Thank you all so, so, much for all your loving comments and notes after my last post.  The day after I wrote it, I was able to get a hold of my doctor, who was able to get me in for the blood patch that same day.  It started with having to wait, sitting up (which was excruciating!) for about 5 hours before they could finally do the procedure, but at least it was done!

Apparently blood patches are uncommon  in our hospital… every time I was wheeled to a new room, I could hear the new nurse whisper to the last one ”what is a blood patch?!”  I began praying the performing doctor would at least know!!  Finally a nurse admitted, she was the only one who had every witnessed the only other blood patch that had been done there, and the doctor was the same doctor that had done the first one!!  Okay, that made me feel a wee bit better!!

The blood patch felt just as gross as I had expected it to…  the doctor first put a local anesthetic in the original needle insertion from the lumbar puncture, and then inserted another needle.  She then took blood out of my arm… which I was told was really no more than 2 blood vials full, however, the taking so took soooo long, I began to get very woozy… she then took the blood and inserted it into my back.  This was to cause a blood clot, which would hopefully stop the spinal fluid from leaking.

After being on watch for 45 minutes in the operating room, I was brought to Day Surgery Recovery.  Here they raised me an inch at a time every 20 minutes, to see how my body would handle the transition.  I was thrilled at the end to find the excruciating pain was gone!!

Since then, it has taken my head some time to recover.  I still have quite a bit of residual pain, and I’ll be trying to fix some of that with massage therapy and chiropractic work.  Otherwise I’m still waiting for an MRI appointment, and I’ll be having a followup appointment with my neurologist in a few weeks.

Other than that I’m doing my best to take it easy, plus catching up on some painting (still planning on being a vendor at the Old Clayburn Day on July 15th!) time with the girls (I dropped off Jordan at a week-long camp yesterday!  -Eeeeks!), and hubby is installing a new bathtub!!!  Hooray!  ~so I have not been bothering much with house keeping!!

Thank you again for the love and prayers!!!  You have no idea how much I appreciate it!

xo, Leanne