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Today was a great picture taking day..I started off the morning taking pictures of Karen making our dinner in the crock pot. We had Tortilla Soup. So yummy for dinner...I mean really yummy. When we got back to hotel we could smell our soup all down the hallway. Today we had to go to the clinic to make some schedule changes. You have to put in requests and then the scheduler writes a letter to the doctor and then you have to wait. There were some conflicting appointments. The schedulers are all in one room in separate booths. You stand in line and wait for a turn and then they can print you out a schedule and instructions for each lab/radiology test and people walk around the clinic like they are at a huge conference following their itineraries. There are 5 levels in the clinic and it is very easy to get lost. Most of the workers are awesome and helpful. Today when we were trying to find something to do for the rest of the day and weekend..one of the volunteers offered to give us a ride to the mall. She was very kind. She told us a taxi would cost about $50. There was no way we were going to pay that and there were no buses of any kind to catch at the Clinic so we had to catch the shuttle back to the hospital. Then at the hospital we learned that there was a bus that went to Paradise Valley Mall. We caught the bus and headed out. The mall had a Dillard's which is a store well known down here, it reminded me of Nordstrom's but I have never seen so many COACH bags in one place. They had aisles of them. I didn't want to leave. I wanted to take pictures of them..lol. The mall was pretty and it had a carousal in it. The carousal had all kinds of animals, not just horses and was located in the food court where we had a sandwich and salad at a place called Paradise Bakery and then we wandered the mall for a bit. Very cool stores..I tried to show Karen Hollestier, but we walked in and the music was booming so loud that we had to walk right back out. It was ok, we couldn't have even afforded underwear there..lol. The shoe stores were incredible. I am serious. I have never seen such a variety of shoes offered at once. The summer sandles were right next to the boots..crazy, but so fun. Then we went outside and caught the bus back to the hospital and the sunset was so glorious that I had to take some pictures of it on our walk back to the hotel. In one of my other pictures I have posted a couple of days ago it looks like a pile of sticks with thorns growing straight up..well today there were leaves covering them, so I had to include a picture of that. I am not sure how to write comments under the pictures, so if you have any questions feel free to ask. Also if you click on the pictures they will get bigger so you can see the whole thing. I am loving Arizona. There are some pretty crazy drivers and some not so nice wild life and the summers get really hot, but it is so pretty here. The houses and apartments are lovely. Today I saw a rent special sign..I posted it. The rent special was "Free Heat and Hot Water" didn't mention air conditioning though. Thought it was so funny. Especially being a little quirky from Spokane. I love the sunrises and the sunsets. The mountains are tall and majestic. There is no snow. But I am so homesick for my kids, I could leave tomorrow. I am really hoping to get some of these schedule requests back and be done by next week. We will just put it in God's hands and go from there. Enjoy the pictures.
Love, becca
Hello Readers, Hope your day has been as productive as mine. It was a pretty good day and I feel that lots got accomplished, but I am so tired again. Each time I come back I am more tired than I was when I left. Today was very overcast and cloudy. At the end of the day the sun was finally peeking out and things were looking pretty again. I had to be at the hospital at 8 am this morning. I had some heart tests to do..wasn't really too scared till I got into the room and saw more wires and a TREADMILL! The first part of the test I laid on the bed with sticky buttons placed in about 12 places on both sides of my upperchest. The tech then proceeded to do an ultrasound on my heart. I got to watch and it was pretty cool to see. It was in color so she could see which blood was returning and which was being pumped out. She gave me a tour of my heart valves and artery. I really liked how she treated me and shared her knowledge. Then said "remember exactly how you are laying right now..." I said "Ok?" And she then explained that the next part of the test required me to get on the treadmill and get my heart rate up to 158 beats per minute. Then once that happened I had to jump on the bed and get in that same exact position so that she could take pictures of my heart again to compare and there was only a 30 second time frame. Talk about pressure...ha ha! I made a pun..get it? Blood pressure! LOL.
The treadmill part was not fun. And everytime I was about to ask "are we there yet/" the dumb thing would start going faster and go up like an incline...Think I was breathing like a horse when the nurse yelled "Jump!" I did too. I leaped from the death machine to the bed into position gladly. But it was very difficult to hold my breath for the ultrasound tech when she was taking pictures. There was no way I could talk..how do people do that for longer then 10 minutes every day? That was pure torture, especially in a hospital gown with footie slippers.
