2024 Was Not Supposed to Start Like This

Sorry for the absence, I wasn't expecting 2024 to start with a continuation of 2023, but here we are. My hearing for worker's compensation was postponed again. The doctor who the state made me go to (the referee) did not get his findings to my lawyers or my former employers lawyers until the day/night before my hearing. Now, I saw this doctor on December 20, 2023, my hearing was January 25, 2024... Yeah.

To make things even crazier, I still hadn't found work. Applied weekly to tons of jobs, had interviews, but apparently the Universe either had other plans or I am not worth hiring. As I know myself, the second is not accurate, so it must not have been meant to be. However, when your income is gone and you have bills to pay, things tend to get dicey.

Which leads me to the real meat of this post - my health. I joked (but seriously) in the last post about 2023 trying to kill me - and doing so mentally, emotionally, spiritually, financially, and socially. Well, 2024 tried to put me in the ground.

Due to the fact of no income, I was donating plasma for the majority of 2023 and continued to do so into 2024. For those of you who do not know, when you donate plasma they continuously draw your blood, send it through a centrifuge, separate the plasma, and when they have enough plasma they return your red blood cells to you. Last week I went in to donate and ended up having a reaction (some people do it's normal but not fantastic). The actual donation process went great, per usual, but when I got to my car I felt my arm was really wet and I took my jacket off to find that I had bled through the gauze and wrapping and my arm was covered in blood. I went back in and we cleaned me up and re-wrapped my arm with double gauze.

I thus assumed my arm would feel numb and tingly since I lost blood (and sometimes my arm feels like that even when things go to plan) but this time was so much different. I had gotten home at 12:30, ate as usual (always eat a decent meal after donating!), and was trying to take my normal "after donating nap." My arm was not getting better and by 6:30pm the numbness and tingling had spread to my shoulder, neck, head, and face. Having the certifications and degrees I have, I took myself to the hospital because I was not in the mood to find out if I was going to wake up or not by staying home.

In the ER they took my vitals, drew blood, took a CT scan of my brain, chest x-ray, and gave me fluids. They then decided they needed an MRI and so I was sent to St. E's here in my town and was admitted. This was the first time I ever rode in an ambulance and the first time I was ever admitted to the hospital - at 39. Not a bad run, but I would have liked to keep that record - I digress. When I got to St. E's at 4am, they let me sleep after taking vitals and checking me in. By 8am I was woken up multiple times (if you've never been admitted to a hospital, understand that you will not be getting good rest there, they are constantly checking on you and poking you - not mad it just sucks) for various reasons.

I have one good vein that is my go to for blood being drawn and plasma donation. This poor little guy is literally THE ONLY ONE that is worth a damn for these things. There is always a problem when I go to give blood or donate and that is that I have to continuously tell people not to poke anywhere else, they 95% of the time think they know my body better and I end up with blown vessels, bruises, and anger issues. This was no different.

Finally I am taken down to get another CT scan but this one of my spine at the neck and then the MRIs of my brain and my neck. They were checking for any signs of stroke, bleeding, swelling, and so forth. Luckily we found nothing that was concerning, however we did find out that I have tachycardia, so that was fun. Tachycardia is a heart arrythmia where my heart rate will go from resting at 70 beats per minute to racing at 140 beats per minute in one beat. It will stay between 140 and 100 beats per minute anywhere from 10 minutes to 2 hours. So, if you ask me why I look tired, it's because my heart is trying to chase Usain Bolt in a marathon 2-5 times a day.

I get released on Friday morning from St. E's (by the way the food wasn't too bad and the people were great) with a heart monitor on my chest for 2 weeks and a relatively clean bill of health - which is both frustrating and great. I get home, I nap and hang out with my cat, LeTang, who was very worried since I said I'd be right back and two days later am finally home and smelling funny.

Fun story, Sunday I am back in the ER because the symptoms have returned. I am now irritated, my heart rate has not been below 100 beats per minute since 9:30 that morning and it is now 4pm. Chest pains by the way, not cool. I get hooked up to another round of fluids, EKG, and get a chest CT scan. Yes, I know you're wondering, my vein at this point has checked out and wants me to leave it alone.

The CT scan of my chest finds a hiatal hernia and that explains the excessive amount of acid reflux I've had for the last 2 years. Hiatal hernia is where my stomach has moved up and into my chest at the diaphragm (not that far of a jump), and messes with my esophagus causing obnoxious and painful amounts of acid reflux and heart burn. Thankfully, I think, this is all the scan finds. So, again, numbness, tingling, chest pains... no reason.

I go home and the symptoms have stopped, thankfully, I get the heart monitor off at the end of this week, and hopefully I have no further issues. I hope that your 2024 has started off better than mine and that my 2024 has stopped trying to send me to either of the Christian gates.