Pain in the Neck

So, I'm sure many of you have heard that I was in the hospital this week. Here's the complete story in case you were wondering:

So, for about a week I had been having a bad pain in my neck that was causing me to have a nasty headache. I tried to ignore it at first, but it got to the point that I couldn't think any more, so I decided to go to the chiropractor. I've gone on and off for the last 5 or so years, and it's always been very helpful. So I went in on Friday--not to my normal guy, but another chiropractor in the practice that was available. Everything went well (although, ironically, my mom was apparently convinced all day that day that I must have been checked into the hospital with a brain tumor because I didn't answer my phone), and I scheduled a follow up visit for Monday.

On Monday I went in, she adjusted my back again, and then I sat up, and then started feeling really weird. At first I just felt a little nauseous, then my face started feeling numb. Then my right arm started feeling numb and tingly. She had me lie down and asked me what I'd eaten for breakfast. It was soooo the wrong day to have a cupcake for breakfast (but thanks, Destiny, it was sure yummy!). Anyway, they gave me some juice, kept asking me to smile and took my pulse. So I was just lying there on the table feeling weird. Then it started getting really hard to swallow and my voice started going weird. I called Justin and mentioned something about I'm not okay and they might call an ambulance...and I think he bolted out the door of work to come get me.

When he got there, the chiropractor met him at the door and said that he thought I had a bulged disk in my neck, but that I should probably see a doctor today. They tried to help me stand up, but that made me feel terrible, and I started thinking maybe an ambulance was a good idea because there was NO WAY I was going to be walking down to the car. They found a little stool with wheels and put me on it and rolled me out to the elevator. That's when I started feeling really naseous. It turns out Justin is really good at finding random things for me to puke in--this time it was the umbrella holder in the waiting room. I sure hope they remember to clean that out. Anyway, they rolled me out to the car, and they gave us directions to get to Urgent Care, so we drove there.

Meanwhile, I started to throw up again, and this time Justin was able to hand me one of Colton's empty bottles. He's so good at thinking on the fly. Too bad my aim was that great. Yuck. Anyway, by that time, I had lost control of my throat, so when I threw up it terrified me because I felt like I was going to choke. So while I was trying not to choke to death, Justin was driving like a maniac to get me to Urgent Care. He stopped the car, ran in and got a wheelchair and ran me inside. Then I started puking again (are you noticing a pattern? Sorry if this conjurs up nasty images, I'm just trying to be true to the story). Justin asked for someone to hand him the garbage can, but they all just sat there. Then he put Colton's blanket on my lap, so at least I didn't quite cover myself in vomit (but his blanket needed a good washing). The good folks at Urgent Care said that we should just go to the ER. I was sitting there puking and choking and saying that I couldn't breathe, so Justin asked for them to get an ambulance, but they said it wasn't life or death, so Justin ran me back out to the car and we drove a couple miles up the street to the hospital.

When we got to the ER, Justin ran inside and said he needed a wheelchair because his wife was numb and could breath, and they apparently just pointed and said, "The wheelchairs are over there." Don't worry, he's already filed an official complaint. Anyway, he came running out, loaded me in a wheelchair, come to think of it, I'm not exactly sure where Colton was just then--still in the car? All I know is I was sitting in the ER waiting room still puking and choking in front of lots of people. Justin finally shouted out that he needed some help, and then they came and got me back there immediately.

At that point, all I wanted to do was lie down. I felt so sick. But they made me sit up and did an EKG. Then they let me lie down. That was all I needed. I just closed my eyes and was glad I wasn't throwing up any more. So the chiropractor had followed us, and she told the ER doctor what had happened, and when he heard I'd been at the chiropractor, he immediately thought that I'd probably had what's called a vertebral dissection--which is where the vertebral artery is damaged (often by whiplash or chiropractic manipulation), so he ordered a cat scan.

Meanwhile, Justin called several of our friends who are stay at home moms to come get Colton, but nobody answered. Then he called our home teacher, who shouldn't have been home, but he was, and he came and picked up Colton. They were also able to give me a priesthood blessing. I realize now that it was shortly after they gave me the blessing that the numbness and tingling subsided and I was actually able to get up and walk around. Once we knew that I was basically okay, we called my mom and told her that she was right about me being in the hospital, she had just worried on the wrong day...

They did the cat scan and it verified that my artery was damaged, so they admitted me to the hospital so that they could put me on heparin, which is a blood thinner. They also did an MRI which showed that I had had a stroke, but that it was very small (but the official diagnosis did get me visits from all sorts of therapists--occupational, speech, physical. Fortunately, I passed all their tests.

Basically, the main concern at that point was that a blood clot could form at the site on the artery where the damage had been done, which could potentially lead to a massive stroke. So they put me on heparin for immediate results, and then I spent the next several days in the hospital getting my blood levels up so with an oral blood thinning pill that I will be on for the next six months or so while my artery heals.

I just feel so lucky that all that will come from this is the incovenience of being on Coumadin for a few months. The stroke didn't do any major damage and won't have any lasting results. (Also, the neurologist told me that the reason my neck/head had been hurting was from a little pinched nerve that is like having carpal tunnel in your neck--and she gave me a shot that should make it better.) And, I was finally able to get my flu shot. I knew if I waited long enough, there'd finally be a convenient time to get my flu shot.

Anyway, we feel so grateful first of all that I am okay. Besides that, we are so grateful to friends and family that have been so helpful to bring us food, watch Colton, and pray for me. I feel truly blessed!