The Hospital: An Unexpected Journey, Part 2

When I left off on Monday I was getting ready to settle in for the night at our local hospital. I was settled into my very own room (which was pretty big) with a nice adjustable bed. Unfortunately I barely slept. Quite apart from the regular checks of temperature and blood pressure throughout the night, the room was on the corridor which runs from one end of the hospital to the other so all foot traffic passed my room. Even with the curtain drawn round the door I could still hear everything going on outside and had the light shining in as well.

There was also a large round green light on the ceiling above the door. Kind of like a friendly HAL. The shape of the bulb inside created funny shapes and I kept on looking up at it in my half-asleep state and seeing things like rabbit heads (I'm guessing from reading Watership Down while I was waiting to find out whether I was being sent off by helicopter).

The few times I did start to doze off I woke myself up with a start when I felt like I was falling, or rolled over onto the venflon in my arm, or my leg went to sleep because of the awkward angle I was sleeping at. I'd been put on fluid restriction because of the suspected OHSS so had to make do with a single cup of water all night and I was also very self-conscious about having to use the buzzer to summon someone to help me to the bathroom.

By the time the nurse came in to let me know the ambulance was on its way I was a bit weepy and rather overtired, so I was very pleased when another nurse came in to let me know Mr Click was on his way. They'd decided to transfer me via ambulance rather than by air (which I was pretty pleased about) so Mr Click was able to come with me.

The journey to Paisley Hospital was a bit uncomfortable. I felt every little bump and jolt, but the ambulance staff were very good and warned me of the big bumps in advance. We reached the hospital a lot quicker than I was expecting and I got checked in and assessed at A&E there.

We had a bit of a wait and I managed to convince myself that I wouldn't be admitted. No sooner had I decided this did the doctor come back and inform me that I was going to be admitted. I was taken up to a ward and after staying for a little while Mr Click had to head back.

At first they kept me on the fluid restriction and did funny things like measuring around my belly so they could monitor any growth, but once I had a scan (thankfully not an internal one) they decided that it was more likely to be a ruptured ovarian follicle and I was told that I'd probably be allowed home the next day. This also meant the fluid restriction was lifted and I was able to eat and drink to my heart's content. I was very pleased to get my first bite to eat in roughly twenty-four hours (even if I didn't get the actual meal I had ordered).

That night I slept much better (apart from the venflon, which decided to kick it up a notch by being really itchy as well as tender). And the following morning, Friday the 13th, I was determined I was going home. The doctor came round and suggested I might like to stay another day so they could continue to monitor me, especially as I was so remote at home, but I was determined nothing was going to keep me there.

I called Mr Click to come and get me and refused stronger painkillers in case they decided that I needed to stay in after all. For the first time in two days I got dressed and found that I was exhausted by doing this, but stubbornly sat in the chair beside my bed because I wasn't going to give them any excuse to keep me in. When Mr Click did get to me I shuffled the entire length of the hospital for the same reason, perhaps asking for a porter to take me to the door would make them think twice about discharging me!

So I've spent the weekend recovering. I'm still a wee bit sore; stretching and walking are a bit of a challenge, but I'm sleeping much better at home than I did in the hospital. Everyone has done a really good job of taking care of me and helping me to feel better. I'm just hoping it's not something I repeat at any point in the future!