Diary of My Eye Disease Treatment
Day Seven
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
JENNIFER | SEPTEMBER 16, 2014 3:44PM JST
I followed the same routine this morning:
Food
Breakfast was pretty good. Sat with the gang again. We talked for a bit, but about nothing important. After lunch, Takeshi will be going home and Aya will too. Yurie and I will remain here. Hopefully we can try to communicate with each other although it will be a bit tougher. We exchanged contact information or Facebook friendship requests. We had a short breakfast and the nurse came by to put the anesthetic tape at around 8:30.
I took the time to call my aunt a short time later. She worries that things here are too hard for me. I haven’t had anything to complain about. It has all been like a piece of cake considering my situation.
Normally, I get my injection about an hour or so after the tape has been placed.
Countdown
9:30am-No injection. They should be here soon.
9:45am-I go to the office and signal about the injection. By this time, I am beginning to wonder and get a little anxious more so, because I don’t want the adhesive anesthetic tape to wear off and I'd have to feel that miserable pain.
After 10:00am, two new people are being admitted into my room as well as other rooms. As much as I shouldn’t let any of this bother me, time was closing in on me.
I followed the same routine this morning:
- Toilet
- Blood pressure
- Temperature
- Bowel Movement check
- Stomachache check
- Brush my teeth
Food
Breakfast was pretty good. Sat with the gang again. We talked for a bit, but about nothing important. After lunch, Takeshi will be going home and Aya will too. Yurie and I will remain here. Hopefully we can try to communicate with each other although it will be a bit tougher. We exchanged contact information or Facebook friendship requests. We had a short breakfast and the nurse came by to put the anesthetic tape at around 8:30.
I took the time to call my aunt a short time later. She worries that things here are too hard for me. I haven’t had anything to complain about. It has all been like a piece of cake considering my situation.
Normally, I get my injection about an hour or so after the tape has been placed.
Countdown
9:30am-No injection. They should be here soon.
9:45am-I go to the office and signal about the injection. By this time, I am beginning to wonder and get a little anxious more so, because I don’t want the adhesive anesthetic tape to wear off and I'd have to feel that miserable pain.
After 10:00am, two new people are being admitted into my room as well as other rooms. As much as I shouldn’t let any of this bother me, time was closing in on me.
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
10:30am-I attempted to snooze, but was feeling bothered. Had they forgotten about me?
11:00am-After a short nap, which I took while having a horde of emotions taking control over me, the doctor and nurse woke me up. My feelings were a bit disheveled and I thought, “boy, that isn’t good,” especially when a needle is about to go in.
The Process
I told her that it was well past the time that I usually get my injections.
My nerves began crashing in and I tensed up.
I wasn’t thinking, just blurting out what came to mind.
Yet, she just wanted to get on with the procedure.
But...
I wasn’t ready. I positioned myself, emotions flaring and I knew she could sense that. My body fought a little. She may have been a bit nervous or uneasy, because she kept moving the needle unnaturally after inserting it. She got the medicine in and withdrew the injection then asked if I was okay. After that, they left.
11:00am-After a short nap, which I took while having a horde of emotions taking control over me, the doctor and nurse woke me up. My feelings were a bit disheveled and I thought, “boy, that isn’t good,” especially when a needle is about to go in.
The Process
I told her that it was well past the time that I usually get my injections.
My nerves began crashing in and I tensed up.
I wasn’t thinking, just blurting out what came to mind.
Yet, she just wanted to get on with the procedure.
But...
I wasn’t ready. I positioned myself, emotions flaring and I knew she could sense that. My body fought a little. She may have been a bit nervous or uneasy, because she kept moving the needle unnaturally after inserting it. She got the medicine in and withdrew the injection then asked if I was okay. After that, they left.
- I was furious!
- I cursed!
- I shifted back and forth on the bed and I hyperventilated!
- It all came out of anger, frustration, disappointment and desperation! However, it was brief.
