TThose of you that know me know that on January 2, 2010 at 8:00 pm I was overcome by fire. This thread is to be a comment by me on my experience. I will discuss god, pain, healthcare, love from friends and family, nursinge homes, anger, what I learned etc. This is a conversation I have been having with myself over the last year. I feel comfortable talking about it here with my forum friends. I have talked to very few people about this and am still trying to figure it out for myself. You all are helping me by letting me talk about it and I hope it answers some of your questions.
I guess the best place is to start at the beginning of the story.
It was January 2 2010 and I had just gone in to the house to make tacos. I had just been talking to two of my neighbors. One of whom I had a fight with just a week before. His dog that was off leash attacked my dog "Kansas" and I kicked the dog 8 feet down the street. He said I am going to kill you MF. I said come on. It ended there. Back to the 2nd. He said do you know who I am? I said yes, sorry for yelling at you and kicking your dog. He said I am sorry my dog bit your dog. We both agreed we had overreacted. I said I am making tacos you guys wait and I'll bring some over in 10 minutes. The short story is my house caught on fire and I was overcome by smoke after I put out the fire. The fire started again after I had gone back in the house for some unknown reason. I passed out on the floor and the fire raged on after restarting. The guy that was going to kill me the week before went into the buring structure and pulled me out saving my life. The lesson there is make amends to those thate you have a problem with. One day they may save your life. This is just the beginning of the miracles etc that I experienced and learned after the fire. More to come. It is a long story I hope you want to hear it.
David
Yes, I want to hear your story.
David, I would love to hear all of your experiences from the beginning on Jan.2 all the way through your treatments, your conversations with yourself and God, your thoughts and opinions. I would really like to hear this story. And, I know I am not alone here on the forum. Besides, those that don't care to hear about you don't have to read it. Plus, I am sure that by telling us about your experiences is beneficial to you health wise.
Take care and Happy New Year
Larryj
I'm waiting.
Yes, I want to hear the story and number one lesson is a good one. Thanks.
David, whatever happened to you this past year has in no way dampened your skill as a story teller. You have gotten my attention, now I want to hear the rest of the story-----------! :D :D BTW is KAnsas Boy and the beautiful redhead allright?
From everyone's experiences.. if they are shared.. others learn and grow from them..
Glad you feel comfortable enough to share your story on here..
Yes, Larry. Please tell us about your trial by fire. I know that the worst pain is caused by fire.
I started to say a broken heart when a loved one dies, but that is a different pain. Physical
pain is what you are healing from, and telling us your story will be just what you need to
complete your healing. God bless you!
Judy, it is David who wishes to tell the story, not me. However, I have some storys-------------never mind. ::)
Larryj
Hey, I have an excuse. I am an old woman and my brain takes leave now and then.
With all the aliases here, I have trouble keeping people straight...........and if it would make you feel
better.........--)~~~............LOL thanks for telling us. I will attempt to do better..
Won't happen, but I will try. Hugs and God bless........LOL nice giggle to wake up with..LOL
Heck Judy, we just thought you had been into the cooking sherry! ;D :angel:
I tried cooking sherry ONCE..........nastiest stuff I had tasted that wasn't medicine........it didn't help the
gameyness of the duck either......made it worse. Ok...........I will go back and change the name...........OH,
no I won't............gives us a different topic to discuss.....LOL
Oh, if anyone here has a wanting to be an author or write a book, there are several topics just reading the replies to the original topic that I could see becoming a nice book.
Two would be the tales of the teachers from Elk Valley and now this book of David's...........see I got it right.
It is just that I enjoy reading both of their comments that and they talk about California it is easy to get them wrong.
Larry, David, whoever, it is your turn! LOL
Lol!
Cooking sherry is best when you buy the most expensive brand and put a small amount of it it into beef dishes like beef stroganof
You can have the sherry,...now if you have a nice beer, like Millers lite or Coors even some of Jarhead's home brew, or even the cheaper stuff I would drink it as I was adding it to my V8 juice...did you know that is pretty good stuff...........and very low in calories........think V8 is about 80 and the beer isn't much higher. Oh, I get the non alcoholic (I know my limit) and it is even tastier..
