and Celebrex for my pain. The good news was they seemed to be helping better than the IV pump, so the first of the checklist had been completed.

The oxygen was a little bit harder to kick. Even though I didn't feel it, my lungs were not taking in as much oxygen as they should be. This was the major reason the doctors wanted me in the ICU. I recovered quickly enough, but I still had a nasal cannula and slowly weaned off of it after I was transferred.

Finally, we had some PT and OT workers come in and get me out of bed. I was able to get around, albeit slowly and with limited movement. Of course, I still needed some assistance to stand (even with a walker). But since I was moving about and our plans were to transfer to a rehab facility anyway, the therapists were able to sign off on me.

It wasn't until a couple days later that the transfer finally went through and we were able to get out of the hospital and into a facility closer to home. This was a major convenience for my wife, since she had been staying in hotel rooms most of the time in Atlanta.

I'd go into detail about what I did at the rehab hospital, but each day was pretty much more of the same. Each day was comprised of a bit of physical therapy to strengthen my legs back up to walking/balance capability as well as upper body workouts to keep my arms and chest muscles in shape. Of course, each day I would get progressively better. But, there wasn't really any milestone moments I can think of other than the day I was able to finally go home. I was discharged after only two weeks, and used a rolling walker for about a week and a half before I switched over to using a cane.

So, I'm 6 weeks removed from my rehab experience. How am I doing right now?

• I am able to sleep in my own bed with very limited soreness. I have a recliner when I get too uncomfortable that I can doze off in as well. The biggest issue for sleeping is trying to get comfortable enough to fall asleep. Once I am able to drift off, I usually wake up a few times a night to reposition myself, but it's not a problem to get back to sleep after that.
• My legs are a lot stronger. Around the house, I usually don't use my cane anymore. Going out in public, I still take it as a safety precaution. It helps in unfamiliar areas when I could take a wrong step. As well, it could help me keep my balance in case someone bumps into me accidentally.
• My back still gets sore every now and then, but usually only after the day is coming to an end after I've been up for a while. But I have been seeing an outpatient physical therapist that is doing some deep tissue work on my muscles in my back, releasing the tension and slowly loosening up my back muscles. This let's me move around much more without my back muscles getting sore. The massages are pretty intense and painful, but it will be worth it after I'm done.
• I am still on plenty of medications, but we are working with various doctors to get me off of some of them. After I was discharged, I stopped taking several of previously prescribed medications and I am down to only a few left. It is weird that I actually feel healthier the less pills I have to take.
• We are still working to manage my joint pain, which is a side effect from the Vem. After trying glucosamine and testing the Celebrex again, we are going to try some aqua therapy at a local wellness center. Until then, Tylenol seems to tone down the pain to manageable levels.

So that is my story up until this point. Again, I will try to keep the updates more frequent as stuff happens as well as (finally) getting on to some other topics.