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
Seconds later, I rammed my curtain shut to keep myself from looking at anyone and blowing off any unnecessary steam. It was then, that I knew I lost control. My expectations were at an all-time high and I lost my staying in the ‘present’ battle.
The Follow-up
I kept the bed curtain around my bed and wasn’t able to say good-bye to Takeshi, who left before lunch. Either way, he is on the break plan treatment so he will be here on the 22nd and we can chat when he returns. I was called to the medical examination room and I went in there trying to figure out whether or not I should tell the doctor how I felt. I took my chances.
The doctor asked me how I was feeling and I hesitated to tell her. Before I could take it back, I said that I was disappointed. She didn't have to explain herself, but she told me that the hospital was short of staff today and there were many new patient admissions taking place. The moment she opened her mouth to say anything, I was already apologizing for complaining. I told her that I was just taken over my emotions when the injection took longer than it usually has. I apologized and explained that I was not trying to be a pest about it. She didn’t take it personal. Instead, she welcomed my comments. The tricky part about all of this is that my body may have already set a natural clock for this treatment on a daily basis. Oh boy!
Lunch Time
I did not take a picture of any of today’s meals for whatever reason. Well, I had lunch with Aya and Yurie. We ate curry rice, a small lettuce and tomato salad and Calpis gelatin. Calpis is a carbonated drink (in this case gelatin) popular in Japan, which is usually made of water and milk and it tends to be very light and sweet. It was pretty tasty.
Aya truly wants to stay in touch and it would be awesome for all four of us to get together from time to time after we have all ended our treatments. During lunch, we experienced an earthquake. It was ranked 4, but it wasn’t much of a big shake. We were all okay.
Yurie had her second surgery today and she did it with no anesthesia. She said it was okay and I think that is quite brave! Her eye is patched and she seems to be taking it well.
Lunch ended and it was time. Aya had her suitcase sitting next to her in the eating area and a purse on the chair. Right after we finished, she headed out.
I returned to my room and now I am relaxing for a bit. I don’t know if I will write anything else for today. I want to work on a business plan. Let’s see what happens.
The Follow-up
I kept the bed curtain around my bed and wasn’t able to say good-bye to Takeshi, who left before lunch. Either way, he is on the break plan treatment so he will be here on the 22nd and we can chat when he returns. I was called to the medical examination room and I went in there trying to figure out whether or not I should tell the doctor how I felt. I took my chances.
The doctor asked me how I was feeling and I hesitated to tell her. Before I could take it back, I said that I was disappointed. She didn't have to explain herself, but she told me that the hospital was short of staff today and there were many new patient admissions taking place. The moment she opened her mouth to say anything, I was already apologizing for complaining. I told her that I was just taken over my emotions when the injection took longer than it usually has. I apologized and explained that I was not trying to be a pest about it. She didn’t take it personal. Instead, she welcomed my comments. The tricky part about all of this is that my body may have already set a natural clock for this treatment on a daily basis. Oh boy!
Lunch Time
I did not take a picture of any of today’s meals for whatever reason. Well, I had lunch with Aya and Yurie. We ate curry rice, a small lettuce and tomato salad and Calpis gelatin. Calpis is a carbonated drink (in this case gelatin) popular in Japan, which is usually made of water and milk and it tends to be very light and sweet. It was pretty tasty.
Aya truly wants to stay in touch and it would be awesome for all four of us to get together from time to time after we have all ended our treatments. During lunch, we experienced an earthquake. It was ranked 4, but it wasn’t much of a big shake. We were all okay.
Yurie had her second surgery today and she did it with no anesthesia. She said it was okay and I think that is quite brave! Her eye is patched and she seems to be taking it well.
Lunch ended and it was time. Aya had her suitcase sitting next to her in the eating area and a purse on the chair. Right after we finished, she headed out.
I returned to my room and now I am relaxing for a bit. I don’t know if I will write anything else for today. I want to work on a business plan. Let’s see what happens.