I would really like to hear from the teachers at Elk Valley
Lesson two make sure your friends know how to reach your family in an emergency. They knew my mom, tons of stories about my family, etc. They just didn't have a phone number for my family. Lesson three and I can't believe I am saying this, thanks for lawyers. The hospital and my friends found my brother through the Bar Association. Also, Kansas Boy was put in doggie jail when I was hurt and taken to the hospital. After 30 days and many attempts by my friends to get him out of jail, my brother the lawyer got him out. For once I was glad my brother was always right and never took no for an answer. He with the help of Brittany Rescue found Kansas a good home. Kansas is on a 96 acre ranch with his own recliner next to the bed. He gets to chase quail whenever he wants. He also, has tons of grandkids that take turns letting him sleep in their bed. (p.s. this is not the proverbial story of we took him to the farm.) If it is I don't want to know the truth.
Just so you all know I have not talked to anyone else about most of this. You guys are getting as much of the full story as I am ready to tell.
David
Your lessons are well taken and once more thanks. You certainly have me with my thinking cap on. Take care.
I am glad you are here and able to share with us. There are lessons to be learned or relearned. I can hardly wait to hear more.
Larryj
I am glad you are sharing this with us. As for this lesson, it is one I needed to be reminded of. I have a vial of life in my refrigerator and I take it in the car with me when I travel. It has a copy of my s s card, drivers license, information on all meds that I am on. But I do need to update it again and also add numbers of my children to contact.
You can go to RoadID.com and order various ID things. For 10.00 bucks a year you can register all your info on their site. I have a velcro bracelet that I wear all the time when I am bike riding and I even wore it on vacation in Vegas and California. It has my name and the city I live in, the internet address and an 800 number. On the back of the bracelet is a #serial number and pin #. So if I am injured EMT's, Dr's etc can call the number or do the website and access all of my health info, history, insurance and people to call. For the price you can't beat it. Anyway, check it out http://www.RoadID.com
Just some random numbers and thoughts on my part about my stay in the hospital.
Current approx. length of my all my charges for everything 80 feet, printing front and back of the pages.
More detail on the bill:
Hospital Stay Room and board for 30 days $221,000.
Doctors Fees still ringing these up $30,000.
31 day stay in the nursing home\rehab. center $19,521.
Medication costs: Retail cost big, What my insurance co. and I paid $$5000 during this last year.
Ambulance ride to my local hospital. $500.
Local Emergency Room Charges $5000.
Ambulance Transfer 30 miles south to the regional burn center $4871.
Ambulance Transfer from Burn Center to nursing home 4 miles away $458.
I am glad I have insurance because my cost of this was only a small fraction.
Memory of my stay that still makes me chuckle.
At the end of my hospital stay they were teaching me how I would be taking a shower at the nursing home. I found myself being wheeled into a shower by two young nurses in their 20's. How it went in my head. Dear Playboy I recently found myself in the shower with two 23 year old beautiful nurses... How it really went. I was older than the two of their ages combined. Tomiko, Yasmine you girls stand back I can wash myself and I don't want to get you wet.
Thanks for sharing more. It's good to hear you laugh, Ok chuckle again. Isn't it amazing how health care costs pile up? Literally! ;D ;D ;D Actually those ambulance bills weren't too bad. Ours would have been about the same here. Some day when you are up to it, I'd love to hear about your burn center experience. We have Crosier Chester Burn Center that we use here, which is an excellent one. I would expect that the debriding and treatment processes would be about the same most places, but I'd love to know what they did about your lungs. I'm not as up on all that as I was a few years ago. Because of your kind of burns, did they consider helicoptering a team from the Burn Center to you and treating you in route( flying) back to the Burn Center?
A funny memory of the hospital: I had tubes every where including heart monitor, pic line, catheter and vacuum for a wound. Surgeon told me not to sit up. A nurse came in and told me I needed to jump in the shower. I said OK.
