Health and Living

Nothing to do with Genealogy but all about health and living. I thought that I would write about our experiences this week.

Diane has been a bit down the last couple of weeks with a chesty cough, but was determined to keep going, because we were invited to a big Jewish charity fundraiser on Wednesday 2^nd March where the main speaker was the Prime Minister, David Cameron.

We had a great evening but the following morning I dragged Diane to the Doctor. She was told that she had a virus and probably a chest infection and was put on a course of antibiotics.

The coughing continued despite a myriad of over the counter remedies and in the early hours of Monday morning Diane had a violent coughing fit, which affected her stomach badly and she was doubled up in pain. I phoned the emergency doctor who called an ambulance and at 6am Monday morning we arrived at Barnet General Hospital A & E department.

The doctors diagnosed that she had an irreducible mass in the abdomen and decided that she needed an emergency paraumbilical hernia repair. At 11.15am she was taken to the operating theatre. The surgeons then noted that she had low potassium and refused to operate. She was taken back to the ward and put on a potassium drip.

At 6.40pm she was taken back to the operating theatre, the repair was carried out and by 9.30pm was back on the ward. On Wednesday 9^th March she was discharged from hospital. The District Nurse has twice been to change the dressing and said that it will take a couple of weeks to get back to normal (whatever normal is) since her body had suffered a trauma. However, on Saturday, she had a high temperature and I called the emergency doctor. He diagnosed an infection that must have been picked up in hospital. But said that the antibiotics given by the hospital would clear it up.

Diane realised that I had suffered a trauma as well, what with hanging around the hospital for 3 days and insisted that I go home and watch my beloved Arsenal on Tuesday night even if they did lose to Barcelona in the Champions League and then again on Saturday evening when they lost to Manchester United in the F A Cup. That was even more trauma for me.

I suppose that we never know what is round the corner and must live life whilst we can.