Patrick Kane's family have decided not to have his body examined and they ruled his death as an "accidental drowning." For selfish reasons I was hoping they would do an autopsy but I guess we will never know. It's scary to think that he could have gone out in the water and on the second half of the swim swallowed a big gulp of sea water and drowned. I pray that the family is comforted by their decision and they can begin the hard process of moving on with their lives.
http://www.newsherald.com/headlines/article.display.php?id=2005
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Saturday, May 10, 2008
1/2 Ironman Finisher!!!
Hooray for Phillip! We are so proud of you!!! He had a great race finishing an astounding 6 hours and 40 minutes! He is safe, alive and very very sore. Thank you Lord for keeping him safe and head smart today. Your perserverance is admirable. When you want something bad enough you'll go for it. You've got it!
Until the next race...
Until the next race...
Update #3
At 10:45am we saw Phillip coming in from the bike ride! He's alive! Thank the Lord! (Not that I had any doubt that he wouldn't be.) He told me that the bike would probably take 3 hours so he's looking good coming in at well under 3 hours. Let's see how the run turns out. The haze is lifting and the blue skies are peeking through so it's going to be a tough one running in the blazing heat with the sun beating down on you. Let's hope and pray no one has a heat stroke.
We came up to get our bathing suits on and we are going to go down and watch Phillip finish the run and go have some fun!
**No update on the guy from this morning. I'm going to try and ask some of the medics that are hanging around if they have any word.**
We came up to get our bathing suits on and we are going to go down and watch Phillip finish the run and go have some fun!
**No update on the guy from this morning. I'm going to try and ask some of the medics that are hanging around if they have any word.**
1/2 Ironman Update #2
I feel horrible for not seeing him off as the bullhorns raided this morning but I would be with him in thoughts and prayers overseeing from the comforts of our condo and Emma still snoozing in the bed.
As I'm watching all of the sudden it catches my eye that they are pulling people out of the water left and right. All right, this triathlon thing is starting to scare me. In my hyper-hormonal state that I am currently in, (I am ashamed to admit the following.) I look (mind you I where glasses to see distances and they are currently not on my face) and see someone being pulled in behind a kayak! I squint to get a closer look. He did get up from the kayak and walk with a limp down the beach in a yellow cap, sleeveless wetsuit, he unzips, red gear underneath. I literally freak out, run inside, grab Emma and run out to the beach searching frantically for Phillip. No where in site can I see him.
What am I thinking? He's a strong swimmer and this is his best event. There's no way it was him. He would not give up. I look at the clock and he still has 10 minutes until he should make it to shore. We will stay by the ropes and cheer the other on as they come out of the water.
**Before you read the next paragraph you should no before hand that this guy was NOT Phillip**
All of the sudden to my left I see a jet ski race up to the beach carrying someone on the back. UNCONCIOUS! A team of paramedics rush over and immediately start CPR on the guy. They literally worked on him for 5 minutes put the tube down his throat continuing compressions and NOTHING! The man's wife or girlfriend found that he belonged to her and she started freaking out. The whole time I was holding Emma crying my eyes out and praying for the guy. I hadn't seen Phillip come out of the water yet so I was starting to freak out again. They were continuing to pull others onto shore that had given up. I hit my knees in the sand and just prayed. They finally put him on the ATV and took him to the ambulance to try and revive him. This guy was the picture of a triathlete. Slim and trim and in good shape. How could this have happened to him?
I was bound and determined to stand by the fence and wait until I saw him run onto the shore and into transition.
I never saw him come out of transition. He probably came out of the water when I was watching this man die on the beach. It'll be a great day when we see him. We are going down now to see if we can find his bike and then wait for him to finish the run. I'll update later.
As I'm watching all of the sudden it catches my eye that they are pulling people out of the water left and right. All right, this triathlon thing is starting to scare me. In my hyper-hormonal state that I am currently in, (I am ashamed to admit the following.) I look (mind you I where glasses to see distances and they are currently not on my face) and see someone being pulled in behind a kayak! I squint to get a closer look. He did get up from the kayak and walk with a limp down the beach in a yellow cap, sleeveless wetsuit, he unzips, red gear underneath. I literally freak out, run inside, grab Emma and run out to the beach searching frantically for Phillip. No where in site can I see him.
