Finally I'm starting to feel better! Yesterday William and I went to the grocery store, and then we came home and I made dinner. All without having to lay down!
I definitely feel much better in the afternoons and mornings. I still get a slight headache in the morning and feel tired, but nothing that a little Percocet won't cure! NO, I'm not addicted to it!
I'm still getting a lot of rest this weekend in anticipation of going back to work on Tuesday. I really miss my kiddos! I haven't seen them in a month (unless you count the 2 seconds I saw them when I went home sick one day last week).
And thanks to my mom for coming over yesterday and helping me clean. She cleaned the kitchen, frig, microwave, and washed all the floors. Everything looks so much better!
I will post pictures of our time in England very soon.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Unfortunately...
I'm still sick =( It comes and goes. I don't wish this on my worst enemy. I tried to go back to work today for half day, but I ended up leaving after less than an hour. My head pains came back, I was sweaty and shaking, and I threw up-all before my students even arrived! I think I've decided to stay home for the rest of the week. We have Monday off for MLK, so hopefully the long weekend and rest will have helped.
I know this isn't the worst thing that could ever happen to a person. I think about a woman who works at my school. She is out this year battling cancer for the second time (unrelated to her first cancer). Meningitis pales in comparison to her battle with cancer.
Well, the head pains are back along with the nausea, which tells me I've been out of bed too long, so it's time to go lay back down.
I know this isn't the worst thing that could ever happen to a person. I think about a woman who works at my school. She is out this year battling cancer for the second time (unrelated to her first cancer). Meningitis pales in comparison to her battle with cancer.
Well, the head pains are back along with the nausea, which tells me I've been out of bed too long, so it's time to go lay back down.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Could my life get any worse?
We made it safely back from England (barely). I was never so happy to feel that plane touch down at home. I will try to post some pictures from England just as soon as I can.
You're probably wondering about the title of this post...well, here's the story...
The second week we were in England William came down with a fever. Nothing I was too concerned about-we just kept checking his temp, giving him tylenol and fluids. By Friday he seemed much better (Jan. 2nd). We woke up early on Saturday (travel day), and he still seemed ok. I did notice though that he had broken out in a rash. I thought it was something to do with the fever, and I knew I'd be staying home on Monday with him and bringing him to the doctor. At this point I just wanted to GET. HOME.
His fever flared up again on the flight from London to Cincinnatti. I made the mistake of asking the flight attendant if she had a cloth I could dampen and wipe William off with. I then had to explain his fever and she alerted the captain who then radioed the ground and explained William's fever. I had to take his temp every 30 minutes to see if it changed. Anyway, it was pretty much up and down for the rest of the flight. About an hour before we landed his temp. returned to normal and he got a sudden burst of energy. Then the captain came back and spoke to us. He told me that unfortunately they couldn't allow us to catch our connecting flight home due to his fever and rash. He would need to be checked out by a medical doctor and given the ok to fly.
When we landed in Cincinnatti, the customs and immigration met us on the plane and okayed us to enter the country. The airport ambulance met us on the plane and took us by ambulance to the nearest hospital where we spent 5 hours in the ER! William was checked over, given a shot of an antibiotic, and said he was fine to fly home. Thankfully we were able to catch the later flight home. I have never been so happy to see my own home and my own bed! That was a long 24 hours of traveling!
That brings us to Sunday (Jan. 4th). I started to not feel well (William is absolutely fine now-just tired). I assumed it was just a headache and tiredness from the flight so I went to bed really early. I woke up in the middle of the night with the worst headache of my entire life. I was also sick to my stomach, sweating, chilled, etc. Finally around 4 a.m. I woke Olly up and asked him to go to my mom's for some medication for my migraine. He brought it back, I took it, and was waiting for relief. NOTHING. I decided to call the clinic first thing in the morning and go it. Monday morning (William was sent to daycare because I couldn't take care of him) I went to the clinic and they gave me a shot for my migraine and checked me over. She also gave me a prescription for my migraine. I still wasn't feeling much better, but I was able to pick William up from daycare. That night I didn't feel much better but the vomiting had subsided.
On Tuesday morning I woke up and still didn't feel well. I was actually feeling worse. I called my mom (who is a nurse) and asked her what she thought I should do. She recommended that I go to the ER. I knew there was something more wrong with me than just a migraine because I hadn't responded to any medications and my head hurt so incredibly bad. I have never felt pain in my head like that even though I have suffered from migraines.
