AshMgr Zodiak Leveler's blog: "SURGERY/HOSPITAL"

sorry to tell everyone this but ash has passed away this morning u all know she was in the hostipal for a long time well she doing good so she was moved into a hospice to finish healing well she got the flu real bad n she couldnt fight it off but if u have any questions ask n i will try to answer them as i can this is sammie so lets please have a moment for her

Sorry it has been soo long since I have blogged.. i have been so sick lately and i'm still in the hospital.. 2 days ago was the first day in a week and a half that i have finally kept solid food and more then sprite in my system.. otherwise i would throw up a few times a day.. and we figured out it was one of the antibiotics they were givin me that was making me so sick cuz everytime they would hang it which was 3 times a day i would get very nautious and then start throwing up and i'd throw up quite a few times the whole hour the antibiotic was goin through my system and they would still give me stuff for the nausia the oral pain pills and the iv pain pills too. and i'd still be throwing up and i wouldnt be able to eat a thing or drink anything not even water the only thing i could drink was sprite that would actually stay in my system.. and all of that started last wednesday and went all the way to today since they also had me taking potassium pills the whole time also anywhere from 1 to 3 a day.... Tuesday was the first day I actually ate some ice cream and toast a few times and kept it down without puking it up.. I still have been a little nautious once and a while today but at least everything stayed in me yesterday and today.. then they are starting to take me off of the nutrience and lipids which was the protien and iron and other stuff like that and then the lipids which is fats cuz i didnt have any fat in my system so that way things would heal better... But they finally got everything under control for now at least but i will be on the iv antibiotics for a few more weeks it sounds like ,but everything is a pinkish red color and there is finally blood flow to all of my sores and 1 of them is actually healed up all the way so thats nice.. but I have calmed down on the pain meds i'm just taking the iv and oral pain meds before each dressing change now and once and a great while I will take one between ,but its so strong they usually last till the next dressing change... 2 1/2 weeks ago they had to take my other picc line out cuz it was clotted and they couldnt get blood out of it cuz it was so clogged so they put in an central line in my chest right below my collar bone and so they could get cultures of it to see if anything was growing in it.. and put in a picc line again to culture it cuz they think it may have been infected in the line part of it ,but we will not know for a few days yet. The central line being taken out kinda hurt because the doctor had the 8 stitches in there so tight that they had to cut them out and I had to lay completely flat on my back for 1 hour after they had it taken out and they had to hold pressure on it for 5 minutes so it didn’t clot up or get any air bubbles in it. There is a few people here that specialize on putting picc lines in cuz they have to go so deep into the vein and so far in that they have to be good at not hitting ur lungs or anything so things don’t happen.. Well the 1 lady that always has put them in for me tried yesterday in my right arm since there was still some discoloration in my arm from the last time and the first time I could feel it getting threaded through so that hurt pretty bad.. So, I gave her a second chance well she got it so far in the second time and then I was pretty much in tears cuz I was in so much pain cuz it was hurting that bad.. So, she found a brand new vein still for the 3^rd time in my right arm between the elbow and shoulder ,but farther up on the top of my arm so I let her try to get it in and we got the numbing meds in me again and then she started to get it in so far and then that one ended up hurting so bad and by this time I was cryin soo much cuz I was in so much pain that they took me down to interventional radiology about 6:45 pm that night so the radiologist could use his scans and x-rays to make sure its in the right area. So, the whole time he was doing it on this big computer screen on the tv you could see inside my arm inside watching the vein and where it goes and it was just an x-ray that went over the top of me and it was so far up that he could move it around still the whole time he was doing it to see what was blocking everything.. So, where he finally tried where the vein was pretty good was down on my right arm on the inside closer to my elbow.. Well they were looking around in the vein and everything and figure out the reason they were getting stuck in that one area was cuz my vein splits in 2.. The top half of the vein goes up and gets bigger and the bottom half goes down and gets smaller ,but he got it threw ther cuz he went around that area by going threw that vein and then going threw the vein on top if it and then after the vein that split went back together then he went back down into that vein and finally got it all the way in ,but I ended up getting poked 11 times all together yesterday by the time they finally got the picc line in and that’s not from including the blood cultures they took.. They are goin to take me off some of the antiobiotics this week and just watch it to see if it still does good or starts to get bad cuz if it even changes 1 time for the bad they will put me back on all the antibiotics again but they think some of the reason I’m getting all these fevers is cuz of the central line cuz they only last about 3 weeks and its been in about 4.. The last fever I had about 3 days ago was 103.6 again so they culture everything if its over 101 which irritates me cuz they have to draw blood from both arms then lol.. but at least each day I’m holding down more and more food and other stuff.. and they took me off some of the antibiotics yesterday woo hooo… But the doctor is very happy with all the sores cuz they are finally healing and the one behind my left knee is finally all the way healed and the one on my right thigh area that was pretty small is finally healed to ,but its in the crease of my leg and thigh that way it will stay shut and they finally have all the stitches out... and then the big one on the back of my thigh is smaller but still very sore and u can still see my hamstring muscle ,but u can also see where it has healed behind the muscle and its finally covered up the bone and now we are just waiting for it to cover up the muscle so that way it wont hurt so bad cuz its right behind the muscle on the bottom where they are still packing it with 1 curlex roll that it still hurts at times especially if u hit the sore just right and push as hard as someone can which some of them do ,but at least its all healing.... But everything is still healing very well just not sure when i'll get out yet ,but i'm around so if u need or want me just leave me a message on here or on yim and i'll get to it.. 

