Friday March 30 2007

Lynn's Hollywood Episode

(If anyone knows anything to add, let me know o.k.?)

Friday morning it snowed about 3 inches, but was warm enough the snow wasn't sticking for long. (I will insert here that I hadn't been feeling quite like myself for a week or more, but nothing I could really complain about.) After lunch apparently I pulled on my pacs and went outside to take some pictures of what the day was like for the photo on the blog. I didn't put on my coat, which later seemed unusual to me - snowing and no coat? Either I was already loosing it, or thought I'd only be out there a few minutes. I had on a rather nice sweatshirt-weight lined velour jacket, sage color. Joe went out after lunch in the truck to get the mail. He said later when he came back I was leaning on the yard fence. He thought I was taking pictures of the horses. A bit later he was watching the ball game and said I was sitting on the front porch with my head in my hand. He thought he heard something several times, but it didn't register that anything might be wrong. After about 20 minutes of that (i.e. I usually don't sit around that way for long without moving) he decided he better check. He said I told him I was sick and mumbled things he couldn't hear and/or understand. He had me lay back and tried to pull me in through the door, and told me I was able to help him skooch me in. He got me in on the floor and the door shut. Guess I was able to warn Joe and he got a pan and I threw up and started to shake. He piled blankets on me and called the sheriff's department.

A sheriff was here in about 25 minutes (normally an hour drive) and the ambulance about 10 minutes behind him. He came ahead to let them know the way and where to turn. They got me in the ambulance. (Oh, this is awful when I know I'm quite a bit overweight to think how they kept having to lift me.) They said I was continuing to answer questions and talk, however I remember nothing. They took me in to the Pinedale Clinic Emergency Room. Joe followed with the dogs in his truck. His cousin James Thomas was there too. Joe said I talked to the medical people in the Clinic, but I don't remember a thing. They said the new doctor there, Dr. David Kappeman, was excellent and all the personnel were very efficient and taking great care of me - I know there were more, but Angels all - Peg, Amber, Jennie. Joe and James said they were very impressed with how coordinated and efficient the team there was. I don't know anything that happened there, but they decided I better go to the hospital (Pinedale doesn't have a hospital.) in case I had bleeding in the brain - assume? they must have known it wasn't a heart attack.

The weather was bad and the helicopter couldn't land in Pinedale, (I learned later) or couldn't have flown to Salt Lake City as well, so they decided on going to the Eastern Idaho Regional Hospital in Idaho Falls where they have a very good cardiac unit. They put me back in the ambulance and took me north through the Hoback and Snake River Canyons to Alpine on the border of Wyoming and Idaho. This is where I "woke up" for lack of a better description, somewhere in the canyon and had no knowledge of anything since morning. I tried but vaguely could only remember having fixed some lunch, not what we had. There was no siren on so that was reassuring.

It was exactly like waking up after a good sleep, coming out of blackness and into consciousness again. My first thought was "I guess I'm still here!" and right then knew since I was o.k. that I still had work to do here - and to me that meant that I should be more serious about my artwork than I have been lately. I had no feeling of fear or surprise to be in the ambulance. So after the fact, could I have had some kind of subconscious awareness of what was going on? I was doing a lot of praying about then and felt The Lord was with me for sure. One of the first things I thought of was oh my poor dogs. And the cats. I had an oxygen tube in my nose and an IV in my arm and perhaps they had put something in it to mellow me out and make me relax. Otherwise why wasn't I freaked out or had some fear or wanting to know what the heck was going on when I woke up, but no I didn't. It was quite a peaceful feeling. There was no siren on.

I remember talking to the EMT, Will? Gay, and he certainly put me at ease. I asked him if he was related to the bull rider Donny Gay and he said no, and not to anyone around Pinedale either. He told me we were going to Idaho Falls and that I would be taken there in a helicopter from Alpine. He asked me questions to see how lucid I was. It seemed to me I could answer everything he asked, I just didn't know what had happened or how I got there. Clueless. There was another EMT there too and the driver was a woman. I was kind of drifting in and out of awareness. There was a clock that said 5 something. They talked to the helicopter pilot about where they would be meeting. Could not see anything along the way, there was only a high window in the back door. The ride felt smooth and safe. I knew I didn't have any shoes on and wondered what happened to them. I remember feeling cold, but they had me wrapped up well.