What am I thinking? He's a strong swimmer and this is his best event. There's no way it was him. He would not give up. I look at the clock and he still has 10 minutes until he should make it to shore. We will stay by the ropes and cheer the other on as they come out of the water.
**Before you read the next paragraph you should no before hand that this guy was NOT Phillip**
All of the sudden to my left I see a jet ski race up to the beach carrying someone on the back. UNCONCIOUS! A team of paramedics rush over and immediately start CPR on the guy. They literally worked on him for 5 minutes put the tube down his throat continuing compressions and NOTHING! The man's wife or girlfriend found that he belonged to her and she started freaking out. The whole time I was holding Emma crying my eyes out and praying for the guy. I hadn't seen Phillip come out of the water yet so I was starting to freak out again. They were continuing to pull others onto shore that had given up. I hit my knees in the sand and just prayed. They finally put him on the ATV and took him to the ambulance to try and revive him. This guy was the picture of a triathlete. Slim and trim and in good shape. How could this have happened to him?
I was bound and determined to stand by the fence and wait until I saw him run onto the shore and into transition.
I never saw him come out of transition. He probably came out of the water when I was watching this man die on the beach. It'll be a great day when we see him. We are going down now to see if we can find his bike and then wait for him to finish the run. I'll update later.
1/2 Ironman
It's 6:45am and I'm lounging on my 12th floor balcony overlooking the beautiful (actually hazy) Gulf of Mexico. What am I doing up so early and what are we doing at Panama City Beach you ask? Phillip's doing the 1/2 Ironman Triathlon. Nuts? Yes! I'm beaming with pride and full of emotion as I sit here watching thousands of maniacs swimming half a mile out in "red flag" currents and turning around to swim the 1/2 mile back in. It's hazy so you can hardly see the buoys at the 1/2 mile mark. There are rescue boats, kayaks and canoes patroling the waters for people that need rescueing or just need to hang on the side for a quick break (no penalties for that.)
What I like about this sport is that it is generally a sport where you compete against yourself. But this weekend seems to be a bit testosterone filled even though there are many women around doing the race too. I should usually fit right in with my high testosterone levels and all but not today. I am estrogen filled.
What I like about this sport is that it is generally a sport where you compete against yourself. But this weekend seems to be a bit testosterone filled even though there are many women around doing the race too. I should usually fit right in with my high testosterone levels and all but not today. I am estrogen filled.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
The Power of Positive Thinking
Isn't amazing how you can be so positive and excited about something and then someone comes in with one sentence and rains on your parade. The power of positive thinking may not actually "make" things happen but it sure makes the process of waiting that much easier. It's a lot more pleasant to think happy thoughts then walk around with a cloud above your head.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Sorry...
It's been almost a month since I've last posted. I would have given up on me if I was on the other checking my blog for updates. But here I am again and still alive and thriving. Well I don't know about thriving but alive none the less. It seems these days I trade one illness or complication for another.
It's been a month since my endoscopy and life's been good. Virtually pain free except for the annoying diarreah (sorry so intimate) which comes on out of nowhere, cramping beyond comprehension and will last until I take my medicine which relieves it all together. Skip to the next paragraph if you don't like me getting graphic. It gets so bad that I know have two hemorrhoids (one which is from two years ago when I had Emma.) I cramp so bad that I feel like my buns could fall off. It's just not right.
So I go back May 13th for a follow-up. I did have to call one time last week to have Dr. L switch my medicine up because my stomach was starting to ache again and I knew I just couldn't go there again. I don't know if the medicine was starting not to work anymore or that stress brought it back on???
Let's talk about stress for a moment. I believe my stomach issues came on due to the intense stress we were dealing with back in Jan/Feb with Phillip's job loss. I was strong on the outside and for the most part on the inside but whenever I happened to be away from home I would loose it and get upset. I internalized all of it because I needed to be strong for him and support him. What good would it have done if I cried and boohooed everyday? Wouldn't have gotten him a job any faster and sure wouldn't have made the days go by any quicker. I knew in my heart that God had a plan for us but it's still hard seeing your husband hurt.
