I wake up to the usual..bright lights being turned on and a nurse drawing my blood and taking vital signs. I'm not the best person to deal with in the morning time when I'm feeling great so imagine me at 6 a.m. Anyway, I'm in a lot of discomfort due to the PICC line and didn't sleep through the night. I lay in the bed a little longer and finally decide to get up and freshen up before the team comes in with their daily plan.
My mom is already on her way down to the cafeteria to get me breakfast. It's been grits, hash browns, and turkey sausage. I'm not a breakfast person but I'm trying to eat when I can because my appetite has been obsolete. Anyway, I eat my breakfast and take my morning pills and then the team comes walking in the door. The plan is to start the new medicine but I have to be premedicated before the medicine is administered for 4 hours. The premedication consists of Benadryl pushed through my PICC line, Tylenol and 1 hour of Prednisolone via the PICC line. About 1 hour later they will run the Thymoglobulin for the next 4 hours. Sounds simple enough, right?
Well, it's my first day and I'm a little nervous because the medicine is going to be a direct hit to my body since the PICC line is so close to my heart and every other organ. Needless to say, the experience wasn't that great. When the nurse administered the Benadryl I started coughing and felt like I was choking all along tasting the medicine and feeling it in my nose. I wasn't expecting that and it scared the crap out of me. I remember my dad patting my back and trying to help me but then I became a "weeble wobble" and immediately was knocked out. I remember the nurse checking my vital signs and saying she would return in an hour with the other medicine. I was sleep or what I like to think of "cat napping" the entire time. I could hear people talking but couldn't quite make out the faces. I finally woke up in time for the medicine to be administered and couldn't fall back to sleep for the 1st hour because the nurse was constantly checking my vital signs and temperature. After the 1st hour, I was knocked out sleep and remember waking up briefly to my sister's voice. She must have just arrived and was getting the updates from our parentals. I knew that she would be staying there for the weekend and kicking out the parentals soon. She likes her one on one time.
Off I went to back to sleep...