Love and Miss all my friends and family!  Ashley

 so every1 knows my surgery was today again... They did the one on Thursday that was an *L* skin flap graft... then on Friday he came in to check it out and decided he didnt like the looks of it.. so he went in today for an hour and a half and dibreeded it and cleaned it out.. and then he took the bad parts of the graft that didnt take and pulled them off and took skin from my thigh again and moved it to the back of my thigh and heal like it is suppose to do now and  i'm on complete bedrest But I do not have to stay off it i just need to limit the time I am on my leg and putting pressure on that spot to let it heal up..

Then they have me on oral pain meds 3 times a day.. and IV ones 2 times a day... Then I can take .04 cc's of dalated every hour to an hour and a half due to pain.. Then I can have up to 2 vicodines every 4 to 6 hours for pain and I always pop 2 in to relieve it more.. Then before the doctors come in to take the dressings off and look at it I take the .04 cc's of the dalated from the IV and then .02 more CC's of Dalated that is orally. Then they will be changing the dressings on my knee that they did not close up once a day to get it to finally heal p ,but it has gotten a lot smaller and better now there is only 1 sore behind my left knee that they will do dressings too instead of the 4 there was to begin with... So then it will hopefully heal like its suppose to.. and I will still be here for a few more weeks at least.... 

Then at 330 AM central time about I started to have a headache and i was cold and my temp was 101.9 so I spiked a temp so they gave me 2 500 mg of Extra strength Tylenol... then I went to bed and then I woke up and my temp was then down to 99.4 and its now still at 99.4 but that is about normal for me now and my blood pressure was low it was 80 over 60 ,but its not low enough for them to be worrying they said..

 My mom and dad were here... my dad came up from TN for the first time since 1991 and I went and seen him in 2006.. but he came up due to me being so sick and in the hospital and my surgery.. And we are having dinner tonight together we are goin to have chineese food cuz its what I have been craving. He is the guy in the white and the gray and the camo sweatshirts in my TN pictures!!!!