So once we got things under control with medicine life's been great! I've actually shed a few pounds, I'm not as bloated as I once was and at night I don't sweat through my night shirts.
Stress does crazy things to your body. A week ago I was having sleepless nights lying awake with things very heavy on my heart. One night turned into several nights. A cranky Ashley is not a very pleasant Ashley. Needless to say a combination of things were going on and my stomach started aching.
**Side Note** Since summer is approaching our activities have ended for the summer. So we've had to be creative in how we spend our days. I started cutting the grass for Phillip every Friday so that we have several more hours on the weekends to spend together as a family. We'll cutting the grass has kicked my allergies into high gear. I can only take the red sudafed to clear me up. Well this has sent my heart rate into the sky. So now I've stopped the sudafed and deciding whether I should cut the grass again. I do not need to add Hypertension to my list of ailments.
Anyways, Dr. L has switched my medicine and we are going to see how this works out. Right now it makes my a bit sick to my stomach for about 30 minutes and then goes away. I'm working on getting back to the gym 3 days a week to try and prepare my body to try and get pregnant soon. I'll write more later. I promise. :)
It's been a month since my endoscopy and life's been good. Virtually pain free except for the annoying diarreah (sorry so intimate) which comes on out of nowhere, cramping beyond comprehension and will last until I take my medicine which relieves it all together. Skip to the next paragraph if you don't like me getting graphic. It gets so bad that I know have two hemorrhoids (one which is from two years ago when I had Emma.) I cramp so bad that I feel like my buns could fall off. It's just not right.
So I go back May 13th for a follow-up. I did have to call one time last week to have Dr. L switch my medicine up because my stomach was starting to ache again and I knew I just couldn't go there again. I don't know if the medicine was starting not to work anymore or that stress brought it back on???
Let's talk about stress for a moment. I believe my stomach issues came on due to the intense stress we were dealing with back in Jan/Feb with Phillip's job loss. I was strong on the outside and for the most part on the inside but whenever I happened to be away from home I would loose it and get upset. I internalized all of it because I needed to be strong for him and support him. What good would it have done if I cried and boohooed everyday? Wouldn't have gotten him a job any faster and sure wouldn't have made the days go by any quicker. I knew in my heart that God had a plan for us but it's still hard seeing your husband hurt.
So once we got things under control with medicine life's been great! I've actually shed a few pounds, I'm not as bloated as I once was and at night I don't sweat through my night shirts.
Stress does crazy things to your body. A week ago I was having sleepless nights lying awake with things very heavy on my heart. One night turned into several nights. A cranky Ashley is not a very pleasant Ashley. Needless to say a combination of things were going on and my stomach started aching.
**Side Note** Since summer is approaching our activities have ended for the summer. So we've had to be creative in how we spend our days. I started cutting the grass for Phillip every Friday so that we have several more hours on the weekends to spend together as a family. We'll cutting the grass has kicked my allergies into high gear. I can only take the red sudafed to clear me up. Well this has sent my heart rate into the sky. So now I've stopped the sudafed and deciding whether I should cut the grass again. I do not need to add Hypertension to my list of ailments.
Anyways, Dr. L has switched my medicine and we are going to see how this works out. Right now it makes my a bit sick to my stomach for about 30 minutes and then goes away. I'm working on getting back to the gym 3 days a week to try and prepare my body to try and get pregnant soon. I'll write more later. I promise. :)
Friday, April 4, 2008
Endoscopy
Yesterday I had my endoscopy done. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and I was actually looking forward to it in a weird sort of way. When I had my colonoscopy done I didn't get to fully take advantage of the great sleep afterwards. I knew this time what I had to look forward to so I had my hopes up. Since having Emma I haven't had a great night sleep.
