Remember Me?

 Hi Bloggers,

I’m back and I’m walking, talking and breathing on my own. This has been a horrendous experience that no one should have to go thru. Please everyone, take tick bites seriously.

Back in the middle of March I noticed a bite on my left ankle. I didn’t know what had bitten me, just that it was red and itchy. I put some cream on it to stop the itch and didn’t pay much more attention to it.

A few days later I started feeling achy and lost my appetite. I slept a lot but didn’t seem to be getting any better so on March 19th I went to the emergency room. I had a fever, headache, a cough and body aches. In other words, flu like symptoms. They tested me for Covid and flu, both negative. They did a blood test, chest X-ray and urinalysis. Then they sent me home with a diagnosis of a viral infection and said to drink lots of fluids.

I stayed in bed all week getting sicker and weaker. By the following weekend I couldn’t stand up by myself or hold a spoon to eat. Rob said I needed to go to the ER but when he touched my leg to help me up I had a seizure, then lost consciousness. He called an ambulance.

By the time I arrived at the ER I had a high fever and sepsis. Then my organs started shutting down. I had kidney failure, liver failure, swelling in the brain, extreme anemia etc. My heart and brain continued to function but I was dying. Special lab tests showed that I had Ehrlichiosis from a tick bite

The doctors intubated me, did dialysis,  gave me blood transfusions and did MRIs, CT scans and constant brain scans to monitor my seizures. I had seizures for five days each lasting 20 to 40 minutes. I was in a coma for eight days. Then I woke up. 

I don’t remember my time in the ICU or much of my time in the hospital at all. I couldn’t sit up by myself or feed myself. I had trouble speaking and slept most of the time. Finally I was transferred to a skilled nursing rehab center for a two week stay where they helped me learn to walk and speak and use my hands. I was on seizure meds and heart meds and meds for an ulcer. They brought me my favorite foods and made me promise to eat.

I went into the hospital on March 26 and finally came home on April 24. I had lost 30 pounds and needed either a walker or a person beside me to walk and no stairs.

Then the real work started. A nurse and a physical therapist and an occupational therapist each came every week for two months and worked with me. I have exercises I still do daily but they all have discharged me.

So where do things stand now? I can walk unaided, no more walker or wheelchair. I still force myself to eat, no appetite. I have several specialists I see regularly. My cardiologist took me off the heart meds. The neurologist took me off the seizure meds just last week. My liver is back to normal. My thyroid is back to normal. My kidneys are almost normal. Last week I had a CT scan that showed no hemorrhaging in the brain and a nuclear stress test that showed my heart is strong. I still have a tremor in my hands but it’s better  than it was and my neurologist has prescribed B12 injections to help that and my appetite. I’m also seeing a psychologist for PTSD.

And because I’ve been working so hard to recover and because Boston was so lonely without me, this little guy has joined the family and become my couch buddy. Meet Thistle! He’s a five month old Collie/ Poodle mix.

So that’s it for now. I’ ll catch up on blog news and keep in touch. BE CAREFUL OF TICKS. They can kill you.