After that test we came back to the hotel because I didn't have my next appointment until 1pm across the campus. We talked the van driver into taking us to a place called "Whole Foods". If you are from Spokane..it's basically a Huckleberry's on steriods. But even awesomer. They made everything look yummy in there. I have never seen such a variety of cheeses, whole grain breads, crackers, organic fruits and veggies, seafoods, meats, etc. Have you ever heard of a "air cooled" chicken? Google it...I am sold. We bought red pepper hummus, pita bread, sun dried tomato and basil humus, some really yummy cheese and carrot and onion for our soup tomorrow. It was such a fun place. There was a fantastic wine selection, but Karen didn't want to look and I knew we couldn't buy..so I just admired from afar. I want a "Whole Foods" in Spokane.
Our van driver was Wayne. I call him Cowboy Wayne. I was asking him if the land we were passing was wild or just planned that way because it was pretty. He said "Oh that is wild land, don't go walking on that.." Karen and I had been taking short cuts through the "wild land" a lot to get to the hospital to catch the early morning shuttle. Karen looked at me and I looked at her and we both asked "why not?" Wayne then proceeded to tell us that even though it's January and the snakes and scorpions are mostly dormant, they occasionally come out. He told us that all the landscapers duct tape their pants to their socks because you would never even see a scorpion and it would have bitten you 9 to 11 times before you got it off. He said never walk in the wild again. We said very meekly that we would not..and here I was hoping to see a snake..lol.
So we will be walking on the side walks from now on. We were surprised to see that there were no signs saying not to walk across the dessert, but apparently everyone else already knows not to do that. We got back, put away the groceries and then got a ride to the hospital to catch the shuttle to the clinic. At the Clinic I had to see the heart doctor. He went over this mornings tests and all was normal. So happy to hear that. He gave me a physical and listened to lungs and heart beats etc. My blood pressure was fine, I have a rapid heart beat..98 beats per minute. I asked about that and the smaller you are the faster your heart beats..wierd. Anyways I have lost more weight..down to 120 pounds. Haven't weighed that since I got married..in 1992. Of course losing all that weight made it really easy for them to find my heart today..but we won't go into that.
After the bone doctor I saw a "sleep doctor" which is their word for shrink. He was very friendly and made a lot of notes. There was even a couch..but I sat in a chair. He changed one of my medications and I think it will be a good change as eventually it will elimate 2 that I take now. After the "sleep doctor" I had a bone density test. I had more x-rays of my spine (if the x-ray techs are recognizing you...there is a problem. I am praying I keep all my hair with the amount of radiation in me. And then a bone scan with another machine in another room. Finally it was time to catch the shuttle to the hospital..it is about an 1/2 hour ride, then called the hotel van to come get us. I was way to tired to walk and my feet were so swollen.