Phillip was with me today so I got the priveledge of walking him through everything and where to go. I felt like such a pro knowing the in's and out's of the building. (Last time my Mom took me.) So we sat and talked for about 45 minutes until they called me back. They prepped me for the iv which was the part I was dreading. With all of the test I've had lately my poor arms look like blue, black and brown pin cushions. She decided to pick a new place of torture which was my hand! Last time they put an IV in my hand it looked like I came across a brick wall and I wasn't the one who won. They let me keep on my clothes which felt like I hit the jackpot. I was hoping to sport some blue paper pants or shirt this go round. I laid up on the table and waited in the hallway until they were ready to roll me into the procedure room.
They should really think about knocking the patient out before they wheel you in the procedure room. You get to see all of the beeping machines, tools, rubber gloves, towels, needles, tape and stuff I want to forget about. I'm normally a fairly quiet person. I like to sit back and take everything in and then speak when I have something important to say. I realized that when I'm nervous I become "Chatty Cathy." I start chatting the nurse up and asking her all kinds of questions. I was slightly disappointed that my nurses from the colonoscopy weren't tending to my room today. They were really nice and funny and put me at ease. The nurses this go round were on the quiet side. As I was waiting there waiting for them to get started one of the nurses walks by with this thing in her hands which I assume was my endoscope. It was not small or short! Then she comes over and puts a towel under my head and chest (I'm guessing it was for any mess I made) then she lays this plastic piece next to my mouth that had a hole in the middle of it. I could only guess that they would tape this to my face, put it in my mouth and insert the tubes. Not pleasant thoughts as your about to go to sleep. I've come up with this game I play when they give you the Demoral (hopefully I spelt that right) to make you go to sleep. I see how long I can stay awake. Sort of like fighting the medicine. It's so stupid but it entertains me for the 5 seconds I get to play. I made small talk with the nurse the first time to see how long I could talk and this time was spent reading the letters on the rubber glove box and watching them get blurrier by the second. Next thing I know I was being wheeled out to the car and whisked away to sleepy land at home.
I actually got to sleep from 12-5 and then went back to bed at 8:30 for the night! My nurse (Phillip) and Emma were busy during this time making me a special card cut out with butterflies, clouds and flowers. Emma ran into our room and over to my side and said, "Mommy, wake up!" It was the cutest card ever! I am the luckiest patient ever!
So the results of the test yesterday were that I have mild Gastritis with IBS. (irritable bowel syndrome) According to eMedicine this is what Gastritis is:
In people who have gastritis symptoms, pain or discomfort in the upper abdomen is the most common.
The pain is usually in the upper central portion of the abdomen (the "pit" of the stomach).
Gastritis pain occurs in the left upper portion of the abdomen and in the back. The pain seems to "go right straight through" a person as it travels from the belly to the back.
People often use the terms burning, aching, gnawing, or sore to describe the pain. Usually, a vague sense of discomfort is present, but the pain may be sharp, stabbing, or cutting.
Other symptoms of gastritis include the following:
Belching: Belching usually either does not relieve the pain or relieves it only briefly.
Nausea and vomiting: The vomit may be clear, green or yellow, blood-streaked, or completely bloody, depending on the severity of the stomach inflammation.
Bloating
Feeling of fullness or burning in the upper part of the belly
In more severe gastritis, bleeding may occur inside the stomach. Any of the following symptoms can be seen as well as those already mentioned.
Pallor, sweating, and rapid (or "racing") heart beat.
Feeling faint or short of breath
Chest pain or severe stomach pain
Vomiting large amounts of blood
Bloody bowel movements or dark, sticky, very foul-smelling bowel movements
So I have two new medicines to add to my cabinet. One for pain and one for the diarrhea and cramping. I also have to start eating Activia yogurt. I'm not a yogurt fan but I will try and force it down. It'll be good for my urinary tract and the fact that I have cystitis also. I have to go back and see Dr. L in one month and then go from there. Hopefully I can get this thing under control. Hopefully I'm done with having any issues for a good while. We'll see.
P.S. If you ever have to have an endoscopy done, do not worry. It's not bad at all and I didn't even have a sore throat afterwards!