Olly took me to the ER and they got me in right away. My temp was 103 which is unusual for an adult, and that told them that there was something more wrong with me than just a migraine. It took forever for the doctor to see me (you know how those ERs are), but luckily the nurse was able to give me an IV and anti-nausea medications, so at least my tummy was feeling a little better. My head hurt so bad that all I could do was lay there and cry off and on. The doctor came in and they drew blood and did several tests on me. He also started running me on antibiotics for fear that it could be some kind of infection. He then recommended that I have a spinal tap done to check for meningitis. It was NOT FUN. He compared it to an epidural which I've had with William, so I thought it would be no big deal. OH. MY. GOD. When he put the needle in he kept moving it around to an area of my back that I'm sure was not numb from novicane. Finally he took the needle out and numbed me up in a different spot and tried again. Now, between the nausea, head pains, and now back pains, I wanted to shoot through the roof! He finally stopped and sent me to radiology where they could perform a spinal tap with a camera to know exactly where in my back to place the needle (instead of feeling around). That was pretty painless.
I was then sent back to the ER room to wait for more test results. The doctor came back awhile later and said I tested positive for meningitis. At this point they weren't sure which one, so they were treating it like bacterial and running me on a lot of antibiotics. Bacterial meningitis can be very life threatening if left untreated. The other meningitis is called viral meningitis. Because it's viral it doesn't have a cure-a person's body just has to fight it off, but it can be very debilitating during that time.
Thankfully I was diagnosed with viral meningitis which typically isn't life threatening, but let me tell you, it's very debilitating. The only things I can really do are go to the bathroom and lay in bed.
I spent a few nights in the hospital. Even though there is no cure for VM, they still needed to get my pain and nausea under control before sending me home. I came home on Friday after feeling pretty comfortable in the hospital. The car ride was horrible! I felt sick to my stomach again and my head was pounding. As soon as I got home I went to bed and haven't left my bed. Olly was close to turning around and taking me back to the hospital.
Yesterday (Saturday) was my first full day home. I felt really lousy yesterday. I couldn't sit up without getting head pains or nausea. I did manage to go downstairs when my co-worker came over with some food, but I got sick while I was downstairs and had to come back upstairs. The nausea was really bad yesterday.
Today I am feeling better than yesterday. I stood up without getting a headache and was actually able to walk to the bathroom and sit down on the toilet before my head pains started in. I feel nausea off and on, but nothing compared to yesterday. My lovely co-worker remembered me saying one day at school that when I was sick and pregnant with William I loved mashed potatoes and gravy from the local grocery store, so that's what she brought for me! I've been eating those off and on today. I'm half sitting up in bed typing this and haven't gotten a headache so that's great news!
I'm staying home from work tomorrow and most likely Tuesday. The doctor recommended that I don't go back until possibly Friday depending on how I'm feeling. My first masters class starts tomorrow night, so my mom is going to drop me off. I'm going to tell my professor in case I have to leave early. I can't imagine I'll be able to sit up in a chair for 4 hours since I haven't been able to sit up for more than 1 minute for the past week.
Anyway, I'll post again when I'm feeling better. Hopefully that will be soon! The healing time is different for everyone. I've heard 10 days, 2 weeks, and months. Let's hope I'm the 10 days or 2 weeks kind of person!
You're probably wondering about the title of this post...well, here's the story...
The second week we were in England William came down with a fever. Nothing I was too concerned about-we just kept checking his temp, giving him tylenol and fluids. By Friday he seemed much better (Jan. 2nd). We woke up early on Saturday (travel day), and he still seemed ok. I did notice though that he had broken out in a rash. I thought it was something to do with the fever, and I knew I'd be staying home on Monday with him and bringing him to the doctor. At this point I just wanted to GET. HOME.
His fever flared up again on the flight from London to Cincinnatti. I made the mistake of asking the flight attendant if she had a cloth I could dampen and wipe William off with. I then had to explain his fever and she alerted the captain who then radioed the ground and explained William's fever. I had to take his temp every 30 minutes to see if it changed. Anyway, it was pretty much up and down for the rest of the flight. About an hour before we landed his temp. returned to normal and he got a sudden burst of energy. Then the captain came back and spoke to us. He told me that unfortunately they couldn't allow us to catch our connecting flight home due to his fever and rash. He would need to be checked out by a medical doctor and given the ok to fly.
