A picture from Lake Superior at sunset. Zack knows how much I love that lake and sends me pictures he takes from around it. Water is my happy place, and sometimes just looking at a photo helps to center me.
On Monday I wrote about my fall and scrapes. I was starting to feel some better by the end of the day, but took Tuesday off too as Eric said I still looked too scary to attempt doing my job. Tuesday morning I woke up and my eyes, both of them, were swollen, hooded, and turning red/purple at the inner corners either side of the bridge of my nose. I looked like I had "piggies eyes". I called the clinic at 9 and left a voice message requesting an appointment. I called back at 1:30 and was able to get in at 2:15 (although my doctor was running about 30 minutes behind). The doctor gave me a cursory once over and said she was ordering an antibiotic for my knee, which was infected, and I could "pick it up if I'm allowed to go home". She then said I could make some choices: I could go to the ER and have them see me, or she could just order a CT scan, and I could try to see an ENT specialist Wednesday, "provided I didn't have a hematoma on my brain causing the pressure on my eyes/nose". If I did have one, I'd need to go to St. Louis, to Barnes or SLU hospital, where they have neurosurgeons on staff and I'd be admitted over there. Talk about freaking me out!
I elected to just have the CT scan and go from there. Fortunately there was no hematoma and I was able to go home, picking up my antibiotic on the way. I let my boss know I would need Wednesday off pending the appointment with the ENT, and she was fine with that. I waited a fair portion of the day and then called the clinic. They had sent a referral to the military insurance provider and were waiting for approval; so I waited. In the meantime, the swelling started going down, but slooooooooowly.
I woke up this morning and my eyes were still puffy, but the inner corners near the tear ducts no longer looked like they were going to explode. I sent my boss a text letting her know I was planning to come in but would need to leave when my appointment was set. She texted me back saying "no way--no working until cleared by the doctor." I was already enroute to the office when she sent it, so ended up making a circle and coming back home. I called the clinic again and finally was told that my referral was approved, and I was given the information of who the specialist was I'd be seeing. I called and got an appointment for this afternoon.
The specialist said that nothing was broken. He thought I had an infection that started responding to the antibiotic from Tuesday, and that all the bleeding and swelling from the initial impact was being drawn by gravity into the soft tissue of my eyes and my sinuses, as I had quite a bit of congestion along with the swelling. He wants me to use eye drops for the burning and itching, nasal spray with a steroid in it for the congestion, and keep putting ointment on the forehead and nose scrapes. He said I'm healing, which is the important thing, and I am cleared to go back to work. Plus I don't look quite so scary!
Anyhow, I got home from the clinic and updated my boss. I let her know I'd be back in the office tomorrow and could work my weekend as scheduled. She sent back that the office could survive without me, and that if I wanted to I could take tomorrow off to just be, work on call as scheduled, and report for work on Monday, mostly recovered and comfortable. I figured why not, as I have the time available...
So an unexpected week off! Not necessarily fun, but I have knit quite a bit, cross stitched, read four Anne Perry novels I was behind on (one to go to be up to date on both the Monks and the Pitts), read some blogs, kept Eric company when he was awake (he's not only on overnights, he also took on two overtime shifts this week!). I finished a few chores, and have sat out in the yard. Not a bad way to spend the week over all! And other than some pressure and soreness, I didn't otherwise feel too bad, despite the bruises and scrapes!
Reimond has been calling me almost daily on his bike ride home from work, and he sends me snapchat photos. I love this one. I can almost smell the water, feel the breezy fall air, and hear the lap of the wavelets against the shore. This is lake Nokomis, with the cedar avenue bridge to the left.
I've been feeling really guilty in a way that my clumsiness resulted in so much drama over a few scrapes and bruises. It really did turn out looking much worse than it actually was, for which I am grateful. I just feel stupid that it got as big as it did. I know it's better to be safe than sorry, so there are no regrets, but still... When I do something I can't do it the easy way, can I!
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