We Left

We're home.

Thursday was coming and going and I had already assumed we would stay at least one more night when Great and Wise popped in to talk.  The rash was better, the blood pressure was better, Marty was better and he thought we were out of danger and could go home.

Solu-medrol is a steroid that works wonders for a number of things, including allergic rashes.  Marty had been mainlining the juice for a couple of days, it had helped the rash enormously, but it had her wired and talking smack.  She had been saying all day she was leaving.  I guess she was right.

We got home that evening and Renea, Marty's caregiver, showered the hospital gunk off Marty and let her sit in her chair in the living room while I went and secured Renea and I some less than healthy fast food junk.  Marty had been fed at the hospital before we left.

By this time Marty, still fired up from the Solumedrol, was giving instructions and telling Renea and I what she would and wouldn't do.  Her rash was better but still there and she kept trying to scratch herself, no easy feat for someone with limited capacity in one arm.

As it turned out Marty stayed awake all night Thursday night.  She kept thinking she needed to get out of bed and she kept thinking she could get out of bed.  She normally can't use her left leg at all but Thursday night she kept moving both legs to the edge of the bed.  Renea finally relocated her to the center of the queen bed and Marty was not happy about that.

The half life of Solu-medrol, the time it takes to leave your body,  is 18 to 24 hours.  At about the 18 hour mark Marty finally succumbed to fatigue and fell asleep.  She slept for three hours, woke up with the residual effects of the steroids still driving her a bit.  She ate supper in bed, was showered again and went back to by 9 pm and asleep again about 10 p.m., completely exhausted.  She wasn't alone, I was pretty tuckered myself and we both slept all night.

Saturday and Sunday things moved toward normal. Today, Monday, we did all of the regular stuff plus we visited some pretty cool folks at our church.

She is still pretty tired and a little weak from the whole ordeal but I am pretty confident we are on the right track.

We have tumbled to the conclusion that the rash and low blood pressure, the reasons for the hospital visit, were caused by the contrast dye from a cat scan taken on the Saturday before our hospital incarceration.  That was the ER visit I initiated because of her fatigue and my anxiety level.

I guess that means this one was my fault because I took her to the ER to be examined and when they asked me if she had ever had a bad reaction to the dye I said no.  Guess what, I'll have a better answer next time.

Marty and I appreciate all of the feedback, the support and comments from our latest misadventure.  I read all of the comments to her and it's the closest I have seen her to tearing up since the stroke kind of broke her emotional center.  She was genuinely touched by the kind words, thought and prayers.

Thank you, this really sort of answers my questions about calling someone.  I will do better in the future Sue.