CT Myelogram

Well I had the procedure done on Friday..sorry I haven't wrote about it but I've been recovering…and its been a really hard recovery. I think bc in my mind I thought it was no big procedure at all and I was just going to bounce right back. HA! Boy was I wrong.

The procedure itself was quite interesting. The part that she said was going to hurt the worst was right at the beginning where they put a needle in numbed the spine. Then they measured the pressure up there in my head. And it was measuring normal. I couldn’t talk or anything while for a couple of minutes while they measured it. It measured 16. Normal range is from 14-20. Well then they basically pumped my head full of pressure. She said I would feel it pretty soon. She wasn’t lying. Within seconds the front of my head killed!!!!! and my head felt like it just got blown up like a balloon. it was horrible. Then they injected dye. This is where the interesting part is…Imagine this…I'm laying on the table with a gown on with nothing under and it is open in the back..k… Ok so then they have you put your feet all the way up in the air..then your butt too up in the air..then they have you turn to the right…and then turn to the left..then turn back to your right…ok turn back to your left..ok now we are going to do full circles quickly on this little table and try to keep yourself covered in the mean time too.. so here I am doing circles on the table over and over again and over again..all the while I'm trying to hold my gown in place..at some point I think I said forget this it isn't even possible and just kept rolling…They were trying to get the dye all over in my body. Think they did a good job of that.. So then it was time to take the images on the CT scan to check to see if there were any holes. I got the full lumbar done. I wasn’t going to have the full lumbar but when they found the leak in the neck area they decided to add that area in too. So you have to lay real still for lots of minuets..which wouldn’t be too bad but when you are on your stomach and have your head in a sheet and are told not to breathe deeply..you just kind of panic a little or I do anyways…and I almost hyperventilated. But I didn’t. Then came the painful part..They ended up finding 4 leaks plus they patch up the one where they went in so that makes 5 blood patches that they ended up doing but I actually got poked 6 times bc one they couldn’t get in on the one side so they went in from the other side. They gave me propofol  first..and that of course made me loopy….then they take a dropper full of blood for each patch out of my arm which had an IV in. They put that dropper of  blood back into my spine where they are doing the patch along with fibrin glue. and them combined form a patch over the leak in the spine. Can I just say that each poke hurts sooo bad..even though you have the propofol you still can feel it…they did one at the top of my bum and that one was well VERY painful..and I got a little snippy with them bc it was the last one and I was tired of taking my pain out on the poor sheet..and so they told me they would give me some more propofol and I proceeded to tell them that that wasn’t going to help with the pain…all the drs were like ok..this girl has had enough she just went from a quite shy girl to a little snippy girl…HAHAHA!!! oh well I don’t care..I was in pain and I couldn’t take it anymore. So after they finished up the last one I had to go to a recovery room for a couple of hours. Why do they tell you a bunch of important information when you are on propofol????  That stuff messes you up…that’s the same drug that Michael Jackson died on from a over dose. just sayin. So this dr proceeds to tell me all the dos and don’ts and all I remember was just leave me alone so I can close my eyes…please…..

So I did stay in the recovery room for about 2.5 hours. and still after that I felt like I was ummmmm……drunk basically. I knocked my water over all over the floor getting out of bed. Try getting dress feeling like that..I thought I was going to fall over and land on the floor naked…hahaha!!!

So we took off for home and it was suppose to be a 3.5 hour drive home…it took us FOREVEr!!! Rain..storms..bad storms..traffic..accidents..more backed up traffic..it took us 6 hours to get home!!!!! and of course we left the hospital thinking we have 4 hours to get home and get the prescriptions filled. bc they are every 4 hours and they gave me some right before I left the hospital. THAT WAS THE BIGGEST MISTAKE EVER!!!!!!!!!!  WE had to find a CVS on the way and get them filled..I was very nausea(which the one thing I remember the dr telling me right after is don’t throw up..try to not throw up…) and I couldn’t even move one little bit bc my back KILLED…….and my head…well my head was blown up and I couldn’t take it..it was pounding hard..and it was full of pressure. so we stopped so I get them filled and get them in me…I wasn’t going to last another minute.

So now onto the recovery..the recovery is hard. I was told that I couldn’t lift anything for a few days. No strenuous activity for a few days. Basically just take it easy. So Saturday my neighbor and I had already planned on having a garage sale and she knew I was supposed to take it easy so she said I could just sit there..and that is basically what I did..But I didn’t last very long..bc after a few hours I was really nausea I just couldn’t take the pressure anymore..I had to go lay down…Saturday was the worst day ever. no kidding. the rest of the day went down hill fast. I couldn’t get off of the couch. I was extremely dizzzy and that made me really nausea…and my head and my back ….I just couldn’t take it…the meds werent cutting..thank goodness for my sweet good friend that brought us supper.. bc we would have been eating cereal again for supper. So Saturday night Jared camped with the older three girls out back and then Sunday morning when the twins got up he had them go out side too and they spent all day outside. He cooked them breakfast on the fire..which turned out to be lunch for them by the time it was done..and then anytime one would come inside Destiny would come back inside and say what are you doing inside Dad said you had to stay out side and play..they had church around the fire..played the guitar and sang songs..I think they all had a good day with dad too..and I had a good day just relaxing on the couch. I cant get off of the couch for very long before my head is killing me and my back too..so just have to relax and lay down..and trust me it is KILLING me just to do that..I have sooo much that I need to get done but I cant..and so it just sits…and I guess it will wait for me. bc I don’t want to overdo it either or I will undo the patches and it will be all done for nothing.

So today I still feel like my head is full and it hurts so I will lay on the couch all day bc its really helps if I lay down with the head pain anyways…and I just feel so tired..have all weekend..I sleep on and off all day…so that’s about it…As soon as I get past the recovery I will should see improvements in my symptoms. The Dr. (neuro radiologist) that did the procedure was really optimistic and thought that this was really going to help me. and she thought the chiari might go back up and that would mean that the blockage would go away too if it went back up and that would mean no brain surgery..bc I wouldn’t have all the symptoms..so that is what I am praying for….even if most of the symptoms went away that would be awesome too..So we wait and pray right now.

will update again in a few days..