Here's how the day went up until that time:
- Woke up, looked at clock, I'd slept 8 hours. EIGHT HOURS! I haven't slept that much since early August. That correlates to when my weekly training hours jumped to over 18, but it also correlates to when I was being bumped up in my levothyroxine (I'll call it STH rest of this post), and they accidentally made my HYPER-thyroid and it messed me up. I am typically sleeping 7 hours nightly, and I attribute this to my "new normal" which is all I need when I am properly medicated, so I do not think this apparent lack of sleep (which I've felt fine on, thanks) is an indicator of anything in particular. Now, I'd had a "bonus massage" on Wednesday, as someone cancelled their appointment (a government employee affected by the shutdown, so anyone who says this does NOT affect private sector is full of it), and I don't have another scheduled for 2 more weeks and needed it. I believe the massage helped me to sleep really well.
- I assessed how I felt upon waking, and the virus seemed to be at bay, not fully gone, but I didn't begin coughing right away. In fact, I felt STUPENDOUS! I felt happy, overflowing with joy despite having a virus, I felt like I'd accomplished a million things on my to do lists, and could relax this morning, meaning I didn't need to do dishes, do a bunch of stuff on the Internet, do any work. There are always a million things to do, but I felt for this one morning, I could relax.
- I got ready to lift weights, including donning my new neon pink capris. I was so happy, I snapped a selfie see above. I put on a brand new pair of running shoes that I would use later on to run 1:30.
- I did some organization around the house (it never stops--shit just moves around), and was feeling rarin' to go on my day.
- At about 7:15, I saw a bright flash in my right eye (or so I thought), and I initially thought I'd looked at something really bright and was just having a temporary blind spot. But then I looked away from the computer screen and saw it still. Since I've had big floaters in my left eye since just over a year ago, and bright, flashing lights in field of view can be indicative of retinal detachment, I did a quick check on one eye, then the other, and I could see the flashy shape in both eyes, and with both eyes closed. So I recognized this as an aura, since I'd had one over 20 years ago, which was followed by a migraine. I never got checked out after the prior one, and this one concerned me because there were other things going on that might be related--I'd recently stopped taking Evista because I believe it was causing leg cramps (a known side effect), I had edema in my right leg for 4 days right after I stopped the Evista, I have a virus and was taking various OTC meds that seemed to make me extra hyper, and I didn't know if they were interacting with the STH and that that is just how I am now and I need to try and not use them (which I already did, but this virus has lingered).
- Still calm after these self checks, I called the Nurse Hotline associated with my healthcare coverage, because I wanted to establish if I should go to the ER. I described all of the above to this person, who then suggested I first contact my opthamologist. If she had told me that what she suspected was this, then maybe that's appropriate, but considering the other items on my list that I carefully enumerated, I thought that wasn't good advice. I told her my opthamologist probably wasn't in now, and even if he was, I didn't feel like I should drive myself because I had no idea if these flashes (and the shape in the link is dead on) were going to get worse and my vision would drop out completely or what. Then she said call him and if he's not available THEN go to the ER. Needless to say, she wasn't very good, and I decided it would be off to the ER I should go. While this person was waffling on what I should do, that is when I first began to feel my BP rise and adrenaline and all that, because when I said all these things out loud to her, it made me realize there could be something seriously wrong here, like a blood clot, and it started to worry me greatly.
- I called my friend down the street, Carol, to ask her if she could take me to ER because I couldn't drive myself. She said yes, but it would take her a bit of time to get moving, and I was fine with that, but really didn't want to wait very long.
- While waiting for Carol, I called Lori, who is a nurse, and told her all the above, and she said I was correct in going to the ER because there could be a number of things going on and they should try and find out what's causing the aura. While I was on the phone with her, the aura disappeared, and I was waiting for migraine to show up, but it never did. Lori told me what to tell the ER people (including NOT telling them right away that I am training for IM because that could bias their decision process), and I began writing it down so that I wouldn't forget, and I could tell them when the aura started and when it stopped.
