[My] Life in Wisconsin

Casey. ER. Blood Clot.


Casey is very ill-
Your prayers, thoughts, etc are ALWAYS appreciated...

Not sure where to begin...
We all had very long morning- 
Casey does have a blood clot in her arm. There could be more elsewhere... (Not crossing that bridge).

This clot in her arm? I got the impression that it was small?
(Admittedly, I do not know what the definition is of 'small' for a clot either).


Blood Clot
Maybe this is small?


They gave her an ultrasound-


Casey US

Should anyone know what the heck this represents, please let me know? hehehe

The pain she described as hot and stabbing- "like there's a knife in there and it won't come out."
She felt it all the way down to her thumb- said it felt like she banged her elbow- Just perpetually.


She is now also on Lovenox, 50/5  
Not sure, but I still have to look all that info up.

(I do remember giving these shots to Randall in his tummy after his stroke).


Casey, Self-Injecting

She gave herself one injection at the hospital-
Another later tonight-


We got home, trying and trying to get through to Dr. Sutherland-
His asst called me back shortly after 4.  Dr S. wants Casey there by 10 tomorrow morning.
Ann-Marie told me that this sounds very serious; and could not understand why her docs here wanted just to give her more infusions.
(
Hey wait! Wasn't that MY question)!!!  

She did offer to check on that for me- This offer, right before she said to come in by 10AM - So I declined that offer- Knowing that we should have some answers, or at least maybe a better "plan" after we see him.

Good timing here- My dryer has just buzzed...

That stated, I need to fold my clothes, treat my freakin' head, and lie down and 'nap' for a bit. I will pack when I wake.
We will leave here by 3AM.   With the good lord willin' and the creeks don't rise.

My love to all.

XOXO
Me


Rocket Science -and Casey


A bashful Black Eyed Susan!
hehehe


Good Morning!
As many of you know, Casey's blood work has come back, in part.
She is sleeping- all day long- awake for a few hours, then back to sleep.
Her iron is at 2.0- Not near close enough to function. For now, she is at home.
I spoke to her a few times yesterday.

She awaits a call back from Minnesota. 

The doctors here have come up with a brilliant plan...
They would like her to do 6 more infusions before they do anything else; including looking for a possible intestinal bleed.
Wait...   WHAT?!?

My question to her doctor remains unanswered, "If the 1st 6 infusions had little/no lasting effects, what makes them think that the next 6 will be their cure for her?"

I asked that question 3 different times while on the phone with him.
He skirted an acceptable answer by stating that Casey's veins were small and that this was the reason they had to go so slow.
(So what difference then does it make whether they went slow or fast as the iron was still getting IN her veins with each infusion)?
I reminded him nicely that Casey's veins had not changed one bit since she had received the first 6 infusions...

She received 125 mg iron each time, diluted in saline.  To go any higher is to risk even more side effects than she did previously- Including the lasting side~effects that she is STILL experiencing!
As recently as Tuesday, she was here- and had diplopia, (double vision).
Not to mention her unrelenting migraines, her inability to thrive no matter what she eats- or how she supplements her diet.
Apparently her system is shutting down from their magical combination of everything-

Yet to have her take more infusions without first investigating the cause of her iron loss, seems a bit of a reach.
If she'd had no reactions the first time around, I might feel differently.
And while I understand the need for speed, I do not understand why not investigate and define until after she has done another 6 weeks. Something inside me is screaming that this is wrong- and my intuition has never been wrong.

Those side effects? Here- just to name a few! 

...elemental iron doses of 125 mg/kg, 78.8 mg/kg, 62.5 mg/kg and 250 mg/kg caused deaths to mice, rats, rabbits, and dogs respectively.
The major symptoms of acute toxicity were decreased activity, staggering, ataxia, increases in the respiratory rate, tremor, and convulsions. Individual doses exceeding 125 mg may be associated with a higher incidence and/or severity of adverse events based on information from postmarketing spontaneous reports.
{Some} adverse events included hypotension, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, dizziness, dyspnea, urticaria, chest pain, paresthesia, and peripheral swelling
.
* For a more complete list- CLICK HERE.


Casey and I were talking the other day- She had mentioned about a friend who blanketed her dog, and found that silly.
When I wake up, Punk will take over where ever I slept. For some silly reason she loves my pillow, (even though I would imagine it smells like 'morning breath' once my head leaves it)...
Her head hits that pillow- 
As I return to the room in a few minutes, she looks at me- (Those puppy dog eyes).
I throw the blanket over her -and all is well.
She doesn't need it.
She sure wants it though...


On the couch
Punk- early morning...


Later yesterday morning as I'd gotten out of the shower and had emerged to get clothing, I damn near tripped over her!
She had dragged that darn blanket all the way through the house- (How she made it around the ironing board without a disaster is beyond me)!

By the door
"ARF!"  Did I do something wrong?   "I'm not in trouble, am I?"

Of course she wasn't in trouble- It's just too funny to see!

Yesterday afternoon she had to go outside. It was rainy and cold- Chilly in the house even. As she came back in, she laid in the living room.

But first...


In the living room too
She had to find that darn little blanket! hehehe

I woke this morning to thunder and lightning. Weird for September, and the wind too! 
From my weather report on here was this "A LARGE AREA OF RAIN WITH SOME EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED TO ACROSS CENTRAL AND NORTHERN WISCONSIN EARLY THIS MORNING. AT 300AM...MODERATE TO OCCASIONALLY HEAVY RAIN WAS OCCURRING"  2 TO 3 INCHES OF RAIN FELL IN NORTH-CENTRAL WISCONSIN...AND ADDITIONAL RAINFALLS IN THIS AREA WILL BE LIGHT. CENTRAL THROUGH NORTHEAST WISCONSIN RECEIVED 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN THUS FAR...AND ANOTHER HALF INCH OR SO IS EXPECTED IN THESE AREAS.
PLAN ON A SLOWER THAN NORMAL TRIP. IF YOU ENCOUNTER PONDED WATER ON THE ROADWAY OR IN A PARKING LOT...
NEVER DRIVE YOUR CAR INTO WATER OF UNKNOWN DEPTH."


Always they have to remind people not to drive through flooded areas? Why is that?
Why do people have to be told this over and over again?  Methinks if you are 'st00pid' enough to try driving through a new 'lake' on the street then you deserve to be stranded in the middle of the street for a while.
It's almost as brilliant of their need to tell people to slow down in fog, or snow.
When did common sense turn to rocket science? What did I miss?


Oh!!!!  must close quickly- no proofreading today.
Casey has just texted me and has a blood clot in her arm. Is this psrt of being anemic?
Greg is bringing her to the hospital. I will meet her there

XOXO
Me