They were all talking again about the helicopter landing in some parking lot where a semi-truck had to move out of the way. The helicopter was able to land there and they loaded me on. I knew that the Pinedale EMTs took all their "stuff" back. I was strapped onto a board and they put a helmet with earphones and a mike on my head - probably protection, but so we could hear each other if necessary. It felt just like MASH. The EMTs went in first and sat and my board and I were shoved in and they closed the door. It was a lot like being in a cozy cocoon. We lifted straight up, and I was surprised how smooth the whole trip was. I was completely relaxed. And as you can imagine I tried to look out a few times but they had me strapped down too low. I did manage to crane my neck and see Pallisades Reservoir, still half covered with ice and dark water, and then only the trees and snow on the mountain tops. Really irritated the heck out of me to get a helicopter ride and be in that position. And I did my darnedest to enjoy it as best I could.

I'm sure I drifted off again and by the time we got to the hospital I was in and out of awareness. It was dusk, and cloudy. Then I knew we were in the emergency room. They got me out of my clothes and began giving me all kinds of tests, also a catheter. I thought that was a good idea. Can't remember anything about the people bustling around me. What seemed like very quickly they were putting me into the MRI machine. Had no qualms about that at all, and think I even slept in there. They said it would take an hour. When I came out of the MRI, but still in the emergency room Joe, James and Kathy were there. I saw Joe but couldn't talk to him. And I noticed my velour jacket was on the floor under a chair. Someone might have said they had to cut it off of me. Drowsed off again.

Backtracking for explaination - I found out later James had the police scanner on at work and heard the ambulance going to our address - "67 year old woman seems to have had a stroke". He met Joe at the Pinedale Clinic, then after I was on my way they got Kathy and came back to the ranch. He knew it certainly wouldn't have been good for Joe to try to drive to Idaho Falls. They got the things we would need to stay away for a few days. Kathy very thoughtfully packed me clothes, shoes, pjs, robe, etc, my purse with insurance and credit cards, glasses, coat and my address book. They arranged for Charm to come and sit with the dogs and cats. I don't know yet how it happened that Sandra came and stayed the first night and Charm stayed the second, guess they worked it out between them. Joe also called our daughters in Vegas to let them know what was happening. At the same time Charm let other friends know. They left the ranch in Jim's truck, got some Subway sandwiches in Pinedale for their dinner, eating in the truck on the way and drove to Idaho Falls, which is about a five hour trip from the ranch. They had already been going several hours back and forth before that. I can't imagine what they went through.

I stayed in the emergency room for quite some time being monitored, and because there wasn't a room ready. A very nice Dr. Keller, he said like Helen Keller, explained that the MRI was very good and showed nothing. So no strokes or bleeding. I was alert enough for that to all register. (I assume if there had been tumors or anything else there he would have found that too, so my brain is fine.) By the time I got in the room it was about 11 p.m. or later. By then I guess they thought I was doing pretty good. I had a hospital gown on and I didn't have the IV in anymore just the needle taped in my arm in case they needed to use it without sticking me again, but asked for Tylenol because I had a dull headache. My nurses were all very nice and competent. I never saw the same ones for more than one shift.

Joe with James and Kathy went to the Hampton Inn "out the parking lot and turn left a couple of blocks from the hospital". The girls were coming from Vegas to the hospital and got as far as St. George that night. By then it was late and they stopped and got a motel there. They must have called on Jame's cell phone because I knew that, and they would come the rest of the way on Saturday. Joe reserved them a room for Saturday night at the Hampton Inn too. I pretty much stayed in the bed, and went to the bathroom once - not quite sure I should get up without a nurse there in case I keeled over alone, but I did it anyway.

To Be Continued