Newbie Eve saying hi!

[penny_sparkle]

Hi everyone, I'm Eve from Nottingham. My partner suffered a SAH on 2 May 2013 and is currently being cared for brilliantly by the wonderful staff at the QMC NSPU ward. It's been a tough 8 days and a real rollercoaster of emotions so far.

He was very lucky and had surgery within hours of his collapse, and I can't describe in words the relief I felt when I was finally allowed to see him and he was smiling and chatting and seemed ok. Since then he's not got "worse", but he is definitely taking a long time to recover enough for them to feel comfortable to move him to a less dependant ward (originally they said he could be home by today).

Each day I go and visit he is incredibly tired and constantly feels sick. The nausea means he isn't really eating, although the carers are trying to encourage him to eat and he is still on a drip for fluids. I'm hopeful that over the next few days he will start to feel well enough to eat and sit up and maybe even get out of bed. I know I need to be patient and that recovery can take as little or as long as it takes, but I'm finding it quite exhausting trying to stay positive all the time. Bless all of you other carers / support / family / friends who have been doing this for much longer, it's really hard.

I'm so grateful to have found this site, it's helped me understand more about the condition and potential hurdles he will have to overcome on his road to recovery. Thanks for reading and I'm looking forward to chatting with you all!

[Louise]

Hi there, warm welcome to the site, glad you found us...

[Super Mario]

Welcome to BTG.

So pleased that you have found us and that the site appears to be giving you some understanding.

If you want to join in with friendly chat as well please join us in The Green Room.

[Daffodil]

Very warm welcome. The nausea feeling is horrible. I found that lemon barley water was quite good at quenching thirst and hiding the nausea a little in the early days. Send him best regards and get him to go really slow, the brain needs some gentle handling to heal.

Good they are taking things slow. Best to make sure that he's headed in the right direction. Eye mask and ear plugs are a help I found.

[goldfish.girl]

Hi Eve,

I remember being very off my food while I was in hospital. I had no appetite at all & was mostly just too tired to eat. Hopefully things will improve over the next few days.

Incidentally my son also had a brain operation 2 years ago, for a different reason & also would not eat for quite some time. He managed simple things like yoghurt or custard which often made him sick afterwards, unfortunately but at least he was eating a little. Have the hospital already tried foods like this? (I'm guessing they know what they are doing & have probably tried this already but thought it worth a mention, just in case).

The visits back & forth to hospital along with the very uncomfortable chairs for visitors to sit on can really take their toll. Try to look after yourself too & have some rest as much as you can in the circumstances.

Michelle

[Super Mario]

Further to Daff's post I found ginger ale, gone flat, very good for my nausea.

[MaryB]

Welcome to BTG & I am so glad you found this site so soon. I wish you both much luck and hope everything improves very quick. maryb

[Winb143]

Hope your partner gets well soon. chin up x

I was on drip feeding then my family came in and saw a yoghurt pot at my bedside, so they got me all things bad

for me like cakes.

My brother visited me and he isn't good at hospitals and loved ones being ill, I had too much to eat via my

hubby and daughter as they saw how thin I'd got, anyway I threw up over brother who said "Thanks Win I'll

eat it later" none of this I remember, but it made my family laugh.

First time they had laughed in an age.

Once more keep going and it is harder for our loved ones than us as I was not with it and do not remember

anything in hospital.

Good luck to you All

Regards

Win xx

[Skippy]

Hi there

Welcome to another Nottingham bod - me too.

I lost a stone in a week through not being able to eat when I was in the hospital - even the anti-sickness meds made me vomit!! As long as he's on the drip and is taking in fluid things should improve. He's in the best place he can be and recovery is a very individual thing. For the first two or three weeks I didn't know who had visited me at home or who I'd spoken to. Think of the injury as a broken leg and it taking time to heal - but the brain can't be put in a cast to rest it - its constantly at work so while the brain is recovering it tends to shut down on other "Unnecessary" things.

I know its hard to stay positive and upbeat, but try to when you're with your partner - its ok to cry and get frustrated - we all do at times.

Given time things will improve hun - glad you found us and I hope you get as much out of this site as I and many other have.

[penny_sparkle]

Hi everyone thank you for your lovely replies.

My partner was discharged from hospital last Monday and since he's been home he's recovering well. He hasn't had any anti-sickness medicine since Monday, and very few pain killers. He's still quite tired but who wouldn't be when you're up at 2am and 6am to take the tablets? Even I'm pretty shattered!

He is eating well and our of bed for most of the day now. We even went for a short walk today. I am so proud of him and so pleased at how well he appears to be recovering. I'm trying not to nag too much but am aware that I need to make sure he's not hiding any pain or symptoms, and also that he's drinking enough. I think we're both doing much better than I thought we would be a week ago.

The best thing is he has been off the cigarettes now for over 2 weeks! I really hope it sticks at it and does give up completely.

Thank you again for your replies.

[goldfish.girl]

Hi Penny,

Great to read your update. Isn't it amazing how much things can change so quickly in the early days

It's funny for me to read posts & remember things I have forgotten as time passes. Those 4 hourly medicines were a nightmare. I remember now that my sons' dad moved back in temporarily when I got home from hospital & had an alarm set for the meds through the night. I was never overly pleased to see him come into my bedroom with them & a glass of water!!! It's the little things that help at this stage - I only had to take those pills for 28 days & it was a much looked forward to goal to get to the last one. It won't be long until you are there too & looking forward to a good nights sleep is an important goal.

Short walks are great too. My sons walked with me along the short road I live in, mostly to keep me upright & help when people spoke to me as I wasn't able to communicate well at that point. It's only 14 houses & being able to walk past one further house in a short space time was also a great boost. It helps to mark these small improvements to reflect on during the days when you (or your partner) feel that progress is slow.

Michelle x

[Winb143]

Penny/Eve,

That is good news, I came home from hospital and could not even sit on bed without falling onto my daughter.

I remember finding it hard to keep my balance sitting up on my own was a problem for me.

Tell him to keep off them (Cigs) and tell him how nice he smells now lol

My hubby gave up drink as in early days he had to be sober as he never knew when hospital would call.

Get rest also Penny as we can be Bossy when getting better, Good Luck both xx Be Happy xx

Love

WinB143 xx

[Wem]

Hi Penny

Good to hear your partner is home and starting the long road to recovery. Ah, those medications that needed to be taken at regular times throughout the day and night!

I was not aware of it at the time, but I was on 2 hourly meds! I needed an army of volunteers when I came home to keep the tablets coming through the night. Seemingly the instructions on my discharge were to keep the meds going for a further week, reduce to every 4 hours and then stop taking them.

It was all too complicated for my poor brain to take in, and I had an inherent distrust of taking instructions from any non medical person (including my nearest and dearest), so my GP had to reiterate the instructions before I would accept any reduction! I am only now starting to appreciate what a pain I must have been to everyone!

Keep encouraging him, and never forget this is a marathon not a sprint......and don't forget to look after yourself in all of this.

Wem

[Shaun]

it sounds to me you doing everything right ,I had a sah last june ,fathers day to be precise and had mine clipped ...I was rushed to Southampton after surgery I spent along time in high dependacy to long then to ward all together 25 days in hospital..just knowing someone was there for me was great and my wife was and is my angel ,could not of got through it without her ..family are important just continue to do what you are doing it will all be ok ,,,,and defo do not be to hard on yourself and tell him not to be to hard on himself it all takes time ,,I am now nearly a year down the line and looking to return to my shift work now been a long time and even now I have effects like thirst ,funny tastes,headaches and the big one fatigue kind regards shaun