4-30-03
This morning, I had to help take someone to the hospital. For those of you who do knot know me well, I do not wake up well. When it is an emergency, I deal with it, but expect crabbyness and direct no-bullshit questions. This actually helped in this situation.
Josh was on the Internet, using an instant message service when our friend IM'd him. She was having tummy problems and stuff... He came and woke me up and gave me a small rundown of what was going on. A certain phrasing of his got my mind going, and not in a good way. Our friend takes many medicines, and had recently been changed to a different combination - it was potentially an overdose.
I got onto the computer and started to ask questions - Any one else with you? No. What symptoms are you having? Fever/chills, throwing up, dizzy, tummy pains. Have you had a Bowel Movement recently? Yesterday. Have you been drinking water? Yes. What did you have for dinner? BBQ
Then I started in on the leading questions - What type of a pain in your tummy? Cramping, it comes and goes and is real bad. Is it more on the left or on the right? Right. Is it tender to the touch? Yes. Is it hard or soft in that area? I can't tell.
Yes, those are some of the symptoms of Appendicitis.
Josh and I piled into the car - then we decided that two vehicles would be better (a scheduling thing with work, computer certification, etc.).We both went to pick her up, I did a preliminary hands on with her when we got there and confirmed that not only was it tender on her right side, it was more painful when I released the pressure than when I pushed - that is called rebound tenderness. We packed her pills up(always take your current pills with you to the emergency room, in their original bottles if possible), put her in her coat for the rainy weather and went to the hospital. I got there a few minutes after Josh and Tina.
I chatted with the admissions nurse as Tina's vitals were taken - blood pressure, weight, such things. I stayed with Tina in the waiting area until the nurse came to take her away - I would have stayed with her if I hadn't needed to get to work to open the shop. I arrived at the shop just in time to let in someone who had just arrived themselves with a computer that needed fixing.
All this and a thunderstorm...
* With this adventure, a little paranoia was good. Medication reactions can
cause all sorts of symptoms and if you take too much, too little or ones that
shouldn't be taken together, you can get very sick. Taking her meds with us
was good because several of the ones she takes counterindicate certain antibiotics.
If it was just bad BBQ, they can help her with some heavy duty antinausia
agents. But if it was 'The Big One' and did turn out to be Appendicitis, going
to the hospital was the best thing for her.
In circumstances like this, it is good to be around medical facilities, but
if you are the First Aid person, you have to know a little of everything to
help the medical people if the person you are with faints or becomes non-comunicative
for any reason. Know what signs to look for that the person can't 'tough it
out'. Take a first aid course and get a few reference books for your library.
I will update as things progress.
4-31-03.. oops 5-1-3 It turns out her Gall Bladder is infected! Some of the same symptoms as Apendicitis - Throwing up, Rebound tenderness... She did not have to do any surgery, but the horse pills are amazing! She is resting and on a no fat diet for a while. The gall bladder stores what breaks down the fat you eat. If it goes out of whack, you cannot eat fatty foods, like the BBQ she had the night before... Ah, well.
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