MAR 28, 17 .. A DICHOTOMY .. TODAY IS ONE MIXED-BAG FOR ME ..

This Post is for mature adults. It is not for children. It is a very long Post in terms of text writing. There is one photo that shows blood. In short, this is a Post for those who truly care.

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I hear from you, you who are following along here, one constant refrain:

“But Cap? How are you really doing?” .. “Please stop telling us you are ‘Doing one-day-at-a-time.’ and ‘It-is-a-process not-an-event.’ ”

Well Sports Fans here we go loop de loop ..

On December the 13th 2016 .. I wrote a long Post about blood clots. You can read the Post in full by clicking onto the below link or not read it. I will quote some of it below.

DEC 13, 16 .. BLOOD CLOTS ..

Helpful Hint : IF you do not want to read the below immediate, very long, writing .. Just skip ahead down to where I write the below words ..

Then for 90-days I will take one 20MG tablet of XARELTO daily.

In the Post of December the 13th, I wrote as follows:

This is one reason I am remiss about an update on my condition. I just don’t like thinking about nor talking about medical issues.

.. I went on to write ..

1. We as humans are full of blood.

2. Our bodies depend upon blood to sustain our lives.

3. When we begin to bleed, our bodies want to stop the bleeding.

4. To stop the bleeding, our bodies cause our blood to clot.

5. If we are really bleeding a lot (major surgery) our bodies really work to clot our blood.

6.  On occasion, clots break off and travel within our bodies. These traveling blood clots are extremely dangerous. If one of these blood clots reaches our brain, we risk a stroke, paralysis, even death.

Thursday, December 1st, 2016, I had hip replacement surgery.

All went well. I was released from the hospital late Saturday evening the 3rd.

Monday, the 5th of December, I noticed some pain in my upper right lung. Instantly I began to fear that I had caught a hospital borne lung infection. I have a life history of lung issues. The discomfort in my upper right lung continued into Tuesday the 6th. About 9PM Wednesday evening the 7th of December I said to Patti ..

“If I am developing pneumonia in my right lung we’d better get to the hospital. I don’t want to give it a full night to begin its deadly process of settling into my lung and getting worse.”

Patti called the hospital. We were told come into the Emergency Room (ER) immediately.

We got to the ER about 9:30PM.

Great news. After my initial ER entry screening, my temperature was normal. My lungs were clear. All of my vitals were great.

I was thrilled. Patti was silent.

Two hours later, I saw my ER Doctor. MORE great news. My temperature was still normal. My lungs? Clear as bells. No signs of pneumonia. I thought I had just strained muscles in my upper right back from getting into and out of our truck. My Doctor pushed and prodded and did all he could do to make me flinch. No luck. I did not grimace nor flinch even once as he tried to prove my thesis.

My Doctor said, “I want a CAT Scan of your lungs. This is not good.”

A CAT Scan was performed. The discomfort I was feeling was NOT from pneumonia.

In the days following my surgery, I had two small clots travel and take up residence in my right lung. So, one week after my hip replacement, with pain in my right lung that I thought might be the onset of pneumonia, I was in the ER for more medical stuff. The CAT Scan confirmed clots in my lung. They immediately started me on an IV of the blood thinner Heparin. At 7AM in the morning of Thursday December the 8th, after all night in the ER, I was admitted to Mayo again.

Can any of you imagine how exhausting all night in the ER is?

Once in my room they immediately performed a detailed, 30-minute ultra sound examination of my surgery leg to make sure there were no blood clots in my leg. I have experienced several ultra sound exams in my life. This was the first one that really bothered me. Deep pushing and prodding into my leg from crotch to ankles. It hurt.

After a discussion with a Doctor, I was prescribed a regimen of ..

One 15MG tablet of XARELTO (RIVAROXABAN) orally twice a day for 21-days.

Then for 90-days I will take one 20MG tablet of XARELTO daily.

They kept me under observation all day and released me last Thursday evening the 8th of December.

Yesterday, I saw my internal medicine Doctor for a very satisfying, one-hour visit in which he answered all of our many questions.

I am walking very well with a walker. My gait is strong. The nights are very long. One bothersome side effect of my XARELTO is itchy skin. Often I get up around 4AM and bathe from my waist up to the top of my head. Patti and I then rub restoraderm, a special Cetaphil body lotion, into my cool moist skin. I will then walk awhile here in the hotel. When back in bed, I then tend to sleep very well.

Then for 90-days I will take one 20MG tablet of XARELTO daily

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Today, Tuesday the 28th of March 2017, is my ninetieth day (90th) on the blood thinner Xarelto.

Hot Dog !!

Free-At-Last .. Today I will take my last Xarelto 20mg tablet and I will be Free-At-Last from the issues associated with blood thinners.

Ah Yes BUT BUT BUT .. I  have a terrible Dichotomy in my mind.

DICHOTOMY .. division into two mutually exclusive, opposed, or contradictory groups: a dichotomy between thought and action.

A week or so ago, I began Patti’s day by calmly saying to Patti ..

“Last night I either had a small heart attack or a TIA.”

“Captain what on this good earth is a TIA.”

“Oh I am so happy that you asked me what a TIA is.”

Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA) – American Stroke Association
www.strokeassociation.org/.. A TIA is a temporary blockage of blood flow to the brain. .. TIAs are often labeled “mini-strokes,” because they can be relatively benign in terms of immediate consequences. .. etc et al

My DICHOTOMY is simply this :

1. Lord God In Heaven Above! I have eagerly waited for this day since December the 8th 2016 when I went on Xarelto. Tomorrow I am Free-At-Last. Each and every single bothersome and aggravating side-effect of Xarelto will now hopefully end.

Side effect? One rather bothersome side effect of a blood thinner is that, in-your-sleep, you can bleed-out! You can quietly die-dead from uncontrolled internal bleeding.

One night last December I awoke from a sound sleep and I snuffed my nose. Then, for reasons I have absolutely no explanation for, instead of swallowing what I sniffed up, I went to the sink and spit it out. I was experiencing uncontrolled internal bleeding that had, fortunately, clotted and stopped.

After I awakened her, Patti nearly freaked-out when I showed the above to her.

These past few days I have again experienced some more internal bleeding from the area of my nose and sinus cavities.

I have to watch each and every food chewing movement of my jaws because sometimes I bite my tongue or insides of my mouth / cheeks and begin to bleed.

I want to be free of this blood-thinner drama.

2. Lord God In Heaven Above! I am terrified that IF I discontinue Xarelto I will suffer a real serious stroke not just a TIA!

Patti and others have suggested that I had best go back to the Mayo Clinic and discuss this with a doctor.

Excellent, Exceptional, Caring Advice.

What am I going to do?

1. I have successfully completed the prescribed regimen of Xarelto. I am going to STOP the Xarelto tomorrow as advised by my doctor, who does not know about my fear of having had a TIA, and take-my-chances. He said I do not need to taper-off the Xarelto.

2. I have decided NOT to, at this time, go back to Mayo Clinic and involve myself in the never-ending sequence of medical processes.

Wish us luck. Patti and me. Both of us are involved in this and each of us will suffer whatever consequences may occur.

Sign us .. Hoping for nothing but the very best results ..

Cap and Patti ..

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