(To read my cancer story from the beginning start here – April / May 2018 – You Have Cancer)

The Infections and that Damned Heat

If you have read my previous posts you will know it’s my third day in hospital after my operation for jaw cancer.

I was already in the hospital routine, wide awake at 6 in the morning waiting for vitals checks, waiting for the final dregs of feed to go through my tubes and waiting for the morning head and neck team visit when I noticed how warm it already was.

Our air conditioner had been taken to another ward and as I was furthest from the window knew I had a warm day ahead of me.

I had basically the same as the day before; physio, speech & language, nutritionist, the dreaded trachy cleaning, etc.

With all that out the way I decided to arrange my area more to my liking, put my clothes in to the bedside cabinet and my cards, letters etc on the top.

I also got my mobile phone out for the 1st time since being in there and found I had a reasonably good WiFi connection to the hospitals WiFi service (a real godsend)

By the afternoon it was sweltering but I wasn’t just warm because of the weather my temperature was sky high, I was feeling really groggy, I felt freezing cold my teeth were chattering, I had the shivers but I was actually burning up.

A nurse bought be one of those big Dyson cooling fans (another godsend) which I kept next to by bed that night.

I had my fan positioned so I could reach it just by leaning over slightly and had a pretty restless night again.

The next morning I had a couple of drainage bottles removed which meant I was more mobile but was still feeling lousy, Mr Walton and his team came to see me again and I could tell he was a bit concerned, my neck and face were still really swollen and very hot, they put me on a course of antibiotics and said they would keep an eye on me.

It was equally as warm that day and despite being on the antibiotics and paracetamol I was still burning up and feeling lousy which I didn’t really like as I knew my mum and Elizabeth were visiting that evening and I didn’t want them worrying

It was nice to see them but I wasn’t really up to it and was virtually half asleep all the time they were there.

I was no better the next day, the heatwave had risen another notch and my fan had gone walkabouts, I spent all day just on my bed not wanting to move or do anything.

Mr Walton saw me again, was worried I had an infection and said they would open me up again to see what was going on and clear it up.

I wasn’t worried at all in fact I think I was at the stage I didn’t care what they would do to me and I was just sick of the damned heat

Story continues here – 3rd operation of the week

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