Two Full Days Down..

Well, after two full days here at LDSH, I can now say for certain . . . . that the food here isn't very good. "Well, duh!", you say, "It's hospital food!" You see, I was spoiled. When I spent five days at Intermountain Medical Center in May, it was my first overnight hospital stay in sixty years. And the food there was actually quite good--really. So I was surprised, and very disappointed, when IMC's sister hospital (both Intermountain Healthcare) was so blah.

I had a very bad night. First of all, I was hyped up about getting organized and doing a lot of stuff before bed, so that I got there very late. Then there was a misunderstanding about medications and I didn't get the ones I have come to depend on (NOT addicted!) to get a decent night's sleep. Then some of you (in fact both of my readers) may know what hospital bedding is like. You know how high-quality cotton sheets will have a thread count above 500? My hospital sheets have a count of 2. Finally, I had neglected to shave my legs for a while. What?! In the recent past I had shaved my legs because I am near-professional road biker (ha, ha, ha), but mostly because neuropathy makes me very sensitive to my leg hairs getting rubbed the wrong way by the sheets. Too much information? Tough. It will get worse.

To guarantee my getting a good sleep tonight I have taken these measures: 1. Too late; it's already midnight. 2. I yelled at the staff in my usual aggressive, take-charge manner, and we got the meds straightened out. 3. I shaved my legs with a dull safety razor in direct violation of a strict rule against shaving with a blade. 4. Laraine bought me some very nice, high-thread-count twin sheets to try out. 

A bad night led to a bad morning, mostly lost, mostly spent shaving my legs. I did get one good walk in. I always set my timer for 30 minutes and then whiz up and down this mostly deserted hallway. I even manage to jog a little, which doesn't sound like much, but remember I am towing (or rather pushing) the wheeled coat rack that holds whatever they are pushing through my central line (the alien-like thing sticking out of my chest).

Also, after begging repeatedly, I got an exercise bike today. Wahoo! Unfortunately, I hadn't been able to bike for at least six weeks, so five minutes on the indoor bike nearly did me in. And it's just not the same as being on a real bike out on the road. I will adjust.

Laraine came just in time for the second, and last, dose of chemo. Same result as yesterday. Nothing. It just goes in through the central line for twenty minutes and I don't feel a thing. But there is lots of peeing. LOTS! They pump me full of saline solution before, during, and after the chemo, and then I suck 4-5 glasses of ice during the process (to prevent mouth sores later). And finally they give me a powerful diuretic afterward, to flush out the chemo.

Emily joined us later, and helpfully wrote out my daily schedule on a dry-marker board that sits across the room from me. She also helped Laraine mount a big picture of our whole family in a frame that Libby contributed (thanks, Libby). It has heretofore been stuck on the wall with tape, and I get questions and comments about it by everyone who comes in. I am so proud of our family!

Laraine and I ended our day, as we always do, reading the scriptures (Ether-Moroni) and having our prayers together. Then, sadly, she went home. As she must. As hard as it is for us to be apart, she has to take care of herself, not just me. And there's a big part of her life that she has to keep on living, and she can't do it here. Besides, it can get really boring for her here, since so much of what goes on here--the hospital care--she can only watch. If you've done this, you'll know what I'm talking about.