h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Sending more best wishes Bea

When I was coming round from a small operation ( compared to this ) I found it was the morphine that made me behave badly. It gave me hallucinations, so I'd never want to be on a drip of morphine again - it was really frightening.

I do hope your husband is soon back in a normal ward and feeling improved. Eventually this will all be behind you.

Good update from this morning's phone call - sedation levels being reduced, starting to communicate by pointing a finger, being co=operative, breathing tube hopefully removed later today.

It's Saturday! I might get a chance to get some me time in the gym

As I was standing in ICU last night watching all the activity and bustle, with blinking and beeping machines, and endless lines of drugs, I did wonder how much this all cost. I reckon 1 day of ICU is probably my tax bill for a year.

Hope it'll all go uphill from here.

There should be big improvements from now on





lil x

One of the things I have to do today is pay some money over to the Revenue; I never mind paying taxes, but it would be nice if I could mark this one up "for the ICU units in Norn Ireland". Not that it would go very far.

B

My theme tune for today is Jason Derulo "Breathing"

"I only miss you when I'm breathing, I only need you when my heart is beating"

I am only glad that we have a Health service that can provide such care. It is worth every penny spent.

Hoping for continued improvement, and that you get a bit of R&R yourself.

I hope the recovery is going well, Bea, and that you are also looking after yourself.

Perhaps when we pay tax it is less painful to remember that people we actually *know* are directly benefitting from it. Well, it helps me, anyway.

I don't think I'll ever know how my husband felt seeing me on all those machines when I was in Intensive Care. The thing is, when you're laying there, wondering how the hell they got 13 tubes into you, you don't realise that when people come into the room, the first thing they see is a huge battery of wires and switches and lights - enough to drive the Enterprise. And amongst it all, their loved one looking much smaller than life, drugged and drowsy and vague, in hospital linen, is just one small part of that machinery. When you're lying in that bed, you have no idea what's behind you, as you can't move much. I don't know if you're allowed to take pictures, but it may be interesting to show him later, when he's at the "Don't know what all the fuss was about" stage, so that he knows this.

How much longer will he be in hospital?

And do give him my best wishes.

Wow. You're right, it is like that.

Sending good vibes in your direction.

Had a great day today!

9-10 breakfast with daughter
10-11 walked doggies round the frosty river
12-1 Body Combat class at the gym
1-2 shopping! Got a lovely ankle length brown fine check skirt with embroidered pockets, and a short sleeve nutmeg cardigan, £8 the pair.
2.30- 3.30 Visiting time. Dai was sitting up in bed, conscious, off the ventilator (but tubes up the nose still) and starting to crack a few jokes with the nurses. Even managed to eat a Joker ice-lolly, the first thing he's eaten in days. His balance is still a bit off, and he's still being a bit aggressive, but not as bad as he was on Thursday.
4-5 Feed dogs, walk dogs, feed fish
6.30 - 7.30 evening visiting.
8 on - glass of wine, million pound drop, and some cheesey crackers

And his sister is going to come with me during afternoon visiting tomorrow.

So a brilliant day!

That's such a relief, bea.

Enjoy your evening.

Congratulations on a good day! And best wishes to the tin man.

TRiG.

Sunday wasn't too bad - improving, but slowly. He still has the odd panic attack/ paranoid delusion, and he's still in ICU and getting sedation to deal with those. But hoping to move to HDU later today, with Friday being touted as a possible release day.

I must get some diet coke, to let it go flat in time for tonight's visiting.

Ugh, what is with the diet coke? Can he drink it if it is flat? I hope that he will be able to get to a better room and will recover well enough to go home on Friday .

And we're now in HDU - yay!

Still having the odd paranoid moment (rather toxic combination of morphine-induced hallucinations, coupled with typical post-heart-op stroke-like symptoms, exacerbated by nicotine withdrawal, on top of a normally grumpy and stubborn personality....I did bring a big box of Thorntons for the staff this evening, as they've had to put with this for 4 whole days now!)

And as he progresses, more people feel able to visit, which eases the pressure on me somewhat.

He's now in possession of his kindle, iPod and phone. And I'm a wee bit miffed that he's obviously used the phone (despite being told that he couldn't) to contact an acquaintance of less than 3 months to find out how her date went . More annoyed that despite me warning him not to use the phone, he's gone ahead anyway. Did I say stubborn?

Anyhoo. His Mum has been to visit, and is intending to do so again most days.

Great that you have some relief. He sounds like he is getting better---somelike like our cats in recovery they tend to get up to their old tricks again and be annoying but it is still a worry.

Super progress - back to the ordinairy ward!

I'm getting garbled texts from him, I think he's possessed by the spirit of Professor Stanley Unwin.

YAY!