I am so glad you had insurance. And even with that the bills are astronomic I'm sure. I am so glad you are getting along so well. My thoughts are with you each and every day. Take care of yourself.
Hmmmm----tough decision on the nurses and the shower. My imagination tells me that I should go with the first (playboy) scenario. I am sure I would not care if the nurses got------------Oh never mind. Just leave me to my imagination.
Larryj
Quote from: Diane Amberg on January 06, 2011, 07:17:45 PM
Thanks for sharing more. It's good to hear you laugh, Ok chuckle again. Isn't it amazing how health care costs pile up? Literally! ;D ;D ;D Actually those ambulance bills weren't too bad. Ours would have been about the same here. Some day when you are up to it, I'd love to hear about your burn center experience. We have Crosier Chester Burn Center that we use here, which is an excellent one. I would expect that the debriding and treatment processes would be about the same most places, but I'd love to know what they did about your lungs. I'm not as up on all that as I was a few years ago. Because of your kind of burns, did they consider helicoptering a team from the Burn Center to you and treating you in route( flying) back to the Burn Center?
Diane, can't help you. After I put out the fire and took Kansas and Lucky outside I passed out. I was not burned. The rest is unknown to me. The way the procedure works for burns is you are taken to the local emergency room, which in my case was 2 miles away, they stabilized me intubated me, induced a coma, and sent me to the burn unit. They woke me up 13 days later, and I have no memory of anything during that time.
When they woke me up they asked questions. My answers. Looks like a hospital. John McCain I think. Don't know the year. January. You tell me. I think you will know the questions.
Quote from: twirldoggy on January 06, 2011, 07:36:47 PM
A funny memory of the hospital: I had tubes every where including heart monitor, pic line, catheter and vacuum for a wound. Surgeon told me not to sit up. A nurse came in and told me I needed to jump in the shower. I said OK.
Twirldoggy I understand your message. I had all of the same tubes. Wasn't it amazing on how long the pic line tube is when it comes out of your arm. I'd guess 11" or more.
David
Quote from: larryJ on January 07, 2011, 11:19:54 AM
Hmmmm----tough decision on the nurses and the shower. My imagination tells me that I should go with the first (playboy) scenario. I am sure I would not care if the nurses got------------Oh never mind. Just leave me to my imagination.
Larryj
Larry you have a dirty mind. I should have left out the word wet.
David
Yes!! I could not get used to the people who would come in and say the darndest things. I finaly just said yes and OK and they would walk out.
Quote from: greatguns on January 06, 2011, 08:37:19 PM
I am so glad you had insurance. And even with that the bills are astronomic I'm sure. I am so glad you are getting along so well. My thoughts are with you each and every day. Take care of yourself.
Thanks greatguns.
David
One of the things about long hospital stay is getting the malicious people to leave your room asap.
Quote from: twirldoggy on January 08, 2011, 08:03:46 PM
Yes!! I could not get used to the people who would come in and say the darndest things. I finaly just said yes and OK and they would walk out.
.
Twirldoggy, I had a doc I called Dr. House. (If you watched that tv show you will understand.) He kept asking me do you smoke? I said no, I am the only non-smoker in a family of smokers. He said I think your diaphram is paralyed. He had all his baby duck residents check me out to in their little morning gropu. He asked me the question a million different ways over the next couple week. Finally they did a flouroscope x-ray on me. He said, your diaphram is not paralyzed. I just looked at him. p.s. I won't even mention the lenght of the tubes they pulled out of other parts of my body. (Sorry folks for the image)
David
Quote from: twirldoggy on January 08, 2011, 08:06:23 PM
One of the things about long hospital stay is getting the awful people to leave your room asap.
All of the techs, nurses (male and female) looked like they were beautiful stars taken off the Hollywood set, I thought they were filming a movie.
David
Ain't it wonderful what images those meds can leave?
Another thing that happens with long hospital stay is that the few things you look at is the people who come in. Some are dressed wonderfully. One of my nurses always had a nicely coordinated outfit and shoes, along with a long neclace with her ID on it. Her hair was done nicely. She looked so beautiful, I loved to see her. Her necklace changed each time to coordinate with her outfit.
