#CF signed me up for a wild ride | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

leahtate1228 · 5 years

Text

My First Admission

The date was January, 2007, I was in the seventh grade. I was on my way to my regular doctor appointment at Children’s Hospital Boston to check up on my Cystic Fibrosis, make sure all my medications were working and everything was under control. I take one standard breathing test every time I’m there which pretty much tests everything they need to know, plus a blood test. Although this time was different from all my rest.

My doctor had been out that day so I had to see someone else. After taking the test, the doctor came back in with the results; bad news coming. My test results had dropped a huge percent, and I needed to be admitted to the hospital as soon as possible for treatments.

That appointment was on a Monday and on that Thursday I was driving through the Thomas J O’Neill tunnel that opens up into Boston. With too many thoughts, feelings and emotions running through my head. I was contemplating the future, near and far, the possibilities versus the probabilities, the questions and answers I did not know I would be facing for the next four weeks. The scariest thought about this whole experience is that little did I know, when I turned around to walk through that rotating door leading into the Hospital, it would be the last time I would see a clear blue sky with no small window in between us in a long time.

With my parents on both sides of me I entered the door. Once inside, seeing all the jumbling colors all over the walls and the pictures, so many colors. I suppose the colors were supposed to distract us, or give us a happy feeling. But for me, the jumble of way too many colors were just like my thoughts, running crazy through my mind, not making any sense. As soon as that split second of walking through the door was over there was a rush of people and we knew right where to go. The ninth floor. {Once taking what felt like almost ten minutes to ride the elevator up there, it was a whole different world!}

All the walls were white; there was no color, no pictures, no smiles, no fun. Then, we proceeded to walk over to the nurse’s desk to check in.

My parents said “Leah please."

"Yes right this way we have a room for you." the nurse replied.

We followed the nurse to a room down the hallway. So we were walking into the room and he said the doctor would be with us soon. This room was all white walls with a door. no pictures, no color, no smiles once again, no fun. So after waiting about 15 minutes 3 red sox players came in to sign autographs for me! They do this for the sick children, it was a lot of fun! I suppose it was a distraction of what no one knew what pain was going to come to me next.

I knew I had to expect the doctor to come in of course, but what I did not expect was the team of nurses that pooled in behind him [at least 4]. So now there were eight people tucked into this tiny room with no windows and very thin air with me lying on the bed almost crying, scared of the future.

The doctor began explaining some things about the procedure he had to do and how I must be awake for this to go right. So, as I lay there still as a pond in the summer time, he began taking a pen to my arm, drawing little lines and circles around my veins then he taped hot packs to both of my inner elbows and left the room for 20 minutes. I had to leave the packs on so he would be able to tell which vein was going to be the easiest to put the picc line in. They also gave me a pill that was meant to relax my body which ended up doing the exact opposite, and I ended up having a horrible reaction to it. A picc line is a long skinny tube than goes into your vein with one end reaching all the way up towards your heart. Mine was 44 centimeters long.

Once the doctor came back into the room the craziness began. The next thing I knew he had a tray and nurses holding my arms with gloves and masks on and I was doing all I could to look away! I was squeezing my dads’ hand as tightly as I possibly could because I was in the most pain I had ever been in, in my entire life! [and I was scared] I was getting a tube shoved up my arm in the opposite flow of my blood, with needles and rubber gloves pinching my skin. This whole procedure took about twenty five minutes. The only thing I truly remember is my mom telling me to just take a deep breath and it would all be over soon. [Also most all of the nurses had told me was coming out is so much easier than going in, which was a relief.] I had never gone through so much torture in my life, even though I knew it was going to help me get better.

Once that whole scene was over with, they had a room ready for me, so I went in and looked around at the small closet, window bench where my parents would switch off nights sleeping there and the hospital bed they wheeled me in that I would be in for the next month. The room had a bathroom with a shower, tv and small desk top for my school work. While most would think being in the hospital provides you with a lot of down time, which coincidentally is the exact opposite, barely leaving enough time to get a meal in. The next month went by very slowly, with doctors coming in every day doing what I call "the octopus" in the mornings where there were at least eight of them at once who come in and use their stethoscopes to listen to you, breathe in and out and deep breathe. Once they are done my nurse for the daytime would come in and take some tests and start me on my morning medicines and routines of my hospitalization. Once that was done I would eat, watch movies, sleep, do physical therapy, and get occasional visits from my nurse or some friends! Seeing friends is the best surprise of all! And then I do my night time medicine, possibly make a small dent in some of my school work I’ve been missing for almost three weeks, and once I fell asleep my whole day starts over again!

