PA 14: Bad News Travels Fast?
Saying goodbye to the various nurses, doctors and other hospital staff who had spent the last few months looking after me was actually quite emotional. Perhaps because of the small team that worked in the unit I had been kept in, we had all gotten to know each other very well.
PA 13: What Happens Next?
I was starting to feel a whole lot more human again and although I was still being monitored for several things (I can’t remember what they were and am not absolutely sure I knew even back then), my doctors were very happy with the progress that was being made…
PA 12: All Eyes On Me
One thing I was allowed to do now that I was making progress in my recovery, was go out into the real world. That didn’t mean a quick breath of cold air by the doorway of the hotel or a roll around the hospital grounds but actually out into the city…
PA 11: One Small Step
After weeks of lying in bed, the freedom of getting in a wheelchair had been one of the greatest feelings I’d had in a very long time. However, this had simply been a stepping stone, something to keep me moving forwards until I was ready for what came next…
PA 10: The Most Wonderful Time
At the beginning of December of 2012, I had the faintest hope that I might actually be out of the hospital and home for Christmas day. This was despite almost every single person I spoke to telling me it was very unlikely…
PA 9: In The Neck Of Time (Part 2)
There I lay, my face covered with a large green sheet and warm fluid flowing uncomfortably freely from my neck. For a brief moment I though to myself, “Oh come on, I’ve just survived a major infection, open heart surgery, a surprise amputation, kidney failure and now a tiny cut in my neck is going…
PA 8: In The Neck Of Time (Part 1)
You may think the most unpleasant thing I experienced during my hospital recovery was the pain of a cracked open chest, or perhaps the discomfort of the phantom menace. Maybe it wasn’t something physical, the trauma of waking to find yourself short a limb can be fairly unpleasant.
However…
PA 7: Rolling Along
I wasn’t aware until several weeks after waking up that during my long nap in the intensive care unit, an epic battle of wills had taken place over my unconscious body…
PA 6: The Phantom Menace
I had been asked while in the ICU if I was experiencing any pain where my leg had been. To my shame I had never heard of this side effect of amputation and so, though it was a very strange thing to ask. I shrugged off the suggestion and said that I couldn’t feel a…
PA 5: The Pod People
I remember the new snow I saw falling outside my hospital room window, it was actually the first thing I posted about on Facebook after the amputation, much to the surprise and amusement of some of my friends. However, beautiful as those glittering flakes were to my tired eyes, they also…
PA 4: A Room Near The Door
Being in intensive care is not what you might call a fun experience. High emotion and worry oozes from the walls and you can see the stress on the face of every nurse, doctor and family member who walks through the heavy white doors. Following previous procedures I had been quickly moved from the ICU,…
PA 3: Just a Wee Problem
Originally, my surgery was supposed to last a mere six hours but ended up stretching to almost twenty. Such a long time under the knife can have unpleasant effects, not just around the area that is being operated upon but over the whole body…
PA 2: When Might it be Appropriate to Start Calling Him Hoppy?
The first few days after waking up to find my leg had been amputated were surreal. I wasn’t really getting my head around it properly and only ever acknowledged what had happened to make a few jokes. Eventually though, the time came to lift the sheets…
PA 1: Gotta Start Somewhere
Lost limbs, broken hearts, a daring rescue and the resurrection of an old friend. When I was trying to think of what to call the first post on this blog (which has taken far longer than I hope writing the rest of it will), I kept flicking through titles in my head like it was…