An old and anticipated problem has reared its head today.
My body is not a good one into which to insert needles. My veins are hard to find. This means that the little tap they put into my arm to administer the IV Antibiotics is very hard to get in.
I was lucky with first vent, which went into the bend of my arm. I was luckier yet with the second, which was sited by the duty staff nurse one night. She prayed before she put the needle in - and her prayers were answered.
As of now, that vent has been there a long time and it is giving me a lot of pain as the fluid goes through it and into my body. The dose is very large and so a big strain is placed on the vent.
Bearing this in mind, after Dr. Babu failed three times to insert a new one today (ouch!!) , he is now talking about a small operation to open up a large vein in my arm and insert a more permanent vent.
This is as fascinating as it is scary.
And now, after having both leg bandages changed (more ouch!) and several pricks in my arm (repeat of previous ouch!!), I am hoping for an easy evening, despite the painful vent in my right hand (new ouch!!).
In reality, the flow inwards is so slow that I can expect to be hooked up to the drip most of this evening and maybe past midnight.
Ouch. This illness lark never seems to be completely straightforward, does it?
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