I try to resist the temptation of looking out the window either up at the sky or down below at the people walking to work and this feeling over whelms me thinking how I wish I could be at school [even on a Sunday]. I’m not even sure my mother knows this, but I felt trapped like a monkey in a cage at the zoo, or a criminal behind bars in jail. I was not allowed to leave my room, ever! Because one step outside into that infested hallway could make me stay in there longer. Once my stay was over the day they told me I was going to be released, a huge feeling of accomplishment rushed through my body! I was being set free! To see the sky, smell the air, taste that dirty Boston water. "A nurse will be in to take out your line soon." "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!" I couldn’t believe it! I was done! Finally!

Little did I know there was more to come.

Once the nurse came in to take out my line she was right! It was a lot easier to take out than to put in, that is, 42 centimeters of it. Then it got stuck. The last 2 centimeters! And what do you know?....I was back in pain! As the nurse was tugging and pulling at my arm, it felt like she was going to pull my vein right out of my arm! I was once again, squeezing my father’s hand; actually I began to bite it! I left teeth marks. After they tried as hard as they possibly could, with me laying on the bed for two hours, they finally decided to give up, telling me my veins were constricted and closing up right over the picc line. They sent in Loraine, a relaxation specialist. Within fifteen minutes of her being in my room, she was telling me to close my eyes playing soft music, and having me imagine and try to picture a door swinging open gently, or the wind blowing the veins open to let the line come out. I began to picture a flower blooming, opening its petals to show the beautiful flower in full bloom. The nurses re entered the room and I was breathing very calmly with that image in my mind and within the next five minutes my arm was free! No more picc line! I had an overwhelming feeling of happiness! I will never forget what had happened to me in these past few weeks.

As I walked out of my room going outside my mom told me to put on my sweatshirt because it was cold and rainy; I did as she said. But once we got outside to get the car from valet I couldn’t take it anymore. I felt the wind! I saw the sky! I smelled the air, felt the rain, saw the sun! I could not believe how long It had been since I had been outdoors! I immediately took off my sweatshirt and began to spin around and catch raindrops on my tongue and run wild through the parking lot! I felt amazing! My lungs felt stronger than ever I had done it!

I had faced me fear and beat it! I survived something someone my age should never have had to go through but I entered the battle and I had not been defeated, but was the winner! Of the biggest battle I have had to face in a long time. I face small battles every day, but this was no battle it was a war! Between fear and myself. And I could not believe...I won! I had conquered my fear and was ready to take on the world with whatever challenge it wanted to hand me next! I had a "bring it on" attitude. Now, I have been hospitalized again since then, but I was ready and if it ever comes again, I’ll tell my heart, and my brain, I’m prepared.

Peace. Love. Cure CF.

#cf #cysticfibrosis

0 notes

thrashermaxey · 7 years

Text

The Journey: New Faces For The Stretch Run

As we hit the all-star break, it’s a good time to have a hard look at your squad and determine what changes you need to make to your squad to help make that final push. Here are a few new faces on the scene that could provide depth help for that second half stretch.

Dominik Simon – PIT

The latest in a long line of Pittsburgh prospects to audition for the plum role of Sidney Crosby’s line mate is Dominik Simon. The Czech product put himself on NHL radars with a standout 2015 World Championship posting six points in 10 games and was subsequently picked in the fifth round in 2015 as an over-ager, just two months shy of his 21st birthday. He’s proceeded to progress fairly rapidly though the Penguins system, immediately coming over to suit up for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Simon put together near identical years in the AHL in 2015-16 and 2016-17 with 48 points and 46 points respectively. He managed to earn short NHL stints in both of the campaigns, but overall his NHL body of work is rather sparse with two assists across five contests.

In his third year in North America, Simon appears to be hitting his stride. Not only is he having his most productive AHL season by averaging 0.81 points per game, but is getting his first taste of extended NHL action and showing that he can hold his own. Recalled in early December, Simon has gone on to produce four goals and five helpers in 16 games thus far primarily riding shotgun with Sidney Crosby. Most encouraging is the fact that he is putting up these number while averaging less than 13 minutes a night. He’s starting to get the puck on net with greater frequency and the goals are starting to come in greater number with three snipes in his last two contests. It’s obviously a small sample size, but in his short time with the Pens, Simon has proven to be one of their better possession players with a CF% 58.1. It’s not as if he’s being sheltered either as his offensive zone start % clocks in at 48.46. Despite not being the biggest guy, he’s showing a willingness to throw his body around with 22 hits thus making, making him a potentially valuable multi-cat option depending on the depth of the league.