When we landed in Cincinnatti, the customs and immigration met us on the plane and okayed us to enter the country. The airport ambulance met us on the plane and took us by ambulance to the nearest hospital where we spent 5 hours in the ER! William was checked over, given a shot of an antibiotic, and said he was fine to fly home. Thankfully we were able to catch the later flight home. I have never been so happy to see my own home and my own bed! That was a long 24 hours of traveling!
That brings us to Sunday (Jan. 4th). I started to not feel well (William is absolutely fine now-just tired). I assumed it was just a headache and tiredness from the flight so I went to bed really early. I woke up in the middle of the night with the worst headache of my entire life. I was also sick to my stomach, sweating, chilled, etc. Finally around 4 a.m. I woke Olly up and asked him to go to my mom's for some medication for my migraine. He brought it back, I took it, and was waiting for relief. NOTHING. I decided to call the clinic first thing in the morning and go it. Monday morning (William was sent to daycare because I couldn't take care of him) I went to the clinic and they gave me a shot for my migraine and checked me over. She also gave me a prescription for my migraine. I still wasn't feeling much better, but I was able to pick William up from daycare. That night I didn't feel much better but the vomiting had subsided.
On Tuesday morning I woke up and still didn't feel well. I was actually feeling worse. I called my mom (who is a nurse) and asked her what she thought I should do. She recommended that I go to the ER. I knew there was something more wrong with me than just a migraine because I hadn't responded to any medications and my head hurt so incredibly bad. I have never felt pain in my head like that even though I have suffered from migraines.
Olly took me to the ER and they got me in right away. My temp was 103 which is unusual for an adult, and that told them that there was something more wrong with me than just a migraine. It took forever for the doctor to see me (you know how those ERs are), but luckily the nurse was able to give me an IV and anti-nausea medications, so at least my tummy was feeling a little better. My head hurt so bad that all I could do was lay there and cry off and on. The doctor came in and they drew blood and did several tests on me. He also started running me on antibiotics for fear that it could be some kind of infection. He then recommended that I have a spinal tap done to check for meningitis. It was NOT FUN. He compared it to an epidural which I've had with William, so I thought it would be no big deal. OH. MY. GOD. When he put the needle in he kept moving it around to an area of my back that I'm sure was not numb from novicane. Finally he took the needle out and numbed me up in a different spot and tried again. Now, between the nausea, head pains, and now back pains, I wanted to shoot through the roof! He finally stopped and sent me to radiology where they could perform a spinal tap with a camera to know exactly where in my back to place the needle (instead of feeling around). That was pretty painless.
I was then sent back to the ER room to wait for more test results. The doctor came back awhile later and said I tested positive for meningitis. At this point they weren't sure which one, so they were treating it like bacterial and running me on a lot of antibiotics. Bacterial meningitis can be very life threatening if left untreated. The other meningitis is called viral meningitis. Because it's viral it doesn't have a cure-a person's body just has to fight it off, but it can be very debilitating during that time.
Thankfully I was diagnosed with viral meningitis which typically isn't life threatening, but let me tell you, it's very debilitating. The only things I can really do are go to the bathroom and lay in bed.
I spent a few nights in the hospital. Even though there is no cure for VM, they still needed to get my pain and nausea under control before sending me home. I came home on Friday after feeling pretty comfortable in the hospital. The car ride was horrible! I felt sick to my stomach again and my head was pounding. As soon as I got home I went to bed and haven't left my bed. Olly was close to turning around and taking me back to the hospital.
Yesterday (Saturday) was my first full day home. I felt really lousy yesterday. I couldn't sit up without getting head pains or nausea. I did manage to go downstairs when my co-worker came over with some food, but I got sick while I was downstairs and had to come back upstairs. The nausea was really bad yesterday.
Today I am feeling better than yesterday. I stood up without getting a headache and was actually able to walk to the bathroom and sit down on the toilet before my head pains started in. I feel nausea off and on, but nothing compared to yesterday. My lovely co-worker remembered me saying one day at school that when I was sick and pregnant with William I loved mashed potatoes and gravy from the local grocery store, so that's what she brought for me! I've been eating those off and on today. I'm half sitting up in bed typing this and haven't gotten a headache so that's great news!
I'm staying home from work tomorrow and most likely Tuesday. The doctor recommended that I don't go back until possibly Friday depending on how I'm feeling. My first masters class starts tomorrow night, so my mom is going to drop me off. I'm going to tell my professor in case I have to leave early. I can't imagine I'll be able to sit up in a chair for 4 hours since I haven't been able to sit up for more than 1 minute for the past week.