Sorry this so long but I wanted to inform everyone with everything thats going on!!!! And they got me eating already.. I came back from surgery wanting food so I Had some ice chips... and then chicken broth and then a piece of buttered toast.... and a sprite.. all that stayed down and is stayin down so I was hungry for solid food.

so every1 knows my surgery was today again... They did the one on Thursday that was an *L* skin flap graft... then on Friday he came in to check it out and decided he didnt like the looks of it.. so he went in today for an hour and a half and dibreeded it and cleaned it out.. and then he took the bad parts of the graft that didnt take and pulled them off and took skin from my thigh again and moved it to the back of my thigh and left a few spots open for dressing changes so it will drain and heal so it will drain and heal like it is suppose to do now and I have to stay off it as much as I can so i'm on complete bedrest
and i have to lay on my sides and back... Then they have me on oral pain meds 3 times a day.. and IV ones 2 times a day... Then I can take .04 cc's of dalated every hour to an hour and a half due to pain..
Then I can have up to 2 vicodines every 4 to 6 hours for pain and I always pop 2 in to relieve it more.. Then before the dressing changes I take the .04 cc's of the dalated and then .02 more CC's of Dalated that is orally. Dressing changes are goin to start in the morning and be 2 times a day an they are goin to put stuff on the 45 staples I have and creams all over the legs and knees cuz they have not healed up yet and then there are a few parts they will be packing 4 X 4's gauze in it... and putting different creams on it in different spots for different reasons. So then it will hopefully heal like its suppose to.. and I will still be here for a few more weeks at least....  Sorry this so long but I wanted to inform everyone with everything thats going on!!!! And they got me eating already.. I came back from surgery wanting food so I Had some ice chips... and then chicken broth and then a piece of buttered toast.... and a sprite.. all that stayed down and is stayin down so I was hungry for solid food and my mom and dad is here... my dad came up from TN for the first time since 1991 and I went and seen him in 2006.. He is the guy in the white and the gray and the camo sweatshirt in my TN pictures!!!! ~ASH~

Hey all, I just wanted to finally let everyone know that surgery went ok.. It was 5 1/2 hours long and it was an alright surgery... After I got really sick and I was throwing up after a few hours.. I slept all night and then all the next day due to being sick and not feeling well... They ended up doing an "L" skin graft to get everything healed up.. Then tomorrow they are goin to do more surgery and they are going to go in and just debride it out.. I am not that worried about going in and just cleaning it out ,but i'm still a little worried about it.. So, keep me in your prayers still please.... Thanjks! ~Ash~

