It Started with a Twinge

It started with a twinge, but it ended badly. And this just confirms my answer to that ER doctor last July who asked if I seriously wanted to inject my body with narcotics. That answer is a resounding "YES!"

I don't know if it was the long flight (not that long, really - landed over an hour early) or the drive from Clacton to Chatham in that uncomfortable Vauxhall (only a couple of hours) that caused the problem. Whatever it was, I thought I was prepared. I had the valium and the codeine that had been prescribed last July. When it became obvious that the twinges were going to escalate rather than go away, I started with the valium. When nothing happened, I added the codeine. When we arrived at Janet's, she encouraged me to throw a bit of something called sulfadene (not at all sure about the spelling, but it seemed a bit like Alka Seltzer) into the mix.

It was working fairly well but we went out to eat a bit late and before we'd finished our meal, the twinging started again. Back home for more valium, codeine and sulfadene. I woke up the next morning a bit unsure of how I felt. The original plan was to go shopping and have lunch at one of the newer retail centers near Chatham. After a piece of toast failed to squelch the nausea, I decided to lay down again for a while. This story doesn't get any better so let me shorten it for you. I spent the entire day in bed. Asleep. Waking up and consuming more drugs at appropriate intervals. I don't know what Mark and Janet ended up doing all day. They checked on me when it was nearing time for the evening meal. We were all going to meet up with Mark's aunt and uncle at a local Gurka restaurant. I thought I was feeling a bit better, but not really enough. I was afraid I'd get there and then someone would have to take me back home. Better to just stay home in the first place. I insisted that they both go. I wasn't going to do anything I'd need any assistance with. They should go and enjoy the evening. They went out and I went back to bed. I finally started to feel better just as they got back home - around 11 pm. But my entire day of sleeping didn't stop me from sleeping well all night.

The next morning it was like it never happened! So now at least I have confirmed that going to the ER when those pains starts is absolutely the right thing to do. If I could only figure out what causes it, I might have a better shot at prevention.