Go Go Gadget GJ

Hi All (friends & family)!

Sadly, I am readmitted to the hospital in Wilmington. (NHRMC) for intractable nausea & vomiting which started last night & did not relent.
We (mom & I) arrived here around 3am Tuesday morning. I had managed 11 days out of the hospital.

This is hard: The gastroenterology (GI) specialists are very firm in their desire that I stay off any narcotic medication – indefinitely. However, I am in pain – a lot of pain – and feel somewhat conflicted. I’d LOVE to get some pain relief here & now but I understand the GI’s ultimatum & I want to honor it. They tell me they see improvements in the first month & even more improvement over the next 4-6 months.

Here is a photo of me from Sunday morning – I felt pretty good despite a rough Saturday evening in which I contemplated an ER visit. I clean up decently! This is one of the difficulties of invisible illness – we can look good but have a lot of stuff going on. In the photo on Sudnay, I had compression tights & a corset on to help with my blood pooling (causes lightheadedness, etc. – see my description of dysautonomia) and loose abdominal organs (my intestines droop when I am upright).

The next picture is from this morning to show my aunts. I was given this beautifully made (by Janet & Marti) quilt for me as a comfort from them while we are so far apart. (They live in Montana). This quilt is beautiful, full of cats with a special note under one corner. It definitely brightens up a hospital stretcher & beats the rough thin blankets.

Specific Prayer Requests: pain and the need to avoid pain medications, nausea that is difficult to control, parents wanting to be here, frustration with this need for hospitalization. – Thanks!