The Hospital

It was 6 o’ clock in the morning when I finally was settled into a room and in a comfortable bed. I was looking forward to getting some sleep. At eight o’ clock in the morning a doctor came into the room and was firing questions at me and snapping her fingers and telling my Mom to get me some coffee.   I remember telling her that “I don’t drink coffee.”

My Mom explained that we just were admitted after spending the night in the ER. This doctor was not at all sympathetic!!! She told me to get up and walk to the door. So I pulled the covers back and swung my legs over the side of the bed. I stood up and I immediately collapsed to the floor.

My Mom asked, “Jennifer, why did you do that?!” I looked at her incredulously. I didn’t do it on purpose! I just couldn’t stand up or walk. My inability to walk lasted for 4 days. Those 4 days I spent in the hospital.  At that point, it was the scariest 4 days of my life. Was I going to regain my ability to walk?

While in the hospital I had in number of tests done to me. I had a full MRI done of my brain and spinal cord.  It was years later that I vaguely remember having electrodes stuck to my head and some test done in the middle of the night while I was sleeping to measure brain waves or something. I also had a spinal tap done.

The spinal tap wasn’t as bad and everyone says it is. I just like that I can say I had one done. It makes me seem hardcore.  The doctor did the spinal tap right in my room.  He told me I was small enough to just do it while I was sitting on my bed.  He told me to hold still and explained to me that I would just feel a little pinch and it may be a little bit uncomfortable.  

My Mom was in the room watching as he did it.  I remember she gasped as I felt a pinch in my lower spine.  She looked at me and exclaimed, “that needle is this big!” as she held up her fingers to measure about 6 or 7 inches I looked and her and said, “Mom, the needle is still inside of me, don’t tell me that!”

My boyfriend came to see me everyday and walked with me down the hallway and back.  Really he was just carrying me down the hall and I went through the motions of walking but I did not want my legs to atrophy while I was unable to walk.  They had me on steroids for my entire hospital stay. Now, I understand that I was on A LOT!  I was on 60 mgs, the normal dose was usually 3 to 5 mgs.  

But, I had regained my ability to walk and they were finished doing all the tests they needed to do. They discharged me and told me that I would need to make a follow-up appointment with Neurology to go over the test results when they came in.  When I left, the numbness and tingling in my legs persisted.  My follow-up appointment was made for December 28th.