The hotel had a pasta bar set up for dinner. It was very yummy and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I am down typing in the lobby right now. In a bright orange pod..have to take a picture, to hard to explain. Well it's 8:30 pm..so this girl is taking her meds and a hot bath. Then the Mentalist is on..at least I hope so..I am posting more pictures. I am sorry it won't let me make comments under them. But I have also posted some on my face book page and they do have comments...love to all from the "Wild Lands", Becca
Hi Friends, Today we had to be checked in at the clinic by 7:45, which ment that we had to catch the 7:00 AM shuttle. We checked with front dest and their van driver doesn't start till 7:00 AM so we had to race for the shuttle ourselves. It was still dark and I was cold. I was quite nervous about missing the shuttle because they come only ever half hour and you can't be later for your registration. They will make you reschedule your appointment. So there we were huffing it in the cold, well about 48 degrees cold. Hoping and praying we would make the shuttle. We even jogged a little. This is 2 people who are still sore from the accident on Monday. I think I thought of several things I was going to tell the hotel manager when we came back but stayed focused on the road before us. So we crossed the street so that the cars were coming towards us..in case we had to flag down the shuttle. People driver crazy in this state. Karen and I watched 9 cars in a row run a stop sign. Finally we got there, we were warmed up for sure. The shuttle was just closing his doors and then saw us coming. So away we went. I was ready to go back to bed for sure...We got to the clinic and up to registration. We didn't have to wait that long to be called. The doctor came in. He is the specialist that deals with neurology. He looked at my charts and all the meds I was on. He then had me walk, balance, touch me nose and do all kinds of things. I felt like I was taking a test for drunk driving..lol. I don't think I would have passed. He seemed most concerned about the amounts of medications I was taking and assured me that I probley was forgettful because of amount of medications and the variety of medications I was on. He tested my short term memory and said it was fine. But he was concerned about my hands and nerves in them. I was then sent to Audiology for a hearing test. I passed wth flying colors. I was telling the doctor about needing the words on tv, but he said the a lot of tv shows and movies don't show the actor talking and we do more lip reading then we realize. He also gave me a card on better communication. I kinda felt a little dumb after that appointment. It was only 10 AM and I was ready to collapse. Luckily my next appointment was not until 2:30 so we caught the shuttle back to the hotel and I climbed back in bed. I think I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow. Karen took the hotel shuttle to do some grocery shopping while I slept. At 1 pm I got up, ate some lunch and prepared to go back to the clinic for my Electromyography with Dr. Ross. I was quite nervous about this test because you had to be very warm and I always seem to be cold and it had the word electro in it. The instructions stated that the test could go one to three hours...I was instructed to lay down and they covered my hands and arms with a blanket. Then the two techs came in and they were very nice and explained everything they were doing each step of the way. Basically they started with placing electrodes along my hand, back of hand, wrist, arm, elbow and up by my shoulder..then they hooked of wires to the different points and sent shock waves..started smal..not so bad, but each turn of the knob got worse. My arm moved on its own accord a couple of times. I think it was trying to slap the tech..lol. Finally they took off everything and I was like ok well that was not sooo bad and boom..they are swing my bed around and rehooking up my OTHER arm..I just smiled and tried to make the best of it. It was funny because when the test was done, both techs said to me "don't you run away, the doctor will want to see you and do his own tests" "He doesn't like it when the patient dissappears." At that point I seriously was considering making a run for it. LOL..I waited for over another 1/2 hour and the doctor finally came it. He was so nice. Dr. Ross said that the tests showed that I had severe carpal tunnel in my left hand and all a pretty good case in my right hand also. It was so good to hear that I was not dropping things for no reason. I wasn't imagining things..something was wrong. He talked to me about getting surgery, the sooner the better, but preferred to wait till I was home in Spokane so I would have a doctor to follow up with. Then he had to do his tests..he stuck needles in my arm in different places. The needle went down far enough to make me bleed and then he would run the electrical currents through wires attached. He was double checking that the problem was in my hands and not stemming from my neck muscles which would have meant a muscular disease. After that he pulled out all the sharp owies and told me how great I did and that he would send a report to the main doctor. I did run out that time. We came straight back to the hotel and have just been hanging out. Karen's camera is missing, so we are praying it will be found.. For dinner we just went downstairs. The hotel was having BBQ night and there was free hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, ranch beans, potato chips and ice tea and lemonade. Now we are in our room getting ready to work on Thank You cards to all the generous people that have helped us get here. Tomorrow I start the day at the hospital with an ultrasound of my heart, then to the clinic for an appointment with the heart doctor and then more labs. I took some more pictures today. It is so pretty here and the days are just more and more pretty. A lot of the cati are blooming and each day we see something new. I saw woodpeckers yesterday, and humming birds. Both the sunrises and the sunsets are a sight to behold. Thanks for taking this journey with me. I have receive so many kind words, texts, and comments on my facebook page. I truly appreciate your support. Love and smiles, Becca