Anyway, I'll post again when I'm feeling better. Hopefully that will be soon! The healing time is different for everyone. I've heard 10 days, 2 weeks, and months. Let's hope I'm the 10 days or 2 weeks kind of person!
Thursday, December 25, 2008
We are in England!
Merry Christmas to everyone! I hope you are enjoying your day with your families!
We made it safely to England last Saturday morning. William was an angel on the airplanes! He was such a little trooper! I was so nervous, because we woke him up early on Friday morning, he took a 30 minute nap on the plane much later in the day (evening time), and he slept for about 3 hours on the overnight flight to England. I still can't believe how well he did! He also slept a little in the car coming to Olly's parents' house. Once we got to their house he did get really crabby, but I gave him a bath, something to eat, and then he slept for a few hours.
The first night he was really off with times, but he has been great since then. Olly and I spent a few days in London visiting his brother and sightseeing, and we left William with Olly's parents. He did really well, but he sure was a stinker when we came back! I was about ready to hop on the train and go back to London again! London is amazing, and I will post pictures when we get home.
We spent Christmas with Olly's parents, his brother-Giles, Olly, William, and me. It was a nice day of relaxing and eating (too much!).
Hope everyone had a wonderful day! I will post lots of pictures in a couple weeks!
We made it safely to England last Saturday morning. William was an angel on the airplanes! He was such a little trooper! I was so nervous, because we woke him up early on Friday morning, he took a 30 minute nap on the plane much later in the day (evening time), and he slept for about 3 hours on the overnight flight to England. I still can't believe how well he did! He also slept a little in the car coming to Olly's parents' house. Once we got to their house he did get really crabby, but I gave him a bath, something to eat, and then he slept for a few hours.
The first night he was really off with times, but he has been great since then. Olly and I spent a few days in London visiting his brother and sightseeing, and we left William with Olly's parents. He did really well, but he sure was a stinker when we came back! I was about ready to hop on the train and go back to London again! London is amazing, and I will post pictures when we get home.
We spent Christmas with Olly's parents, his brother-Giles, Olly, William, and me. It was a nice day of relaxing and eating (too much!).
Hope everyone had a wonderful day! I will post lots of pictures in a couple weeks!
Friday, December 12, 2008
William Updates!
Every time William starts a new stage, I always think, "this is the best stage so far!" He has been so fun lately (and a pain sometimes!).
Here are some great things William does:
1. He is so interested in everything around him. He will point at something and want you to tell him what it is. He remembers so much too.
2. He loves to help. He will throw his diapers in the garbage, put his clothes away, and get something for you if you need it.
3. He gives the best hugs and cuddles right now.
4. He says "mommy"! For quite awhile I've been "mama" and now I'm "mommy". I love that! There's nothing more precious than your child calling you "mommy". I'm sure I will eventually become "mother" (with an eye roll!).
5. He enjoys the small things. Last night we bought him some winter boots, and he was so excited to wear them this morning. He insisted on wearing them to daycare. He would point at his boots and say "papa" (because papa wears boots too), and he would also say "pow pow" and pretend like he had his hammer. So his winter boots are definitely his "work" boots. We also bought him Christmas presents (I don't think it matters at this age if they go shopping with you for their presents) and he hardly noticed them because he was way more interested in his boots!
6. He is still my little baby who likes to cuddle on my lap before bedtime. We read books, and then I rock him and sing to him. I think that's my favorite part of the day. My other favorite part is picking him up at daycare. As soon as he sees me, his whole face lights up, he comes running to me, and says "mommy!" I love that!
Just the other day he started saying "ok" to everything. I will say, "William, it's time to take a bath." He will say, "ok". "William, we're going home now." "ok". It's so cute. I just hope that he doesn't learn "no" anytime soon-then we're in big trouble! He is also starting to say "okie-dokie". It's so cute! He is very impressed by Christmas lights, and whenever we drive by this one house (it's on the way home from wherever we go), he says "wow!"
I can't wait until he opens his Christmas gifts-although I don't know if he will be as impressed as he is with his boots! Santa is "hopefully" coming early, because we will be leaving on the 19th for 2 weeks in England. I'm going to stock up on treats for bribery and little activities and toys for the LONG plane ride. We go from Mpls to Atlanta. I believe that's around 3 hours. Then we have 3 hours in Atlanta to run around the airport, and then it's about 7-8 hours from Atlanta to London. PRAY FOR ME, PLEASE!
