Long Road to Recovery

On Monday, Feb 13, 2023 I got sick, sore throat, body aches, couldn’t stay awake, etc.

Throughout the day and evening I continued to go downhill so I was taken to the hospital. Upon entrance I was put into a wheel chair and taken back immediately. After hours of tests, the ED doctor said I had Covid and sent me home. (Negative test). I laid in bed for 4 days, taking over the counter medicine and not getting any better.

Friday, Feb. 17, 2023. I woke up, went to get out of bed to use the bathroom and fell right to the floor in complete agony. All day my right foot continued to hurt but I convinced myself that it was being dehydrated and bed ridden for 4 days.

So I walked on it as much as I could, slept and took lots of Tylenol. Around 2:30am I woke up at of my sleep with something telling me to go to the ED now. So I called 911 and then came to get me. When I got here they did their typical triage check and then sent me for a EKG where it said I was Tachy. So I was immediately taken to a room and tests started. The first doctor was not the greatest and wouldn’t listen. But the nurse, Meg, she did listen. She believed me, I hadn’t stepped on anything, I didn’t have any cuts, I didn’t hurt myself. My foot just started hurting on its own. Meg became very intrigued. She said she refused to stop investigating, even went as far as telling the dr he was wrong.

thanks to her and not giving up, she figured out I was Septic. So, they performed more tests and confirmed this was what was wrong and that I had Strep A settle in my foot as well as my body.

Strep A and being Septic was literally killing me and I had no idea. A few more hours or say at home and I would have lost my foot to possibly death.

It was severe and at the moment, didn’t realize how severe.

After test after test, they determined I was being admitted and that I needed to undergo surgery on my foot to clean out the infection.

Feb 19, 2023, Foot surgery on my right foot and ankle.

Found lots of infection that had to be cleaned out. Drained foot.

Feb 22,2023 Foot is not healing like they had hoped, went back for a 2nd surgery, during this surgery they find that my Plantar Fasciitis Ligament has died from infection, some muscle died, some soft tissue died as well as the skin under the balls of my toes. So now I am partial amputee with 1/3 of my foot missing.

Tuesday Feb 28, 2023,

still here in the hospital. The have put the wound vac back on my foot and hopefully tomorrow they will change the dressing and hook me up to my home wound vac and I’ll get to go home.

I have been in the hospital for 2 weeks now, out of work, no pay bc you have to be out for so long before Short Term kicks in, even when that does it’s only a portion of my pay. I have a long road of recovery ahead of me as well as continuing to take care of my 3 kiddos, pay bills and I need to change a few things in my house to accommodate my new lifestyle.

I had to purchase a recliner since I’ll be living in my living room for the next few weeks and I can’t lay flat on a couch, don’t really have room for a hospital bed in my living room. I have to modify a few things in my place to get around as well as being able to use the bathroom and have my wound vac.

they want me to see the dr up 2-3 times a week, so I will have to use Uber some days that I have no one available to get me to appts. I’m not allowed to drive for at least a month. Expenses are starting to pile up and I have no idea what else to do.

If you know me, you know I hate asking for help, let alone money, so this was a very difficult decision with lots of persuasion.

Thank you for reading my Story and please advocate for yourself. When something doesn’t feel right, say something, do something. It may save your life.