Friday, May 22, 2009

Paracentesis on a Friday Afternoon . . .

This week's chemotherapy was the hard drugs that make my hands tingly and seizy, so I haven't been able to e-mail or update my blog. Today they are feeling not too bad, so I figured I'd better update the blog.

I have been feeling very tired and lethargic the last couple of weeks. The pain hasn't been too bad but it's still there, and being tired makes the pain harder to cope with. Monday after my chemo I had the worst bout of hand seizing I've experienced so far and it lasted into Tuesday, but it has since worn off. I still am getting the tingly fingers today, however.

The fluid buildup around my internal organs was terrible last weekend. The biggest my girth measurement had been was 35 inches. On Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, it was 36 inches, and crept up to 36.5 inches on Monday. I was in misery! Every move I made caused gurgling and fluid shifting and pressure on my innards, so I phoned the doctor and got in today for paracentesis.

For those of you unfamiliar with paracentesis, it means draining off the excess fluid using a large-bore blunt needle. First Dr. Cutie thumped my abdomen all over to see where the best place to insert the needle would be. He injected some anesthetic, then poked in a small bore sharp needle to see if any liquid would come out and how fast it would drain. After removing the small needle, he put the large-bore needle in. The one used on me was about five inches long but I'm not sure how far they jabbed it in. I couldn't feel it at all.

The large-bore needle is attached to a length of medical hose with a needle on the end. The needle is inserted into a suction jar so that the suction in the jar draws out the fluid inside your body. In all, they took out a litre and a half of liquid from my abdomen. I feel much less pressure in my abdomen and just wish I could have had this done last Friday! It really is a simple procedure - practically painless - and doesn't take very long at all. I do have a bandage on my side where the needles were inserted, but that just means I can't bathe until Monday when the bandage comes off.

It sure is nice to walk outside these days and see the trees blushing green with their new leaf growth. I could wish for it to be about five degrees warmer out, but I'll be thankful for what we get as long as it doesn't snow again!

Have yourselves a great weekend.

-- Lori

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

We got home last night after a week in Victoria, so I was anxious to read how you are doing. I'm sorry to hear that the pain has worsened, but happy to hear that Dr. Cutie seems to be able to help out. Draining the fluid would definitely help. Is your Dad still with you? I thought I might take a brownie in to him if he is home. Say hello to your Mom, and hugs to all from cousin, Frances. Take care, soak in the bright sunshine, and keep your chin up. I think of you daily.