Sorry It has been a couple of days. Not much happens at the hospital on the weekends. Clay has been receiving a medication called DHE through his IV. He received 9 doses of it over the past 2 and a half days. It is supposed to help break the migraine cycle. His headache has not dipped below a level 7 on the pain scale 0-10. Last night when we left it had ramped back up to a 9. Now they are alternating between giving him magnesium and depacon through his IV every 6 hours. He had received two treatments by the time we left last night. I haven't spoken with him this morning to see if he is feeling any better. He hasn't been sleeping well, so we found out through some other long time Diamond Headache Clinic-ers to ask for something called the triple shot. I don't know if he got that last night or not, but his doctor did change his sleeping medication, so hopefully he received more rest last night.
Today we start one of his long-term preventative medications Emsam. It is an MAOI in a patch form. Hopefully his skin and body will tolerate it. He will have to be careful about not eating foods with tyramine in them because it can cause a severe reaction with the medication. Please pray for his liver. The doctor told him yesterday morning that his liver enzymes were elevated. We don't know what it is from yet, so they are doing more tests. More than likely it is from a medication he is taking. This is not the first time his liver enzymes have been elevated. We corrected it last time with diet changes. Pray he makes good dietary choices!
Overall he is doing well. Time seems to crawl by in the hospital. There is a patient lounge we hang out in and do puzzles and talk with other patients. Clay's floor is dedicated to just headache patients. It is oddly comforting to meet other people who have gone through and are dealing with the same issues we are. You do not ask these patients whether or not they have headaches... you assume they do and ask what "level" they are at, meaning pain level. It breaks my heart and the Lord has lead me to be more diligent in prayer not only for Clay but for Jeff, Joy, Emily, and a little 14 year-old girl whose name I can not remember. We met Jeff the first day we were at the hospital. He is going on day 12. He is 10 years older than Clay, but they have a lot in common. He is a contractor and hasn't been able to work for 6 months just as Clay has not been able to. His situation is harder than ours in that he has 4 children, no insurance, and has more difficult headaches to control (Chronic Cluster Headaches). Please pray for him and his family. He is so nice and has been reaching out to Clay and us. He shared his deep dish Chicago pizza the first night with Clay since the hospital food is so yummy.
It has been therapeutic for me to be at the hospital and talk with some of these people to see how their families cope. For some patients this is their 2nd or 3rd time to be at the hospital. I am realizing that this whole experience is teaching Clay and I how we will manage his migraines. It might not get rid of them, but hopefully we can manage them better than they have been. It seems as if the doctors will send people home with maintenance plans and when those are not working the patient will come back to the hospital to get the migraine under control again, change the plan and then go home. So we might be looking at a long term relationship with Chicago. Perhaps we will have to purchase a second home! :) ha ha
Ok, I am off to take a taxi cab BY MYSELF to meet a good friend who was in our wedding, and I don't think I've seen her since then, so I am thankful for this opportunity. We are taking her son to wiggle worms, whatever that is. Oh how I wish my days were full of going to wiggle worms, changing diapers, and worrying about what to cook for dinner! Perhaps with this headache clinic all those things will be on the horizon! yikes
sarah