Here are some great things William does:
1. He is so interested in everything around him. He will point at something and want you to tell him what it is. He remembers so much too.
2. He loves to help. He will throw his diapers in the garbage, put his clothes away, and get something for you if you need it.
3. He gives the best hugs and cuddles right now.
4. He says "mommy"! For quite awhile I've been "mama" and now I'm "mommy". I love that! There's nothing more precious than your child calling you "mommy". I'm sure I will eventually become "mother" (with an eye roll!).
5. He enjoys the small things. Last night we bought him some winter boots, and he was so excited to wear them this morning. He insisted on wearing them to daycare. He would point at his boots and say "papa" (because papa wears boots too), and he would also say "pow pow" and pretend like he had his hammer. So his winter boots are definitely his "work" boots. We also bought him Christmas presents (I don't think it matters at this age if they go shopping with you for their presents) and he hardly noticed them because he was way more interested in his boots!
6. He is still my little baby who likes to cuddle on my lap before bedtime. We read books, and then I rock him and sing to him. I think that's my favorite part of the day. My other favorite part is picking him up at daycare. As soon as he sees me, his whole face lights up, he comes running to me, and says "mommy!" I love that!
Just the other day he started saying "ok" to everything. I will say, "William, it's time to take a bath." He will say, "ok". "William, we're going home now." "ok". It's so cute. I just hope that he doesn't learn "no" anytime soon-then we're in big trouble! He is also starting to say "okie-dokie". It's so cute! He is very impressed by Christmas lights, and whenever we drive by this one house (it's on the way home from wherever we go), he says "wow!"
I can't wait until he opens his Christmas gifts-although I don't know if he will be as impressed as he is with his boots! Santa is "hopefully" coming early, because we will be leaving on the 19th for 2 weeks in England. I'm going to stock up on treats for bribery and little activities and toys for the LONG plane ride. We go from Mpls to Atlanta. I believe that's around 3 hours. Then we have 3 hours in Atlanta to run around the airport, and then it's about 7-8 hours from Atlanta to London. PRAY FOR ME, PLEASE!
Christmas pictures of William
Here are some recent pictures of William. We tried to get some shots for our Christmas card. He was somewhat cooperative! I can't believe how grown up he looks. The first picture is from last year. What a difference a year makes! He truly is a little boy now!
Sunday, November 30, 2008
William loves Spaghetti-os!
William is just like his mama-he enjoys his spaghettios! He enjoyed them so much today that he tried to lick the bowl-that's why his forehead is covered in spaghettios too! He'll definitely have to learn some manners before he goes on his first date!
William is starting to talk more...here are some of his words:
up you go (not sure where that came from!)
nana
mommy
mama
dada
papa
tractor
car
bear
ball
hot (he thinks everything is hot!)
baby
eat
up
happy
thank you
woof (like a dog)
truck
pumpkin
ow
uh-oh
duck
So, his vocabulary is increasing. I'm not as concerned as I was before, because he's added about 5 words in the last week or so which is great progress!
He still signs as well. He has about 30 signs, and teaching him how to sign has been a godsend!
Here are some of his signs (not sure if I can remember them all off the top of my head!):
deer
pig
fox
dog
cat
mouse
fish
swim
bird
duck
eat
milk
more
all done
drink
rain
snow
outside
please
thank you
sorry
bath
get dressed
sleep
school
work
home
drive
run
love
shoes
airplane
William is starting to talk more...here are some of his words:
up you go (not sure where that came from!)
nana
mommy
mama
dada
papa
tractor
car
bear
ball
hot (he thinks everything is hot!)
baby
eat
up
happy
thank you
woof (like a dog)
truck
pumpkin
ow
uh-oh
duck
So, his vocabulary is increasing. I'm not as concerned as I was before, because he's added about 5 words in the last week or so which is great progress!
He still signs as well. He has about 30 signs, and teaching him how to sign has been a godsend!
Here are some of his signs (not sure if I can remember them all off the top of my head!):
deer
pig
fox
dog
cat
mouse
fish
swim
bird
duck
eat
milk
more
all done
drink
rain
snow
outside
please
thank you
sorry
bath
get dressed
sleep
school
work
home
drive
run
love
shoes
airplane
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