Saturday, November 7, 2009

I went yesterday to Phelps Memorial to get a port in my arm so when I get my next Chemotherapy treatment they wont have to access my vein with a needle. I got there at 10:00 am for a scheduled procedure at 11:30. My mom and I were in the pre op room watching the Yankees parade which was nice but time was just ticking away and nobody came for me. Finally at 1:00 pm they came for me and wheeled me away to the procedure room. This room is like an operating room but its used for procedures guided by x ray like angeograms and pic lines an like my port placement. Anyway the left me in the hallway saying that the previous procedure was not finished yet and it would take a few minutes. An hour later I was still laying on a stretcher in the hallway and the radiologist comes to see me out there. He starts to feel my chest to see where he is going to place the port and realizes that there is not enough room to put it in my chest because of my implants and the fact that I am so small. Now the only other place to put it is in my arm and the problem is I already have one arm that is somewhat debilitated because of the lymph node removal and now if they put the port in the other one that arm will also be somewhat debilitated. The doctors also don't like it as much in the arm for some other reasons but no choice in the matter so he did it in my arm. Next thing I know it is now 4:00 and my mother is probably panicking because the whole procedure was only supposed to take 20 minutes and I left her at 1:oo. I finally get rolled out of the procedure room an my Mom looks totally drained and I am feeling like crap and we have been at the hospital since 10:00 am and I can't even leave for at least an hour because of the sedatives they gave me. I proceed to eat a grilled cheese sandwich and some strawberry ice cream like it was my last meal because I haven't eaten since yesterday at 7pm. Then it hits me the nausea was horrific the meds they gave me and the food just didn't mix so now they give me some more medication for nausea and we are stuck there for even more time. Finally they let us go at 5:30 or so we get home at 6:30 and I get in bed and fall asleep sick to my stomach and exhausted. I woke up at 9 pm and my arm is hurting so bad I began to cry uncontrollably the pain is beyond belief. I think that is why they don't like to put the port in the arm and I just found out why big time. I took extra meds and got through the night and feel much better this morning. I hope this port makes my life easier and I think it will. So today I will rest and relax and hopefully heal fast.

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