This morning we got to sleep in because the machine I wore all night was not due back until Noon. I slept until 10 AM..Karen had mercy on me because of the night before I am sure. She was up bright and early herself. I woke once and saw her reading by the window, and I thought "How does she do that?" Next time I woke up she was fresh from shower and a cup of coffee was next to me on bedside table. What a blessing...We took our time getting ready..I even put makeup on. And then I checked my phone and I had 2 messages from the Mayo Clinic. It turned out that I had been scheduled for 2 tests that morning starting at 9am, but had not been told about it..hmmm that girl must have forgotten to call..Anyways we headed over on the shuttle to return the machine and then went to stand in line for a scheduler. I explained what happened, told her about the shuttle accident, and she was very kind and gave me most of the rest of my schedule...appointments and tests all the way to the 14th so far..and then told us to go back to the hotel and get some rest. So that is what we did. It was a nice day. We are both still a bit sore from the accident, but the hospital paid all our bills and covered all x-rays etc. Then later this afternoon we went to the little shopping center down the road. The hotel will shuttle you in a 2 mile radius. We got the stuff to start working on Thank You cards, and I hunted everywhere for Altoids...so far Arizona doesn't seem to like Altoids cause I am having a hard time finding them. Also went to Ross and I got a cape made out of fleece for about $12. I am freezing here. I think in my head I thought it was going to be 80 degrees every day. Well during the day it is really nice out more like 68 - 70 degrees and the sun is glorious. But in the morning and at night it is quite chilly and I didn't bring hardly anything warm to wear. This blanket cape is great..sits on my shoulders like a poncho and I am warm..finally. It is even chilly in the Mayo Clinic. One of my tests tomorrow requires me to have warm hands and feet so I am going to wear a scarf, my blanket poncho, 2 pairs of socks and long sleeves. I figure I can peel off layers as I need to.
Arizona is beautiful. The sky amazes me. Though it is a lot different from home...Phoenix is a pretty city with hardly any litter. The houses blend into the landscape..and the mountain range is blue from a distance, but black and craggy up close. It is so different to see bare mountains, in WA state our mountains are covered with trees and snow. I am adding some pictures I took today. One is of a birds nest inside the middle of a spindly cactus. They are everywhere. We saw a Red Cardinal today..so vividly red because the cactus was so green. I wish I could have gotten a picture. Absolutely beautiful. Hope you are enjoying these blogs as much as I enjoy writing them. I thank God everyday for this wonderful opportunity. God bless you where every you are.
On Day 1 we were up bright and early at 5:30 am..after not sleeping too well the night before, I was not feeling bright and it was still dark outside so it seemed late not early. We had to walk over to the hospital and catch the shuttle to the clinic. The walk is not too bad about half a mile. We got to the clinic right on time and registered. Then at 8 am I met with my main doctor to go over medical records, talk about how I was feeling, and a physical. After that long appointment we were sent to the scheduling desk and registered there. We were then given a pager and told to come back when it buzzed and they would have all the doctors orders input and give me an itinerary for the next 2 weeks. My pager went off about 30 minutes later and then I had to stand in line to turn the pager in. In a corner of my appointment list it was stamped that the itinerary was incomplete. We went and asked what that meant and the lady told us to start on the days appointments and they would have the rest of the schedule made by 3pm. So off we went to the Lab, where I graciously gave lots of blood (14 vials) and some other specimen you don't want to know about. We then had a 45 min. wait for the next appointment and got a small lunch in their cafe and shared it. It was blackened catfish over white rice and veggies on side. (Yes, Karen made me eat 2 bites of veggies) There is a really great nature trail to walk but we were pretty tired so we just found exactly where it was and marked it for another day. After finding the nature trail, we came back to the 2nd floor to meet with a nurse that assigned me a machine to wear to bed. I took some pictures of it. It was not uncomfortable at all. It just hooked onto my finger and then we taped the wire around my wrist and it stayed beside me in bed. The machine measures your oxygen level and your heart