Bronchoscopy and other fun things

Today, Ken drove me to the hospital at 6am for my bronchoscopy. I registered and crutched to the elevators to go to the 4th floor. The hospital was already buzzing with people. The nurses brought me back to the pre-procedure room quickly and started a heart monitor and an IV. I remember the nurse saying that she was injecting me with diazepam to make me sleepy. The next thing I remember is trying to stay asleep an hour or so later. Then, I was coughing a lot.

Dr. Rubin talked to me, but I was still groggy. She looked at the pile of bloody tissues on my lap and said that I had to stay I the hospital over the weekend. Other doctors explained that both of my lungs were bleeding, although my bronchial tubes were clear. My right lung is bleeding near the nodule; the doctors were pretty certain that the nodule caused the bleeding there. They weren't as sure of the cause of the bleeding in my left lung because it was beyond the range of the bronchoscope.

The doctors suggested radiation to the right lung might help the bleeding. The transportation team brought me directly to the radiation suite. I met Ken there and he helped calm my nerves. The radiation team gave me another CT scan and tattooed marks on my skin so that they could line me up in the exact same spot each time. After that, I waited with Ken for my turn in getting radiation. Finally, they wheeled me in and I lay on the table amid the green laser grid. The machine moved a few times and I focused on the music playing.

When I finished around 2pm, we came up to the 17th floor. Ken and I ate the sandwiches he brought. I was ravenous. More doctors visited me. A few said that I might be able to leave tomorrow after my second radiation if my hemoglobin levels are good. Dr. K., my radiation oncologist, will review my case on Monday and will decide whether I should have 10 or 15 radiation treatments. I am crossing my fingers to go home tomorrow. Either way, I will not be able to go to Magee to learn to walk with my prosthesis while I have outpatient radiation.

My roommate is an older woman who has been loudly talking on the phone almost the whole time I have been here. I know she is dealing with her illness and being in a hospital where she doesn't speak the language, but it's annoying. The room is too hot. I want to go home.

I am watching awful television about brides picking dresses for their weddings. I am enjoying watching the drama because their problems have solutions. It's gratifying to see the episodes end with everything happily resolved. Honestly, I am a little jealous.