- Carol arrived about 30 minutes I think from when I called, and meanwhile, I was freaking out a bit, because while the aura was gone, it can be an indicator of serious trouble. She drove me to Good Samaritan ER, dropped me off so she could park, and by the time she got in, they were already checking me in and getting me ready to put in a room.
- I had 2 people ask me questions, and then they weighed me (that was entertaining I was like I'M FAT and I'm sure this overweight young lady was laughing at me), and then they began escorting me to a room. They asked me if I wanted my friend to come with me, and I said YES.
- They hooked me up to BP and pulse monitor and put electrodes on my chest and a blood collector in my left arm (after changing into a gown and not being shy about nudity in front of 4 people) and collected some blood and got upset about my BP and contacted a doctor to come check me out and figure out what tests should be run.
- I knew enough once the aura started and making a decision to go to ER that I should not drink anything or eat anything in case of tests that would want you on empty stomach, and by now it's like 8:30 and I hadn't eaten since 4:30 so I'm starving and I am also thirsty. But I'd drunk a lot of water already so I was hydrated and needed to pee right before they were going to hook me to the machine, so I asked if I could go pee first and this nurse, Maryam, who was SO nice (they all were in the ER), asked me, "May I collect that pee?" We both had a big laugh about that, and I said, "Yes, but it will be more than that cup will hold." When I brought it back, I showed everyone and said, "See how hydrated I am?" I was all smiling.
- They did an ultrasound on both legs to check for clots (negative), did a CT scan on my brain to check for bleeds (none found nor did they find any robots or flying monkeys in there to my knowledge), did an EKG (it was normal). Then they kept getting on my case about my BP, is it usually high? NO. I check it, but I am quite anxious right now and this happened to me once before in 2005 when some idiot man hit me hard on the hand while swimming 1 week before IMWI and my hand swelled up to the size of a baseball, and I went to the ER to get X-rayed, and nothing was broken, but my BP shot up like a champion then, too. So I knew my reaction was anxiety induced, beginning with the idiot nurse on the hotline.
- My BP did settle down but not to the best level while I was still there. They want me to go to my Dr. in a few days and also see a cardiologist. I think I should wait until this virus clears because I am not going to have normal vitals until it is done. We'll see.
We drove back to my house, and I modeled my new awesome dress, and got an approval from Carol. I gave her a box for some shipping she needs to do and she left, then I posted all this crap on Facebook and contacted work to let them know I was done for the day. Then I went for a 6 mile run, and it rained on me a bit, but I saw a huge, double rainbow that made it all worth it. I ran real easy, and here I am when I got home:
I felt much better and relaxed after I showered and had a beer and the BEST SANDWICH EVER topped with my homemade muffuletta, and I fell sound asleep at maybe 7:35, slept well, and now I am going for a swim. I will take my BP first. I know it's still somewhat elevated, or maybe not...I feel fine at any rate. I will be watchful the next few days. Knowing that what I experienced may just have been that ocular migraine is sort of reassuring, that my head and heart checked out OK is reassuring, but I still feel like a science experiment being on STH and clearing the Evista from my system. Funny, I just checked Evista side effects and FLU SYNDROME occurs in 13.5%!!! What the fuck, now I think that maybe it was enhancing my viral thing as well. Oh well, glad I am off that crap. I'm not saying Evista caused my virus--I'm saying it may have made it worse initially when I caught it. I am angry that my own doctor, who I saw just last week, said NOTHING about how Evista can cause a flu-like event. This is a lesson to us all that WE need to stay on top of these things and know our bodies better than any physician can.
I still feel like a science experiment and don't think I will know how I am until after this virus is gone, then I'm supposed to get another TSH test in 3 weeks and also a flu shot. I don't usually have issues with flu shots, but I better think about that. I do need to do more research on STH and its side effects, because my body just doesn't like drugs AT ALL.
Stay tuned, I will stay on top of this.
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