Integritus Prime

So, I came back to the U.S. and everyone was saying, “Marilyn, you’re glowing.” I was, because I received puppy love, and a warm welcome from friends. Then, within four days of my arrival, I ended up in the ER with an alien in my left shin area. Let me explain.

It was a mild morning, and I was up early for errands. I came home and took a nap. I woke up with body aches and a fever, which quickly worsened. I suffered a bit because I’m not into taking medications. The next day when it got ridiculous, I resorted to Tylenol, and I noticed a red swelling the size of a quarter on my left lower shin, and pain all the way up to my left groin. I thought perhaps it was a bite, and some swollen lymph nodes.

By the next day the fever was raging on relentlessly, and the swelling was spreading, making my skin hurt, because well, shins don’t have room for skin expansion. Ouch.

We thought it might be deep vein thrombosis, which was a very scary idea. And I had developed a cough that made my back hurt. My friend Emily insisted we had to go to the ER. I went. It was about 2pm, April 4.

The triage nurse took my temperature: 103 F. She examined my leg and alleviated our fears, suggesting a less scary alternative: cellulitis. A skin infection. I’d never had one, and went to Google to understand more.

What happened next made me feel like a guinea pig, but it was very efficient and thorough: bloodwork, flu swab, urine sample, X-ray, ultrasound, and CT scan which made me feel like my vein would explode. Ruling out many other ailments, the diagnosis of cellulitis was confirmed. While all this was happening, the swelling was spreading, and the red hotness was worsening.

The nurse practitioner told me I would be hospitalized. I was a combination of dismayed and relieved. I was very weak from a few days of fever, and then I found out my blood potassium levels had plummeted.

I surrendered, allowing everyone around me to take care of me. Emily was an angel, bringing me food (which I threw up because of a bazillion drugs in me), and my toothbrush and other supplies. The UCSF staff was wonderful, slowing down the IV because it hurt what they called my “tiny vein.” 

I was peeing every hour because of the IV, and my leg hurt and cramped so they wheeled me in a contraption called Sara Stedy. It allows you to stand or sit and even in my sore stupor I found the transport device quite charming.

I was given antibiotics – a total of five types – intravenously, along with 4 bags of potassium and some saline. The IV fluids took all night and morning. As soon as my dehydration eased, the cough disappeared. Yay!

However, at 6.30am, the night nurse examined me and announced that the swelling was the same based on markings the day nurse had made. I started to feel nervous. I was so weak from being up all night. It felt like there was a baby alien in me, using me as a host, and it might burst, screaming, through my skin at any moment. Cue the Aliens franchise.

What was I to do? I decided to call it Alien Leg Syndrome. Cellulitis doesn’t sound dangerous enough, ha!

My main thought was: I am not in control of my wellness right now, and I don’t know what will happen next. But, I have people around me who do know what to do, and a friend by my side who loves me, so I’ll probably be fine in the end.

Stay tuned to find out what happened in Part II next week.

I was given a mask because of my dry cough.