Well its very early on June 18th like 2 in the morning and I can not sleep what so ever... I am having surgery this morning at like 11 am and they are goin to do a flap graft to close the sore thats on my thigh.. I have been told this is a pretty routine surgery so I dont have much to worry about except for if it gets infected after it then that is a huge deal and a big worry ,but i'm not tryin to worry myself to death and worry and stress myself out unless it happens.. Cuz if i stress myself out it will cause me not to heal as well and as fast as I should.. But after today I will be here for about another month if not a little longer.. After this surgery I will have to lay on my left side or my stomach for a good 3 weeks straight to keep all pressure off my right leg so theres very little chance of it getting infected.. Then after the 3rd week the doctor said that he will let me start to sit up a little bit.. Then after the 4th week then he will let me sit up again ,but he wants to make sure the staples/stitches whatever he uses are completely healed up before i start putting pressure on my leg again and start using it.. Then.. They will do a pressure maping on my wheelchair seat to where they are goin to do a graft type thing on my wheelchair and they just hook a cord up to it and it points out the pressure points to where i'm sitting to make sure there wont be any major pressure points so nothing else can open up after the surgery is over and done with... then they said it shouldnt be long after that then they will probably be sending me to a nursing home for a few weeks to make sure i'm healed up before sending me home.. But then I will finally be able to go back home to my apartment!!! For my surgery my mom will be here and what i'm kinda lookin forward to is that my father is coming up from Tennessee for this surgery and I have not seen my father since 2006 so even though he will not be here till Friday afternoon/early evening it will still be a good thing to get to see him.. Even if i'm in a ton of pain which they think I will be in a ton of pain since I am already in so much pain as it is.. and yesterday June 17th I took my morning meds and my morning pain meds that I always take before my dressing changes like a half hour before like normal and then I was sitting there... Then about a half hour later all of a sudden I got very nautious and i was sitting there and then I felt like I was going to throw up.. So, the garbage was right next to my bed thank goodness cuz i all of a sudden leaned over into the garbage and I was so nautious and light headed and then I did end up throwing up.. I didnt throw up very much ,but it was enough to make you wonder.. They think that most of the pain meds stayed in my system since they had been in me already for just about an hour as it was.. Then I got to get my iv pain meds so I made it through my dressing change ok ,but it was the point that I felt like crap and I was actually sick just the 1 time ,but still... and I was all nautious and woozy all day and i even had some zofran in my system and I had all 8 cc's of it that I could take and I was still like that all day... Anyways... I have surgery this morning at around 11 am central time to do a skin flap... they are goin to take skin and tissue from the front of my leg and move it to the back of my leg.. I have been told this surgery is a routine surgery so I am not tryin to worry myself to death over this cuz I have faith that everything will go good after it.. Anywyays, I will be down for a little bit ,but I will update everyone as soon as I am at least feelin up to it... Please keep me in all of ur thoughts and prayers still... Thank you everyone who has been there for me and who has supported me and been there for me through all of this especially my wonderful loving caring boyfriend Jimmy!! Love u hun... I want to also thank my friends that have been there for me through all of this.... When I am feelin up to it I will write a quick little update sometime after surgery so everyone knows how it all went and whats going on... Well, that is all for now ,but I will keep everyone updated! ~ASH~

Ok, so here's an update thats not goin to be very long ,but its an update since I have not updated anyone lately very much...

Ok, so heres the update. Well, instead of going to the nursing home right now and healing up some then doin surgery.. They have offically now decided to do surgery now instead of waiting cuz the doctor doesnt think that the sore will heal up anymore on its own so surgery is either on the 18th or the 22nd i'm not exactly sure what one ,but it will be one of those 2 days forsure.. My nausia has calmed down a lot now that they have my antibiotics under control.. They are goin to have to go in and make sure everything is cleaned out and then they are goin to do a flap is what its called.. They are goin to move some of the tissue and skin from the front of my right leg to the back of my right leg.. so they are goin to have to be very careful and take there time so its goin to be like a 4 hour surgery at least.. So that way they can cover the sores behind my thigh and behind my right knee and that way all i have to do is wait for the staples/stitches to heal up.. They are goin to be very careful cuz they have to remove tissue and skin from the front of my leg and attach it to the back of my leg where the open sores are.. This is something the doctors do on a daily basis so i know i'm in good hands ,but I still need all the support I can get from everyone right now since it is a serious surgery. I will have to be off my leg for a good 3 to 4 weeks straight. . so I will be laying on my left side or my stomach for that long and its goin to be very annoying ,but i will probably be in so much pain that i will have so many pain meds in me that it wont both me at all. If my leg gets all infected there will be a small chance it will have to get amputated thats why I need to be off my leg for so long so there wont be a chance of infection and that way it wont be a chance of amputating it cuz it will get better.. Also, i wont be able to sit up and eat so i will end up having a feeding tube in it sounds like for that long. But after about 3 weeks the doctor said that he will let me start sitting up a little bit that way i can start to get use to it again ,but then after the 4th week i will be able to start sitting up even more after the staples/stitches are out.. I have been in so much pain the last 2 nights that they have had to call the doctor to get me extra stuff so they have messed with my pain meds again today.. But he wants me to stay off it for that long so that way theres a very little chance it will get infected cuz if it gets all infected that wont be good.. Anyways, thats all for now, I will update everyone more later on when I know more so, I need all the support I can get right now with everything still.. ~Ash~ 

