My recovery at home has been hindered by a serious and painful condition I have developed. It’s called proctalgia fugax. It’s a this is a condition where the muscle inside your anal sphincter spasms. It literally feels like you’re being stabbed. It turns out I’ve had this condition whole life, but attacks would occur only a few times a year and lasted only 10 or 20 seconds.
I had the first attack the day after I came back home. It continued for about eight excruciating days. Unfortunately Dr. Kirkwood was out of town, and there were no drugs available to alleviate the pain. The attacks were exacerbated by any kind of bowel movement or gas, so it diminished my desire to eat. It also made having visitors impossible – the pain would cause me to scream out loud.
This is also why my page hasn’t been updated in a while. I’ve been basically huddling on the couch for the last two weeks.
During breaks in the pain my appetite has been good. I’ve been desiring red meat again. One of the first big meals I ate was a delicious steak Deb Fink made along with husband Dave’s mashed potatoes. The condition seemed to alleviate by itself towards the end of the week. Which of course coincided wth my first visit with Dr. Kirkwood, fresh back from her camping trip. And of course, with her magical healing powers knew instantly how to alleviate my condition: a sublingual antispasmodic drug.
The visit with Dr. Kirkwood brought other good news. . Other than the proctalgia fugax my healing has fone exteremely well. I have only one tube left in my side, which removes fluids from the surgery site so that they don’t collect and abcess. This last tube will be removed in 4-6 weeks.
Apologies for the long delay in this posting. I’m still very week and dealing with the pain issues, but will be doing my best to keep you all updated and informed in a timely way. Thanks as always for your kind messages and thoughts. And to those of you who donated items for the auction and those who bid on them, thank you from the bottom of my heart. It means more than I can express.