rate. After we got the device, the next appointment was radiology and I was x-rayed from head to toe. It took a very long time almost an hour. After I got dressed again we went back to the scheduling desk to get the rest of the missing itinerary and the scheduler told us that there wasn't anything else for the day and to just be there on Wednesday for my next appointment because they were waiting on some insurance verification for the sleeping doctors. I asked if she was sure because I had to come back to return the sleeping machine the next day and I was sure the doctor had mentioned some appointments the next day. She assured me that if anything was added they would call me. It was only 3pm but I was exhausted. All I wanted was to rest. Being poked, prodded, question after question and waiting in line is so tiring. I was so happy to have Karen there. She really helped me find where to go and to remember to eat, and was there to take notes if I had questions. We had a bag on wheels that we pulled along with my bag of medications, blood meter, books, computer, purse etc. We were so happy that it was on wheels because it seemed to weigh 100 pounds by the end of the day. We only had to wait 5 minutes for the shuttle to take us back to the hospital campus. Our shuttle driver was very safety conscious and made sure we were all buckled up before even getting in the drivers seat. I wasn't as concerned because I was trying to do a blood sugar reading and was quite crabby after the long day. But I did get it on. About half way back to the hotel/hospital we got broadsided by a black Lincoln SUV. It was a hard hit and it jolted us pretty bad. If I had not buckled up like the driver ordered I would have been tossed to the aisle of the shuttle. As it was, we both were feeling quite sore. Karen's neck was hurting her and I rammed my hip into the seatbelf and used my hand to brace myself for the impact. So instead of going back to hotel, we had to go to the ER. We both completed our forms for the police, and then another shuttle came out to get us. The poor driver that hit us wouldn't even look at us. She seemed pretty upset, but I asked the policeman if she was alright and he said that she was not hurt. I was so glad to hear that. Her poor car looked pretty bad though. The police did determine after all the witness statements that the accident was indeed her fault and they were still dealing with the paperwork and forms as we were shuttled to the hospital. Already exhausted, we checked into the ER and waited at least 2 hours to get into our rooms. Then we each saw a doctor and he ordered x-rays of our necks, and my left hip because i bruised it on the seat-belt. Karen and I had a room across the hall from each other and it was funny because the nurses didn't know that we came in together and I was talking to her and called her by name and the nurse said "there goes HIPA" which is the privacy act. At 9pm we were told that we would be sore tomorrow and they gave us some Tylenol and each of us a prescription for pain medication. By the time we had our release papers and were dressed it was 9:30 at least. We then had to walk to our hotel as shuttle service stops at 9pm. Not a pleasant thing when you are tired, sore, cold, and hungry. It was a little after 10 pm when we finally got back to our room and I had to change out my insulin pump still and while I was doing that Karen set out some yummy cheeses and crackers and veggies and chicken salad and we felt like it was a feast. I tried to blog, but was so tired nothing was making sense. So I just shut the computer and hooked up the machine and went to sleep. So I am writing about day 1 on day 2. But since day 2 has it's own adventures...it needs it's own blog.
We started off the day pretty early..well early for me. It was 7:30 am here, which means 6:30am Spokane time. I can't even remember the last time I was up that early. But after some coffee and a wonderful hot breakfast, I was awake and ready to go for a walk and bask in the sunshine. It was a gorgeous day. 70 degrees. We decided to walk over to the Mayo Clinic to get our bearings and found out that we are located next to the Mayo Clinic Hospital and the actual clinic is 13 miles away..this is a giant campus. The good news is that we can take a shuttle just about anywhere and there is one that leaves at 6:30am on Monday morning so I can be at my 7:00 am registration and then doctor appointment. Today after our walk we came back to the hotel and I worked on some paperwork for my doctor visit and checked email. We then took a shuttle to the grocery store to get somethings to cook dinners etc. We have a small kitchenette and that is so great. I will be posting some pics with my blog today if I can get it to work. Ok the pics are up, but there is no where to label them..so some of them are the room we are staying in and some is from the walk we took. Birds live inside Cati. It was amazing to watch them fly in and out. We saw 2 bright red cardinals today. So cool. The grocery store was actually part of an outdoor mall. They even had lights and heaters for the cold days..never have seen anything like it. It was so sunny I just wanted to sit and soak it in. There is a swimming pool here, but seems way to cold to go swimming..but really looks pretty. Tomorrow I am going to take my bible and go sit out in the sun and soak it in. I had to take a nap today. Just that small trip to the grocery store and looking around and taking some pictures made me so tired. And I slept so good last night too.