David, I do not have a dirty mind, well, a little, maybe. Let's just call it a beautiful imagination which at my age is about all I have.
Let me direct your attention to the Games section to a thread called "Help me find someone." If you have not seen this yet you might enjoy it. There are no rules to this game although the general theme is to try to follow a phrase or word from the previous song, i.e., say the words "so long" was in the last entry, then try to find another song with those words, etc. Anyway, it is fun to watch and even more fun to play. As we had that one thread going about our "stars" experiences, you might like this one.
Larryj
Yes David, I do know the questions and sorry, I didn't mean to put you on the spot. I didn't realize ,or forgot, you were mentally "away" that long. It sure seemed to work though, you sound great!
Loved all my cards you all sent, here is one of my favorites from Marty and Joanna Hunter.
What doesn't kill us might not make us stronger...but it does give us pretty good bragging rights!
Re Dr. House: I think doctors have their own idiosyncracies and qwirks. My doctor is severely stressed by hospital rounds. You can literally see the anxiety on his face. It does not inspire confidence!
Right after I was brought out of my coma, I was restrained by arm restraints so that I would not pull out my respirator in my woozy state. To say the least I found this very distressing. On one occassion I was choking and did not realize I was restrained. I panicked and pulled on my restraints trying to break my bed frame to get free. Finally the nurses calmed me down and released me from my restraints. I was very mad and a little embarassed by my outburst. I looked over to my doorway and sitting in a little wagon was "Ethan" a 3 or so year old burn patient who had witnessed the whole thing. He was just staring at me. I looked at him and our eyes locked. He kept looking at me and motioning towards me to his parents who were pulling the wagon he was in. I gave him a little wave. He smiled. He started making a ruckus as they started to take him down the hall. He kept pointing at me. Finally his parents brought him in my room near my bed. He just looked at me. He lifted up his hand and touched mine. I smiled at him as best as I could. I can't explain how good that made me feel. I am not sure I am doing justice to this story but , we really had a connection at that moment. He knew what I was going through. It made me cry then and it still does today. I made sure I waved at him everytime his little wagon was pulled by my room. :laugh:
David
This shows to me how a connection can be made even if you don't know how or why. When I was in the hospital I talked, talked, talked to some of the people who came in my room. One time a housekeeper began to cry as I was talking. She told me her daughter had died without her present and she couldn't get over it. What made her cry is too personal to relate here but she felt much better after that and told me so many times. I think the Holy Spirit directed me to say the words that would help her. I did not even know I was doing it at the time.
Twirldoggy, once I could talk again after they took me off the respirator I talked everyones ear off. Because of my breathing treatments and feedings through my NG tube every 4 hours, I did not sleep very often. I too talked to my housekeeper, who had a "kid" my age. My Mom's husband brought in a Panavision digital frame with pictures of me and my family throughout my life. Everyone that came in to my room stood and looked at all the rotating pictures. The nurses liked the ones of me from when I was a kid in the 60's. Everyone was dressed up in ties and dresses. I was a cute little cus' in my bow tie and vest. The nurses also, loved the picture of me in my premie incubator from when I was born. It looked like a space ship. I probably don't have to tell you how important all those conversations with everyone were to me. A special mention goes out to my nurse Tomiko. A fantastically gorgeous girl in her early 20's. On the burn unit each nurse had only 2 patients and would sit outside the door of our rooms. Since I was always awake she and I talked for many hours. She really helped me get through such a terrible experience. I have to say that I fell in love with her in a special way. All my nurses were great and I hold them all very dearly in my heart.
David
I have very deep respect for burn unit nurses, especially those who deal with children. I don't remember talking much but I cried so much to this day I don't have much cry left. Fortunately I wasn't in long and was able to heal at home.
I hear you David and Diane. Some of the experiences are very deep and life changing. Sometimes I think I need a therapist to discuss them with. Fortunately Medicare will pay for professional counseling!!! And I just got Medicare.