It's Not So Bad

I couldn't sleep last night. The IV was burning in my hand and no matter how I positioned myself or my arm, sleep just wasn't happening due to intense pain. Knowing Nathan had two finals in the morning, I tried to tough it out. A little after midnight, I had reached my pain threshhold and turned my bedside lamp on to examine the source of my misery. The line was full of blood (bad sign) and I noticed the skin was raised around the IV (another bad sign).

I frantically awoke Nathan and he ran off to get saline to flush the line. As soon as the saline was inserted, my pain immediately intensified, and my skin felt as though it was burning. My vein was no longer accepting fluids, making the IV unusuable and painful. Nathan instantly stopped pushing the saline into the line and went to pull the IV needle out. I'm sure we were both pretty traumatized by the events of the evening, as neither one of us were able to go back to bed. Instead, we watched The Mummy. Classy, I know.

We went first thing this morning to have a new IV line inserted. Surprise, surprise, I had no good veins. Again. After 20 minutes of prodding, the technician opted to put the new line on top of my arm (directly over the bone). He let me know it would be painful, but it was the only viable option. On a positive note, I can use my hands today and it doesn't hurt anything like an IV in the hand. All in all, I am pleased!

Today has been better. The fluids are certainly helping, and I had two visitors who kept me company and wrangled Eliza (thanks, Ashley and Allison!) while Nathan was gone most of the day. Our good friend Amalia (who has been staying with us since her return from New Zealand) has also been amazing. She has cleaned, done the dishes, and does whatever she can to keep Eliza happy. We are so lucky to have her around. Additionally, friends have offered meals and babysitting. What more could we ask for? Nathan and I truly feel like we have a family in Provo.

And to top it all off, my friend Julie sent me balloons and a gerber daisy (one of my favorite flowers)!

 Although Julie lives all the way in Pennsylvania, she pulled some strings and sent her sister over to deliver the goods. It was a pleasant surprise and definitely cheered me up. Something I've learned over the last few months is that receiving flowers really makes me happy.

On a side note, I turn in my work laptop tomorrow. I can't believe I am done with the most stressful job I've ever had. I certainly won't miss the long hours and the neverending emails, but I will miss my amazing boss and coworkers. Life is changing for the good! And really, despite the IVs and the complaining, it's really not so bad :)