I've been away ..... by Cathie Tranent

For those of you who are wondering where I’ve been for the last week or so ….

On the 7th of April, I slipped over in the back yard and broke (well cracked) really, the bone in my leg … tibula… fibia…. whatever …. the big one!!

What with Easter and the like, I was lucky enough to not have to take too much leave to cover appointments and whatnot …. got myself some crutches and a wheelchair – great for zipping round the house – without too much effort.

April 29th. I was actually having a day of annual leave, Mark was having day surgery to correct a problem with his septum from a car accident about 20 years ago – his dad was picking him up from the hospital – and my mum had come round to our place to hang out and do some washing for me.

Seeing as mum was there, Connor was in his room with the tele blaring, and I was being a good girl and laying on the lounge with the damned leg elevated.

At about 2.45 .. there was this funny tap,tap, tap on what felt like my lungs, and I swung round to sit up and take a deeper breath, felt everything dim like I was going to pass out – and called out to Mum.

The next thing I remember, is laying face down on the lounge, with mum calling an ambulance and me feeling very second hand …….

Speedy trip to the hospital – into resus and then into the ICU ……

Turns out that little tap tap tap were palpitations, as my heart tried to shift the clots that had entered it. They said my heart had spontaneously restarted, we privately think it was when mum dropped me back on the lounge cause she couldn’t hold me up anymore …..

I also had clots on each lung, and spent the next two days in the ICU – monitored 24/7 as they filled me with drugs to try and dissolve the clots and the other one which was still in my right leg …..

Tomorrow I’m going home – a week after it all happened – with some drugs to be injected and Warfarin for the next six months to thin my blood …..

I’m not ashamed to say that it scared the crap out of me – I’ve given up smoking, going to change some lifestyle habits – going to give this bod of mine the best possible chance to hang round a bit longer – the alternatives just don’t bear thinking about. I know, I have.

Be kind to each other ….

PS. I don’t believe that we can ever pay ambos, nurses and doctors enough money for what they do. Earthbound angels. All of them.