Well, the hott and cold flashes have offically stopped and the fevers have finally broke again they found out that I had a bladder infection that they have been treating with meds... I have been doin my nightly dressing change without the iv meds and just the oral ones so that is a huge step even though instead of doin the 4 cc's they were doin by iv they are now doin 6 cc's orally but its still a huge step that i can do that part with just orals now.. The only thing I can not do yet without the iv meds is the morning dressing change when they do the pulsivac which is cleaning it out so I get the 6 cc's of meds by oral and then I get 2 cc's by push iv right before the dressing change.. I have also cut back on the pain meds a lot.. yesterday I only took 2 between the dressing changes and the day before i took 1 and before that i took none.. but it all depends on how much activitive I do during the day and if I get up in my wheelchair during the day or not because if I do i'm not use to the new seat yet so that causes me a little more pain still... There is finally tissue growing behind the hamstring muscle woo hooo!!! And the ones behind the knees are lookin very good just hopefully a few more days and they will be completely healed up.. Anyways, thats all the news I have for right now ,but please keep me in ur thoughts still since there is still a long ways to go for this healing process... Next step is to the nursing home to finish healing up when the doctor finally gives the OK!!!! Anyways, I have a lap top now for anyone who did not know so feel free to leave me a message on here, sb or yahoo anytime u'd like and i'll get back to you as soon as I can if i'm not here right then.. Love ~ASh~

Hey everyone, sorry its been a few days since i've blogged ,but i havent been feeling very well... i was doing fine except for things werent healing very fast was all... till 2 nights ago then i all of a sudden got very cold and it was 85 degrees in my room and i was shivering and i had 5 blankets on... and then all of a sudden i got very hot... and i broke out into a 103.7 fever and so they gave me 1000 mg of tylenol and then i all of a sudden got very nautious so they gave me 4cc's of zofran and turned my heat down to like 70 and then put a cold wet wash cloth on my forehead and one on my neck to cool me off and they started me on a new med called Lyrica tonight also. They are not sure why I broke out into a fever so they took a blood culture. I have a picc line in my right arm so they took blood out of that then they had to take blood out of my left arm to make sure it wasnt the picc line causing the problems and then they did a urine culture since i have this nasty cathator in me that i cant stand..

then last night I was sitting here playing a game with my friend and all of a sudden it was like 85 degrees in my room again and i got so cold that i had 6 blankets around my shoulders and like 2 more over my legs and my teeth started to chatter i was so dang cold and then i sat like that for a few hours cuz we kept checking my temp and it was normal and then i got really really really hott so i threw all the blankets off me and off my bed at my friend molly and i made her turn the heat down to 70 again and then turn the fan on and have it circulating and it was blowing right on me when it was circulating... and then i laid down to try to get some sleep and i couldnt get comfortable an then all of a sudden i thought i was goin to throw up so i had my friend that stayed the night with me get me one of the bags that they use up here now to throw up in so they can see how much and then i got really really nautious again so they gave me some zofran again and they also started me on a new antibiotic called lyrica for pain at night ,but it really dont do a thing. So yesterday I fought a fever off and on all day and my blood pressure kept going up then down then it would be normal then up then down then normal again ,but my heart rate was way to fast it was like 130 and I have been fighting a headache off and on all day.. so they have kept a close eye on me all day and night and this morning they took throat culture cuz my glads and tonsils are very swollend sore and it hurts to swallow anything hard. So then they decided to take another urine culture and then they had to take my cathator completely out and change it tonight and that absolutely does not feel good it hurts.. And for the sores they are slowly healing still and the one on my thigh well there is skin growing on my hamstring muscle and they are not sure why ,but they are not sure what to do cuz no tissue grew under it like it should of it just started to grow on the muscle so they are goin to have the doctor that did the surgery look at the sore today i think..Well those are the updates for now so we will see what the doctor says this morning when he comes in. I will update more when I have more updates.. ~Ash~