I haven't posted here for some time. The piece below will explain why:
The surgery was: Burr Hole Hematoma Evacuation
About those staples…
Late in
June after returning from Cabo I had a fall event (end of June). One evening
while Susan was watching the start of the news, I went to our bathroom to brush
my teeth and other “get ready for bed tasks.”
After awhile Susan came to check on me as it seemed to her that too much
time had passed. She found me standing in the bathroom covered with blood. Apparently,
I had fallen, probably into the shower, and banged my head very hard. I say
apparently because I have no memory of this happening. My last memory was
leaving the front room… nothing in memory until I was insisting on going to
bed. Susan, of course wanted to take me immediately to the emergency room. I
wanted no part of that. I told her she could take me in the morning if she
still wanted to. Anyway I showered and went to bed. I may have “blacked out” as
I have no memory of falling or hitting my head… but there was a lot of blood
evidence.
In the
morning, my wife, Susan took me to the ER at Kaiser Roseville. They ran a battery
of tests including a CT scan and released me indicating no damage that needed
to be dealt with.
A few
weeks later, like 7 or 8, I was starting to have issues. I was losing
muscle strength, especially on my right
side and was having a problem with balance.
One
morning while Susan was out doing her morning exercise walk with some neighbor
ladies I attempted to open a window that I had opened hundreds of times before
and lost my balance crashing into a lamp and a wall. As there had been a couple
of other additional issues Susan took me to the doctor. He ordered a CT scan,
but it was scheduled for mid-afternoon. It was still late morning. What to do? We decided to get a sandwich and then return
to Kaiser. When we got back to Kaiser I went into a restroom planning on
changing clothes.
That is
where the trouble began. I lost my balance and fell on the floor. Then I
discovered I did not have the muscle strength to get off the floor. If you are
ever going to do something like that, I
recommend you use one of the restrooms in a health care facility. I was not
long without help. Soon I was on a
gurney and on my way to the ER. Time for another CT scan. This time it showed
two fairly large subdural hematomas in the area of my upper forehead. When
reviewed by the neurosurgeons the conclusion was surgery was needed.
I was
moved by ambulance from the Roseville ER to the neurosurgery facility in
Sacramento. At this point I mostly lose my memory of events. I was in ICU for 8
days, and then moved upstairs to the neurosurgery floor for a few days more. I
was in both for a total of about 13 days, and don’t remember most of that time.
I was
released from the hospital on Wednesday, September 3rd. My son Steve
arrived from Arizona the 4th to help my transition. What a blessing
it was to have him here and helping.
So anyway,
when I arrived home a had 25 staples and a stitch on a drain hole.
And that
is what is what the staples are all about…
Oh yes… The good news: recovery is progressing as well as
can be expected.
The bad news: No wine or cigars until mid-October . ;>(
As of now,
I have NOT be released to return to my normal life, but I think I will be soon.
I feel really good so I can’t imagine why the surgeon would not release me.
.
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