Been married 33 years. My wife has had stomach issues for the last 12 years, constant bouts with throwing up and IBS . Last Monday and Tuesday a week ago her stomach pain got really severe.
Wednesday morning took her to a doctor to get checked out. White blood cell count was 22k where it should be 10k or less. They sent her straight to the emergency room for more testing and Cat scan.
Turns out she had a strangulated hernia which caused a blocked colon.
So emergency surgery commenced within about 3 hours last Wednesday the 16th. Surgery went better than expected, perfect in fact. After surgery she felt better than shes felt in 12 years. no more cigs ,she said she's done smoking (45) years and to throw her stash out.
Monday the 21st she was to be discharged around 9:30 am and I'm there waithing for the paperwork and we're in her room visiting with a friend that stopped in.
All of the sudden she stopped talking and her jaw was just quivering and she had this blank stare. I got the nurse in to look at her and everything seemed fine except she couldn't speak. After about 8 minutes she was able to speak again and everything seemed normal. This event happened 9 more times from then until 2:00 that afternoon as they kept her at the hospit for observation.
I had stayed with her all the time as I was worried, at 2:38 she started having another spell and then it turned into a full blown seizure. Now if you've never witnessed one, i'll tell you now ,you really dont want to.
her arm came out and made a tight fist and she just locked up and quit breathing .I was telling the nurse to get somebody now, right now. My wife, you could see every vein in her face and arms and she turned the darkest shade of purple you could imagine. Then she went limp . I yelled to the nurse, you need to call a code RIGHT NOW! She fell back ,as she had raised up during the seizure and was laying there blue. Like a corpse. Not breathing. I've got tears now as I type this.
About ten people rushed in at once. That damn code thingy gets you help fast. They told me to leave and I refused. They all did what they were trained to do and got her breathing again. probably within about 3 minutes.
another doctor came in and asked me to leave and I willingly did so as I was spent. I knelt in the hallway outside the room and cried. I had just witnessed my wife die.
but she wasn't dead.
They got her stabilized over the next couple hours ,awake and alert and ambulanced her to amarillo to a major trauma center.
So she's been there since Monday evening and has these episodes where she can't speak and lose function of her hands ,arms for 5-20 minutes out of every hour , sometimes three events per hour.
They don't have a diagnosis that they've shared with me. you can't get a straight answer from anybody ther, nurse can't tell you which doctor is due to come in or what time. the hospital is like the twilight zone and a bad nightmare combined.
Our only daughter is going through high school graduation ths week and it's been the big event on my wifes calendar for the last 6 months. She won't get to see it.
I have no idea if the doctors can fix this or if i'm bringing home a vegetable.
Just got home from the hospital again. She's still not had a seizure since friday night. Speech is good and normal. Long term memory is good but short term is all messed up.
So, I actually spoke with her doctor (not the neurologist) as she came through at 11:30. In summary she expects full recovery, said short term memory loss is normal at this point. MRI negative but the EEG showed a portion of her brain misfiring. She wants to do another EEG today.
Her opinion is the underlying cause is medication withdrawal from the clonazepan she was on for the last 12 years. Before surgery she couldn't keep anything down as she was puking every 15 minutes so I expect she went 2 days without it in her system and then the surgeon had cut it way back at surgery and recovery.
I still haven't caught the neurologist as I've found he does his rounds between midnight and 3AM. The nurse says he has 7-8 hours of paperwork every day before rounds so thats why its late. First time I found a nurse that knew anything.
I want to thank ALL of you again for your thoughts and prayers and all the kind words. I've read every single post through the days and just want you guys to know I appreciate all of you. No doubt the power of CP came through again. Before long she will be able to read through this and it will make her smile. [Reply]
BTW, we had a good conversation for several hours this morning and i could see she was getting tired, then she was trying to tell me that her blood pressure was over 11 thousand the other day and she had also had to yell for a nurse because her heart had stopped. LOL
Originally Posted by Hog's Gone Fishin:
Her opinion is the underlying cause is medication withdrawal from the clonazepan she was on for the last 12 years.
That’s some serious shit. I mean, first off, it’s used to treat seizures, and side effects listed fit her symptoms.
Clonazepam
Common brands: Klonopin
Sedative
It can treat seizures, panic disorder, and anxiety.
Controlled substance
Can cause paranoid or suicidal ideation and impair memory, judgment, and coordination. Combining with other substances, particularly alcohol, can slow breathing and possibly lead to death. [Reply]
Originally Posted by JD10367:
That’s some serious shit. I mean, first off, it’s used to treat seizures, and side effects listed fit her symptoms.
Clonazepam
Common brands: Klonopin
Sedative
It can treat seizures, panic disorder, and anxiety.
Controlled substance
Can cause paranoid or suicidal ideation and impair memory, judgment, and coordination. Combining with other substances, particularly alcohol, can slow breathing and possibly lead to death.
Yeah, her anxiety level went thru the roof years ago. Luckily she's not a drinker. [Reply]
Once you're sure that she's feeling better, tell her that your daughter dropped out of school on the last day. There's no reason that short-term memory loss can't be fun. [Reply]
Originally Posted by JD10367:
That’s some serious shit. I mean, first off, it’s used to treat seizures, and side effects listed fit her symptoms.
Clonazepam
Common brands: Klonopin
Sedative
It can treat seizures, panic disorder, and anxiety.
Controlled substance
Can cause paranoid or suicidal ideation and impair memory, judgment, and coordination. Combining with other substances, particularly alcohol, can slow breathing and possibly lead to death.
Klonopin is not recommended for seizure treatment by current guidelines, and long-term use of benzodiazepines for panic/anxiety is no longer recommended, either. Hog, I would seriously consider talking to your wife's physician about a long-term taper to get your wife off the benzo, and switching to another agent supported by evidence-based guidelines, taking into account her other conditions and the medications she takes. [Reply]
Now that things are starting to look up, is it premature to inject good-natured levity and mention that every time I see this thread on the main page, I get a momentary image of HogFarmer as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air? [Reply]
Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins:
Klonopin is not recommended for seizure treatment by current guidelines, and long-term use of benzodiazepines for panic/anxiety is no longer recommended, either. Hog, I would seriously consider talking to your wife's physician about a long-term taper to get your wife off the benzo, and switching to another agent supported by evidence-based guidelines, taking into account her other conditions and the medications she takes.
It is used an an abortive for acute seizures, although the in my experience other benzos are typically used as first line. It is very uncommon to use it for seizure prophylaxis. [Reply]
Originally Posted by BucEyedPea:
More sex handles that. Better get out of the hog pen Hog and tend to the wife's needs.
Well, to be honest it did cross my mind that if she was somehow to come home in perfect health but unable to speak it could work out well as when I ask for sex she can't say no . right. [Reply]
Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins:
Klonopin is not recommended for seizure treatment by current guidelines, and long-term use of benzodiazepines for panic/anxiety is no longer recommended, either. Hog, I would seriously consider talking to your wife's physician about a long-term taper to get your wife off the benzo, and switching to another agent supported by evidence-based guidelines, taking into account her other conditions and the medications she takes.
Thanks , you have provided several questions for me to present to the doctor as well as your past posts. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Baby Lee:
Now that things are starting to look up, is it premature to inject good-natured levity and mention that every time I see this thread on the main page, I get a momentary image of HogFarmer as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air?