I am glad we got here on Friday. With the bad weather, and the weekend holiday rates, we saved some serious money by coming early, even after hotel cost. I miss my kids and my friends. Karen has been so supportive and is helping me to stay positive and hopeful. She can tell when I am tired and gives me space when I need it. There are three lounge rooms here in the hotel. The 5th floor one is called the quiet room and for reading, studying, journaling, etc. The 4th floor one is the media room with large screen tv, dvd player, and computer with printer. And the third floor one is the family lounge with tons of boardgames and another tv. There is also a workout out room. I don't really plan on using that though. The free hot breakfast includes hash browns, sausages, eggs, waffles, biscuits and gravy, granola, fresh fruit, cereal and milk, pastries, bagels, and breads and toppings. Plus juice, milk and coffee. On Wednesday night they are having a free bbq for all the guests. It is an amazing place, and I am glad because if I end up being admitted to the hospital, not only will Karen be in walking distance, but she will have a comfortable room to come back to. Well my eyes are closing as I write this. We are one hour ahead here so right now it is 11:28 pm. Tomorrow is our quiet day and I want to hand journal some things and get all my lists made for the doctor so next blog will be on Monday night. Good Night my friends. Hope all is well with you and yours.
Love, Becca Ps - I hope you enjoy the pictures even though they are not labeled. I am so new at this blogging thing. The big building you see is the actual Mayo Clinic Hospital.
Hi friends,
Just a quick update before bed..Happy New Year to everyone. Hope you had a good time last night and a good first day of the new year. I sure did. I was up packing for my trip most of the night. I had to have to many doctors notes and pills in correct bottles and a letter giving me permission to carry my diabetic supplies, but security was not a problem. I think for once I was so organized and prepared that it was not as bad as I thought it would be. My friend Carrie stayed over me last and visited with me while I packed. We were talking and laughing and looked over at the clock and it was 1:00 am. We had totally missed the whole happy new year..but it was funny and not sad. I was so excited about the trip and getting better and finding out what I need to know concerning medications, diseases, pain management that I was restless till 4 am. When Carrie tried to wake me up to get ready to go..I could hardly respond. I was so tired. I don't remember getting ready at all. I know I brushed my hair and we stopped at Starbucks on the way to the airport. I kept wanting to fall asleep. Then after my quad latter I was finally awake and able to function. I don't usually let people see me in the morning because they can be quite ugly. But thank goodness she was there or I never would have been able to get to airport ect.
The plane ride was uneventful. We stopped to change planes in Portland. We were there for a whopping 15 minutes I think before they boarded us on our flight heading to Phoenix. The flight to Phoenix was beautiful. I saw the Grand Canyon and the sun was setting as we walked into the airport. An old friend from Karen's church met us there and gave us a ride to the hotel. We hadn't eaten all day..so we went through a drive thru called "In N Out", good hamburgers and fries. Then before Brian left, he had me $200 to put into the fund. The kindness just amazes me. I handed it over to karen. Oh and Brian paid for the hotel parking and the dinner too. There are still some good people in the world.
We are all checked into our room. It is amazing. Flat Screen TV on wall, study area, living area, kitchenn with fridge and dishwasher and the bathroom is huge. Plus there is a medical library upstairs. And they said that if we needed anything from the store they would go get it for us. Grocery lists are handed in by 9am and then cost of groceries is just added to bill. No cost for shopping service..totally amazing. The attendants and front desk is extremely nice and very helpful. I saw my first catus today and there are palm trees everywhere. We are on the top floor of hotel and can a view of the entire campus.
Traveling is very hard and tiring. Even if you are just sitting still, restless leg syndrome can really attacky I am in bed now and my legs are wide awake but my eyes keep closing. I am glad that we came today..the airline tickets were a lot more money on the weekend and it was snowing when we left Spokane. Someone in the airport told us it was cold outside..and we went out it was like 66 degrees..that is much better that the 17 degrees in Spokane..lol.
I hope you all had a happy new year. I am going to make this the best year od my life. The bible says that life and death are in the power of the tongue so choose life..I am choosing life.
I just want to take a moment and thank God for this opportunity. It is a chance of a lifetime. While I miss my kids so very much, I know I will return to be a better mother and that is a reason to be happy.
Talk again soon! Sign up to get my blogs in your email..or follow this link. www.beccamayoclinic.blogspot.com
Love to all. A big thanks to everyone who helped get me here..I will not waste it. I promise.
Love,
Becca
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