The freeze and going to the emergency room

V

Vida May

Member
Good morning! I woke up in my own bed after 3 days in the hospital. I am so glad to be home and back on the internet.

I had to go to the hospital in an ambulance because I could not get into my frozen car and there were no taxis available. Our buses have been down since the freezing rain put a thick layer of ice on the roads. The man who cared for me in the ambulance was going on 20 hours with only two hours of sleep the day before.

Fortunately, the emergency room was almost empty so I got into a room fairly quickly. The next problem was nurses and doctors could not get to the hospital. Especially the nurses who lived far out of town could not come in. The doctor who ordered my test could not get to the hospital the next day because a utility pole was blocking the road connecting her with the city. We finished up with an explanation of test results and an explanation of how I should care for myself by phone. I had to endure a tube in my nose for many hours before she realized she would not be able to leave her neighborhood. Like all emergency trucks were overwhelmed with fallen trees and couldn't get from one problem to another fast enough.

I woke up this morning feeling thrilled to be home but also very vulnerable! Not only am I physically at risk if I eat the wrong thing, but this ice storm! OMG I don't think our transportation system has ever been so totally shut down before.

Thanks to the weather reports many of us stocked up on food. I was looking forward to enjoying the storm from the safety of my home with my fake fireplace, yummy food, and hot drinks. 😂 I have a lot of high-fiber perishable food that I can not eat and very little low-fiber food that I need for the next week. 😂 My safe and pleasant little world feels like a snow globe that has been badly shaken.
 

HoneyNut said:
Can you get a grocery store to deliver?

Sorry about your situation, it is scary when we can't travel safely.
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Nope, no deliveries until the roads improve, but right this minute there is sunshine! 🥳 I may be driving before dark.

A change sounds like a good thing but I am not so sure. We are going to get insanely warm for this time of year and this may be terrible! The ski resorts just got enough snow to open up and it will be tragic if it is melted too soon. Our farmers and the fisheries rely on melting snow and this year it looks like it can be melted away way too soon.

Mother Nature is experiencing menopause. 🤪
 
Perhaps a neighbor could share some foods that you can tolerate right now. I keep a very large pantry and do not mind helping my neighbors. Usually it is canned soups are broths, crackers, tea bags, things one might need if they are sick.
 
😂 Just tried to help Mother Nature set me free. The sunshine made me think I could clear a path to my car and perhaps get my key into the car door lock.

I grabbed the handle of my small shovel and tried to pull it free from the ice. That worked as well as an ant climbing up the leg of an elephant with the intention of rape.
 
Devi said:
@Vida May, that's obviously a trying situation. Where are you located — if in the U.S., what state or area?
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Eugene, Oregon and we doing good compared to Portland, Oregon which is north of us. Eugene is in the Willamette Valley the banana belt of usually pleasant weather year-round.

My son is in Eastern Oregon where there is extreme weather winter and summer and he rides a bicycle to work. I just bought him a sweatshirt with batteries and heat panels and I am praying he stays alive. I am afraid to call him because I don't want to hear anything that intensifies my fear for his life. I have heard he is finally considering getting a car. That is not perfect protection on bad roads but it is better protection than a bicycle.
 
Blessed said:
Perhaps a neighbor could share some foods that you can tolerate right now. I keep a very large pantry and do not mind helping my neighbors. Usually it is canned soups are broths, crackers, tea bags, things one might need if they are sick.
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Thanks, I have a full pantry but that means canned foods. 🤮 You know, real emergency canned food. I am glad I have it but I never planned on having a low-fiber diet and I just bought all this really good fresh high-fiber food that I have to throw away.

For sure I am throwing out the high-fiber food that tastes much better to me because it is half of the reason I ended up in the hospital. Who ever heard of needing a low-fiber diet? But if one's bowels get blocked, a high-fiber diet can make that dam even worse and intensifies the gas which becomes very painful and dangerous.

I am doing much better than the gal at the hospital down the hall from me. She suffered for three days before going to the hospital and when she got there it was discovered her gallbladder had ruptured. Her delay in getting help could cost her her life. We old goats don't like getting help unless we really have to, but right now I am thinking we better accept needing help as a fact of life we should not ignore at our age. At our age, we are playing a different game and we need to make different moves.

Remember when we were kids and thinking those old people talking about their physical problems were being gross? We were never going to be like that! 😂
 
Vida May said:
Good morning! I woke up in my own bed after 3 days in the hospital. I am so glad to be home and back on the internet.

I had to go to the hospital in an ambulance because I could not get into my frozen car and there were no taxis available. Our buses have been down since the freezing rain put a thick layer of ice on the roads. The man who cared for me in the ambulance was going on 20 hours with only two hours of sleep the day before.

Fortunately, the emergency room was almost empty so I got into a room fairly quickly. The next problem was nurses and doctors could not get to the hospital. Especially the nurses who lived far out of town could not come in. The doctor who ordered my test could not get to the hospital the next day because a utility pole was blocking the road connecting her with the city. We finished up with an explanation of test results and an explanation of how I should care for myself by phone. I had to endure a tube in my nose for many hours before she realized she would not be able to leave her neighborhood. Like all emergency trucks were overwhelmed with fallen trees and couldn't get from one problem to another fast enough.