Phillip was with me today so I got the priveledge of walking him through everything and where to go. I felt like such a pro knowing the in's and out's of the building. (Last time my Mom took me.) So we sat and talked for about 45 minutes until they called me back. They prepped me for the iv which was the part I was dreading. With all of the test I've had lately my poor arms look like blue, black and brown pin cushions. She decided to pick a new place of torture which was my hand! Last time they put an IV in my hand it looked like I came across a brick wall and I wasn't the one who won. They let me keep on my clothes which felt like I hit the jackpot. I was hoping to sport some blue paper pants or shirt this go round. I laid up on the table and waited in the hallway until they were ready to roll me into the procedure room.
They should really think about knocking the patient out before they wheel you in the procedure room. You get to see all of the beeping machines, tools, rubber gloves, towels, needles, tape and stuff I want to forget about. I'm normally a fairly quiet person. I like to sit back and take everything in and then speak when I have something important to say. I realized that when I'm nervous I become "Chatty Cathy." I start chatting the nurse up and asking her all kinds of questions. I was slightly disappointed that my nurses from the colonoscopy weren't tending to my room today. They were really nice and funny and put me at ease. The nurses this go round were on the quiet side. As I was waiting there waiting for them to get started one of the nurses walks by with this thing in her hands which I assume was my endoscope. It was not small or short! Then she comes over and puts a towel under my head and chest (I'm guessing it was for any mess I made) then she lays this plastic piece next to my mouth that had a hole in the middle of it. I could only guess that they would tape this to my face, put it in my mouth and insert the tubes. Not pleasant thoughts as your about to go to sleep. I've come up with this game I play when they give you the Demoral (hopefully I spelt that right) to make you go to sleep. I see how long I can stay awake. Sort of like fighting the medicine. It's so stupid but it entertains me for the 5 seconds I get to play. I made small talk with the nurse the first time to see how long I could talk and this time was spent reading the letters on the rubber glove box and watching them get blurrier by the second. Next thing I know I was being wheeled out to the car and whisked away to sleepy land at home.
I actually got to sleep from 12-5 and then went back to bed at 8:30 for the night! My nurse (Phillip) and Emma were busy during this time making me a special card cut out with butterflies, clouds and flowers. Emma ran into our room and over to my side and said, "Mommy, wake up!" It was the cutest card ever! I am the luckiest patient ever!
So the results of the test yesterday were that I have mild Gastritis with IBS. (irritable bowel syndrome) According to eMedicine this is what Gastritis is:
In people who have gastritis symptoms, pain or discomfort in the upper abdomen is the most common.
The pain is usually in the upper central portion of the abdomen (the "pit" of the stomach).
Gastritis pain occurs in the left upper portion of the abdomen and in the back. The pain seems to "go right straight through" a person as it travels from the belly to the back.
People often use the terms burning, aching, gnawing, or sore to describe the pain. Usually, a vague sense of discomfort is present, but the pain may be sharp, stabbing, or cutting.
Other symptoms of gastritis include the following:
Belching: Belching usually either does not relieve the pain or relieves it only briefly.
Nausea and vomiting: The vomit may be clear, green or yellow, blood-streaked, or completely bloody, depending on the severity of the stomach inflammation.
Bloating
Feeling of fullness or burning in the upper part of the belly
In more severe gastritis, bleeding may occur inside the stomach. Any of the following symptoms can be seen as well as those already mentioned.
Pallor, sweating, and rapid (or "racing") heart beat.
Feeling faint or short of breath
Chest pain or severe stomach pain
Vomiting large amounts of blood
Bloody bowel movements or dark, sticky, very foul-smelling bowel movements
So I have two new medicines to add to my cabinet. One for pain and one for the diarrhea and cramping. I also have to start eating Activia yogurt. I'm not a yogurt fan but I will try and force it down. It'll be good for my urinary tract and the fact that I have cystitis also. I have to go back and see Dr. L in one month and then go from there. Hopefully I can get this thing under control. Hopefully I'm done with having any issues for a good while. We'll see.
P.S. If you ever have to have an endoscopy done, do not worry. It's not bad at all and I didn't even have a sore throat afterwards!
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