Tyler Bertuzzi – DET

The third-youngest player on the roster, Tyler Bertuzzi represents the future for the Detroit Red Wings, an aging team on the outside of the playoff picture. A former scoring star in junior, the Sudbury native put up 98 points in his final season with the Guelph Storm en route to winning a Memorial Cup. In his first pro season with Grand Rapids, Bertuzzi brought a mix of skill and sandpaper posting 30 points in 71 games and a team high 133 PIMs. In his sophomore year he toned down anger but ratcheted up the finesse slashing his PIM totals but nearly 100, down to 37, and increasing his production by 83% on a point-per-game basis by posting 37 points in 48 regular season games. He earned a seven-game stint I Detroit but was held off the scoresheet. Bertuzzi took his game to another level in the AHL playoffs with 19 points in as many games and 50 penalty minutes to boot. He helped lead the Grand Rapids Griffins to a Calder Cup title and was names AHL Playoff MVP. In 2017-18 the third-year pro has seen equal time in both the AHL and NHL, averaging nearly a point per game in the minors in 16 games. In the big show he’s seeing middle-six minutes with nearly two-thirds of his zone starts coming in the defensive end, producing two goals and seven assists in 15 games, all of them coming at even strength. But that doesn’t mean he’s strictly limited to 5-on-5 play as he’s also been getting a healthy dose of power-play time lately. Bertuzzi has been getting shots off at an increased rate over the last number of games with 20 of his 30 shots have come over the last eight contests and the points have come along with give in his past six games. A winner at every level, Bertuzzi is a hardnosed player that plays on the edge and has the grin of a 15-year veteran. He’s showing some potential as a valuable multi-cat asset.

Casey DeSmith – PIT

Do the Penguins have another Matt Murray in their midst? That may be what some people are wondering with the recent emergence of relative unknown Casey DeSmith. However, astute fantasy GMs would be aware of him because he was talked about on the fine DobberProspects podcast a little over a year ago as a player to watch. DeSmith attended the University of New Hampshire where he served as the number one tender for his first three years on campus posting excellent numbers in the process, but was dismissed from the team at the beginning of his senior year due to some legal issues. He subsequently signed a pro deal in the summer of 2015 and began his journey in the ECHL with the Wheeling Nailers. In his first and only season there, DeSmith performed third stringer duties and posted a 2.55 GAA and .915 SVS. The next year he signed a minor league deal with the Baby Pens and helped lead them to the best record in the AHL on the backs of a 2.01 GAA and .926 SVS serving as the backup to Tristan Jarry. He was named to the AHL all-rookie team and, along with Jarry, won the Harry Holmes Memorial Award, the AHL equivalent of the William Jennings trophy. Rutherford and Co. took notice and this past summer DeSmith earned his first NHL contract. He’s been give the reigns as the number one in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and has performed well, even if his number are down from last year.

The 26-year-old finally reached the summit this season as he’s getting his first taste of NHL action. He was called up on a couple of occasions earlier in the year where he played mop-up duty. Recalled once again a week and a half ago to replace Matt Murray who left the team due to the death of his father, DeSmith has been getting the starting nod on a consistent basis, starting the last four games for the Penguins and showing he can carry the mail. In Thursday’s game against the Wild he matched his worst outing of the year by giving up three goals. But in the three games prior he was nearly unbeatable facing 100 shots and turning aside 97 of them. All told he’s seen action in six games, starting four of them and has a 3-2 record to show for it to go along with a .927 SVS and 2.08 GAA. The Penguins appear content giving Desmith the backup gig having recently re-assigned Tristan Jarry to the minors. DeSmith probably isn’t the second coming of Dominik Hasek but he has excelled at every level at which he’s played and has been one of the best goalies in the AHL over the past year and a half. The UDFA is currently riding a hot streak which is sometimes all you can hope for given the fickle nature of the position in fantasy. And that alone makes him a viable commodity.

Thanks for reading! Give me a follow on Twitter @BradHPhillips. Enjoy your weekend.

Also from The Journey: Fastest-Rising Prospect Defencemen

from All About Sports http://www.dobberhockey.com/hockey-home/the-journey/the-journey-new-faces-for-the-stretch-run/

0 notes