What a year 2016 was. So many musicians and public figures have passed and with a new President being sworn in in less than a month who knows what will happen next. On the health front, 2016 was maintenance mode for me. I guess it defined the new normal and I'm now learning how to deal with the after effects of chemo. Unfortunately, my Triple A has demanded attention so I'll be facing the new challenges that are presented.
I had a CAT scan performed today at Holy Family. There has been a threat of bad weather, so I'm glad it was scheduled early. Happily there were not too many 'patients' waiting and I was taken before I had a chance to read the first page of my newspaper.
Being escorted to the imaging room, I was asked my name and date of birth while the medical technician reviewed my chart. "So we are looking at the abdominal aneurysm today", she said? Answering to the affirmative, I was asked, "Have you had this done before?" and "Have you had any adverse reactions to the dye?" "Yes, I'm a repeat customer and No, I've had no problems in the past," I said.
As I positioned myself on the very narrow scanning bed, I was asked which arm I preferred. Given my node removal on my left, I said, "You only have one choice, my right." She began to tie off my circulation and started thumping at my veins. [Last week's blood draw resulted in some bruising, so I'm sure the vein was not in the best shape.] She announced that there would be a pinch. Ouch!
She asked, "Does that hurt?" I said it felt like it was in the meat. She quickly removed the needle and began looking for another area to poke. I had mentioned the blood draw last week and she indicated she could see where the hole was.
It seemed to take quite a bit of time and lots of 'thumping', but she decided to 'go in' at my wrist. She needed to remove my patient ID bracelet. She 'got in' and asked, "Does that hurt?". I said, "It's just very uncomfortable." I was told that I would feel warmth as the IV fluid entered my body. I did.
She brought my arms above my head and had them resting on the pillow. She said, "I'm going to take some images without the dye. You'll hear a voice telling you to breath in and hold your breath, then exhale." She left the room and after a few passes, she returned. "OK, I'm going to give you the dye. You'll feel hot", she said before leaving once again. I could definitely feel the heat spread through my body. It was an oddly disturbing feeling. But it didn't last too long and the machine shuttled me in and out until I heard her say, "We're done."
Returning to the room she removed the needle and tightly wrapped my wrist with a flexible bandage. She wished me a happy new year and instructed me to drink plenty of water to flush out the dye.
Now the waiting game. More to come.
Happy New Year!
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