Picked up Maddie around 8:55 a.m. yesterday to run her up to the high school. Jenni was asleep on the couch and I told her I'd be right back and we were taking off to meet Mary in downtown Seattle so she could take us over to Issaquah to the ER at Swedish. In trying to decide exactly where to go, Mary ended up talking to some woman at the clinic where she goes. She told her the scenario and why we were opting to go out of town for another evaluation for whatever was going on with Jenni. The woman sighed and said: I used to work at that hospital. You need say no more as I know where you're coming from. She suggested the Issaquah ER (because it was near Mary's house and because we were familiar with it as I'd had my shoulder replaced there). She also mentioned that they take you right in with no waiting. What?! Can that be?
Traveling that far with Jenni as sick as she was I knew was going to be a challenge but we made it. I had rented a wheelchair from a local drug store (I was already in their records because of my knee replacement). Anyhow, I had the back seat set up with pillows and blankets thinking Jenni would make the trip better laying down. She's so tall, though, that she opted to sit in the front and recline the seat. She did choose the backseat on the way home, though. The trip was so hard, she had to lay down.
We got to Bainbridge and I found a disabled spot near the gate. My placard was expired (from when my dad lived with me) and we had forgotten to bring Jenni's placard...but I parked there anyhow and kept my fingers crossed I wouldn't get a ticket. I hauled the wheelchair out of the back, got her situated in it with a blanket and we were off. Going up and down inclines was kind of hard and I had to practice getting over ramp bumps without tossing Jenni onto the street but we made it to the ferry.
Our only minor mishap on the way was when she wanted me to make a McDonalds stop in Poulsbo (a slight turn off our route) but I missed it and said there's another place down the road. I turned into this strip mall where I thought the fast food place was but ended up going in circles and had to turn around and get back on the highway. She only wanted some fries and was getting irritated with my driving. We went a little further and I saw the Dairy Queen but missed it as I saw it as we were passing. We ended up stopping at an Indian Longhouse cause she had to pee and then when we finally came to another McDonalds closer to the ferry, she said she didn't want anything. She was feeling miserable and as usual, I was scared we wouldn't make the ferry. I do hate catching ferryboats.
Since I had missed getting her the fries she wanted (she hadn't really eaten in over a day or two), I bought some chicken strips and steak fries on the ferry. Overpriced of course! $7 and they were dried out and blah. I should have known better. I brought them back to Jenni but she had laid down to sleep. She woke up and ate one and then went to the bathroom and threw up! I insisted on carrying the stupid fries with us in case she wanted some food later but they ended up in Mary's car where I'm sure she promptly tossed them in the trash. Ha!
Mary met us on the upper level right at the ferry terminal and took over pushing the wheelchair for me. She hadn't been able to find a parking spot because of all the construction down there so she parked in the underground parking lot where she's known. They allowed her to double park as she'd only be a few minutes. (She gives all they guys generous tips at Christmas so they like her) ha ha
We were off to Issaquah. Beautiful new hospital. Even has a mall inside with shops. We pushed Jenni to the front desk and got her registered. She was in "the system" already so that speeded things up. I guess because she's been to her Seattle neurologist for tests and followups, etc. Anyhow, within a minute, we were led back to our room. Three people (two were doctors)came in to take history, hook up wires, evaluate, etc. She ended up having new blood tests, a CT scan, and a urinalysis. She was in bad pain until they got the pain meds in her and then things eased a bit.
We were there about two hours altogether, but there was a nice color tv mounted on the wall with cable and the wait was tolerable. The tests showed what they believe was the aftermath of a kidney stone passing. She had blood in her urine and scarring or something like that indicating what was probably the passing of a stone. No way to determine for sure since we hadn't screened the pee but they were pretty sure that was what was going on. On top of that, she was having a MS flare. She was in so much pain and was so sick that she wasn't drinking enough and wasn't taking all her MS medicine on schedule. She's usually gung ho on taking her meds and never misses but her thinking was all messed up with the pain and she let it get away from her.
The MS flare was most likely worse this time because her immune system was compromised and the pain she was experiencing brought on more stress and panic. MS can worsen with stress and fatigue. She was thankful we had the wheelchair because walking was especially difficult as she lost her footing and swayed. She's been trying so hard to go without using a cane as she hates to be perceived as disabled but I think this trip was a wake up call to her that being disabled is something that can be dealt with and doesn't need to be ignored like it doesn't exist. She even kind of smiled a bit when she got to use her disabled card at the ferry terminal window to get a reduced fare.
I had a little bit of trouble maneuvering the chair onto the ferry and this woman came along and offered to take over. And I do mean take over. At first I was fine with letting her push over the ramps but then she returned after we docked and offered again. Jenni, by this time, was not feeling well. Her face was bright red and once we got to the car (I didn't get a ticket) she immediately threw up in the bushes. She told me the woman was pushing the chair too fast and it was making her sick. She was also running into the people in front of us and felt like a panic attack was coming on.
I could barely keep up with the woman myself once she got us in the middle of the pack. I would have preferred waiting until a lot more people were ahead of us. I did think we were at the back but I was wrong. Probably 500 people in that throng.
I stopped at the McDonalds on the Bainbridge side and bought her the fries she had wanted that morning. Wasn't long before she threw up again! After a while, she started thinking about all the times she had thrown up and what drugs she had been on. She deducted that one particular pain medicine (with morphine) was the culprit and she must be allergic to it.
The rest of the trip home was okay. I was nervous about driving at night but with no rain to contend with, it was manageable but I had to concentrate hard on that white line. We got to visit a bit as her spirits picked up. At one point, the cars in front of me began turning left at this light and I continued on. Wasn't long before I saw a speed sign 25 mph. I asked Jenni: Where the hell am I? Why is there a 25 mph sign out here in the middle of nowhere? Apparently, those cars turning left in front of me were going to the Hoods Canal Bridge. AND I DROVE RIGHT ON PAST! Big Sigh.....
We stopped at Port Angeles' Walmart to drive thru the drug prescription line and drop off the prescriptions the hospital had sent with her. Then, it was off to the west side of town and the end of our journey. Wayne and the kids (and Sammy) were all happy to see her home and I drove the two blocks back to my house to settle in with hot cocoa. Hit the sack early and was out like a light.
Today I have to return the wheelchair and pick up Maddie at the Sequim golf course this afternoon when she finishes her cross country meet. Jenni hopes to be able to go with me as Maddie was hoping some family member would be there to see her finish. Have to wait and see how things go.
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