I woke up this morning feeling thrilled to be home but also very vulnerable! Not only am I physically at risk if I eat the wrong thing, but this ice storm! OMG I don't think our transportation system has ever been so totally shut down before.

Thanks to the weather reports many of us stocked up on food. I was looking forward to enjoying the storm from the safety of my home with my fake fireplace, yummy food, and hot drinks. 😂 I have a lot of high-fiber perishable food that I can not eat and very little low-fiber food that I need for the next week. 😂 My safe and pleasant little world feels like a snow globe that has been badly shaken.
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Sorry to hears this.... what an ordeal. I hope you heal quickly.
 
We know the facts know, we(I) thought it can't be that bad but the truth is sometimes it is more terrible than we knew. I have so many aches, pains and problems now it is overwhelming.

I am sure not the person I once was. I was always good at working, keeping house, taking care of others. Now, I feel lucky to get the bare minimum done aound here.

What type of foods are they wanting you to eat or diet they want you to follow? I am lucky I can eat what I want but there are certain things that bother me. I just avoid those. A lot of people are into eating only certain things. I do not deprive myself, it is one of the last things I can still enjoy. I quit smoking so there is no way I can give up good food. Everything in moderation.
 
Vida, glad you got the care you needed. Bowel obstruction can be fatal so I am so glad the ambulance made it to you. What a nightmare. I didn’t realize Oregon was having such horrible weather.
 
Blessed said:
We know the facts know, we(I) thought it can't be that bad but the truth is sometimes it is more terrible than we knew. I have so many aches, pains and problems now it is overwhelming.

I am sure not the person I once was. I was always good at working, keeping house, taking care of others. Now, I feel lucky to get the bare minimum done aound here.

What type of foods are they wanting you to eat or diet they want you to follow? I am lucky I can eat what I want but there are certain things that bother me. I just avoid those. A lot of people are into eating only certain things. I do not deprive myself, it is one of the last things I can still enjoy. I quit smoking so there is no way I can give up good food. Everything in moderation.
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I want to announce, I am beginning to feel safe and believe I will continue to do better. I am sure glad I work out in a gym with weights and swim. That has made everything in my life easier. However, it has not ended feeling like I have Rigor mortis every time I sit for more than 20 minutes. My back still hurts if I am on my legs too long so I use a walker. It is a strange combination of having a great physic and old age problems. This last bout with a gut problem kind of hit me hard psychologically. Like I really work at being healthy and got knocked down. That was frighting and dented my self-confidence.

A lot depends on how I eat. Hippocrates, an ancient Greek doctor, would not have treated me because I could have avoided the gut problem if I hadn't eaten seeds and nuts. But I love a handful of seeds and nuts and I tempt fate from time to time. As Hippocrates saw things, people who cause their own problem do not deserve medical care. There are things I should not eat, seeds, popcorn, and nuts.

Until 2 days ago, I never heard of a low-fiber diet because we are always told the benefits of a high-fiber diet. High fiber is just about every vegetable, fruit, and whole grain. Get this, you know all that white stuff we shouldn't eat, that is what is in a low-fiber diet. White bread, white rice, white pasta. In the long run, this low-fiber diet is bad for us so unless a doctor says to continue it, we change back to a high-fiber diet in a week or or two.

And Blessed, I studied gerontology, the science of aging at Oregon, University, and that education may be impressive, but now that I am in my later years I judge that education next to useless. Only those who never experienced being old could believe textbooks can teach the experience of our last years. If you ever need to be evaluated for services, the young thing who evaluates you will have a dictionary understanding of what you say, but not an understanding of the experience. If you or someone you know needs help, do not hesitate to bring in people to advocate for you. The last problem that has is asking for help is not the whole problem. It is as you say
the truth is sometimes is more terrible than we knew
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Not even the educated young people understand that.
 
Teacher Terry said:
Vida, glad you got the care you needed. Bowel obstruction can be fatal so I am so glad the ambulance made it to you. What a nightmare. I didn’t realize Oregon was having such horrible weather.
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Oh yeah! We have had a few bad storms but this last one is the worst in our history. I have enjoyed it because it is exciting and challenging. I am well equipped for the challenge and have a power pack in case the electricity goes out, winter clothes from dog walking days, things to slip over my shoes so I don't slide.

At least one of my clients, who is nearly blind, lost her electricity. My granddaughter with a very active 3 year old lost electricity but her home also has gas so she has what she needs, except she is using candles. Candles and an active 3-year-old can be a bad combination. My daughter who had to be on the job by 5 a.m. texted me that she made it to work safely.

We are well above freezing now and will stay above freezing. In fact, we are going into unusally high temperatures for this time of year. Everyone will enjoy the better weather, except those of us who know this is not good news. We will lose the snowpack in the mountains that we need for farmers and fisheries and putting out forest fires.
 

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