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I am now on day four of my hospital stay. I was so hoping to be released, but I suppose it will happen with time. I still want to blog details about my whole experience here, but until I can truly gather my thoughts you will be stuck with random posts of near nothingness.
The past two nights I’ve posted my frustrations and anger over my situation. I’ve been in pain. I’ve been “helpless.” I’ve been afraid. I’ve been annoyed. Tonight I want to post about humility. Accepting the help and care of those who surround you.
It is ok to not feel “strong.” It is ok to need rest. It is ok to not be able to do things on your own. Your body was created to give you clues about what you need when you need it. If you need help getting out of bed, ask. If you need help showering, ask. If you need someone to remove your socks for you, ask them. They are usually more than willing to help!
Your friends and family love you. They are in your life to care for you and make sure you get what you need to be well as quickly as possible. It is best to be kind and patient with them during these times. It will be just as frustrating for them to see you in such a helpless position as well. Sometimes they won’t be able to meet all your needs and this will be hard on them.
I still don’t know when I will be able to get out of the hospital. The doctor still wants to keep me for observation. I’m trying to keep my fluids up so that I don’t get dehydrated. I have also been instructed to eat lots and lots of salt… to oversalt my food. I hate salty food… or I guess I should say overly salty food… but! I have no colon and therefore I need to make sure I don’t lose too much sodium, potassium or fluids. My output isn’t as solid as the doctor wants yet so I am still in danger of this.
I’ve decided to order a few things to make me feel more confident about having an ostomy… seeing how we may be getting very close over the next three months.
I have ordered THREE ostomy support belts from OstomySecrets. I hope this will help reduce the stoma noise and make me feel more “secure” by keeping the bag close to my body instead of it flopping around all over the place. These should be at my house within the next few days.
Today I’m up to four bag changes. I didn’t realize how very unpleasant it would be… but I’m hoping it will become routine and that I’ll get used to it. I’ve ordered several pairs of gloves to make the experience much easier.
I ordered a vanity mirror to help me see what I’m doing when I change my wafer and bag. My husband bought me some small trash bags, baby wipes, liquid soap and a couple of small spray bottles to help me clean up after myself during my bag changes and bag emptying. There may be more supplies I need, but I can’t say at this point.
Something else I ordered is liquid potassium. This along with my powdered calcium and the sports drinks this should help me replenish some of the beneficial vitamins and minerals I’m bound to lose in all this j-pouch madness. I’m still on the search for an iron supplement that is good for ostomates, so if you know of anything, please point me in the right direction.
That’s all I have to say for the evening. I really hope that this post finds all of you happy and well. If not, please know that you are in my prayers. I truly believe that everything happens for a reason. Everything has a purpose. I feel like my current suffering will be beneficial to someone out there somewhere someday. Just as I believe that Jesus had a purpose in His suffering for me. Not only do I believe that he died that I might live, He suffered that He might be able to empathize in my own suffering. For this, I am thankful.
If I don’t post tomorrow, I hope all of you have a Happy and Restful Easter. 🙂 God bless you.
Thank you! I feel the same way! I want to go home, but at the same time, if there's a problem the hospital will take care of me. I am about to go check out the supplements you suggested. Thank you so much for bringing them to my attention!!! Hugs, prayers and love to you!
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hey girl!! i hope you get to go home soon! better to be in there if the doctor thinks it's right. i always got scared of going home because i felt safer in the hospital. like you said, everything happens for a reason, so just stay strong!
as for iron, i've had anemia problems a lot and i noticed i need to continually take 2 of these a day to keep my stores up. they are chewable but instead of chewing, i let them dissolve under my tongue. takes about ten minutes but at least they don't need to go through my gut and absorb under my tongue. they taste good too!
http://www.vitacost.com/natures-plus-chewable-iron-with-vitamin-c-and-herbs