I’m Not Sure Where to Begin

There seems to be so much that needs to said that I’m not sure where to even begin. So let’s begin with last week.

Friday I was off to Tucson. Early flight got me into Tucson in time for a quick lunch at In N’ Out. They never disappoint. The ParentalUnits and I just kinda hung around on Friday getting caught up on this and that.

Friday night about 2am I had excruciating pain in my back – shoulder blades. These muscle spasms have happened before and it just takes a couple of ibuprofen and I’m okay. This time, things were going to be different. On top of the back pain I had this sharp pain in my chest just below my breast bone. It hurt like the dickin’s (which I have no idea where that phrase came from). It kept me up most the night.

By Saturday the pain would come and go, I was tired from lack of sleep, but felt pretty good.

Mom and I took off to see the Memorials at the UMC hospital and the one at Safeway where the shootings happened. The UMC Memorial was huge, and they had already taken out 500+ stuffed animals. Tucson as a community had been devastated, but they clearly came together in a wreath of support.

After that we went home, we were having the entire Arizona Based Wraspir clan over for BBQ ribs. Now, you all know that BBQ ribs, particularly Dad’s ribs, are my favorite, so I was looking forward to this meal. We had 15 Wraspir family or friends there and I swear mom cooked 5 cows worth of ribs. I ate only 2. I had no appetite and wasn’t interested in eating. Bummer. Though for dessert Cousin Jeannette brought her famous white cake with peanut butter frosting … I had to have some of that. Interested or not, I was eating some of that cake.

Sunday we were heading to Tubac. Tubac is a small town that’s full of stores, and fun shops to wonder in and out of. I was looking forward to going since in all the years I’ve been going down to Tucson, we talk about it but we never make it. So mom and I hop in the car at/around 10 and head south. I think we were only a couple miles from the border by the time we got there. We picked up Cousin Jeannette on our way and met family friend Suzi down there. I was so tired, and was feeling pretty much like crap. I took all of 3 photos…which anyone who knows me knows that 3 photos is child’s play for me. As the day progressed, I’d find a place to sit and let the other gals wonder in and out. I just had no energy.

We headed home, mom took my temp and turned out I had a 100.6 temp. That coupled with the chest pain and lack of sleep and eating was starting to catch up with me. I had a half of piece of toast for dinner and was in bed by 8pm.

I was promptly awaken out of my slumber at 9pm. Dad had fallen again. I came out and he was lying on the floor asking me to help get him up. I sure wish I could have. Dad broke his shoulder a couple weeks back, then needed another surgery to fix a bone fragment that had dislodged. He was still stapled together and in a sling, no way I could get him up from the floor. Mom called 9-1-1 and the cavalry showed up. All very familiar with dad and his falling. His blood pressure was super low so the EMTs (which by the way, I looked and felt like crap and every single one of them were gorgeous…figures) thought it best he be transported to the ER.

Great! Here I feel like crap, and I can’t let mom go alone. So I go with mom to the hospital. I wasn’t there very long before she called a family friend to come and get me.

They released dad about 3:30 and they all got home around 4am. We had to be up and out of the house by 8:30 to make it to Phoenix to drop me off at the airport. We were all exhausted.

So the weekend in Tucson wasn’t nearly as much fun as I had hoped. It was good to see the folks and the rest of the entourage. There are some good people down there watching out for mom and dad.

Tuesday I woke with the worst pain in my chest since the Friday before. I could barely breath, it hurt to breath and I felt overall like crap. I finally decided to drive myself to Urgent Care. Now you all know I won’t go to the doctors unless its necessary, so we all knew this was bad.

Urgent Care checked me out, ordered up a chest x-ray and I waited for the results. When they came in there was a spot on the top of my right lung. The doctor wasn’t sure if it was a clot or not so ordered a vq scan – which turns out to be a lung ventilation/perfusion scan, which is a test that measures air and blood flow in your lungs. Right.

So before the scan the doctor gave me a breathing treatment that made me very woozy and shaky. I needed to get to Evergreen Hospital in about 30 minutes for the VQ scan but it didn’t look like I was in any shape to drive. She called 9-1-1 and the cavalry came to pick me up. My turn to ride in an ambulance.

I’ve never been in an ambulance, and frankly would gladly pass it up again. The EMTs were, naturally, attractive, and very friendly guys. The got me all checked out and off to the hospital.

After the VQ scan, the radiologist determined it wasn’t a clot and I was free to go home.

It didn’t explain what it was or why the pain, but I was headed home. Seattle Sister-in-Law, bless her, came and picked me up.

The doc called today because I was still concerned with what exactly this was. Turns out that a blood vessel had ruptured and that was the pain I was feeling. It would repair itself, if it hadn’t already.

As for the fever, shortness of breath and lethargy she suspect it might be some type of flu bug and to watch it. The tiredness she thinks is because I haven’t been eating anything so there are no calories in my system. And in the meantime, I get to take a few hits from my new snazzy inhaler.

I managed to make it to work today – barely – and made it home for a quick nap. Hoping tomorrow is a better day. I'm off to bed.