Diary of My Eye Disease Treatment
Day Seventeen (last full day)
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
JENNIFER | SEPTEMBER 26, 2014 (AFTER 10:00PM JST)
Today is my last full day at the hospital. I started off the morning with the same routine. I went to the restroom at about 4:00am and tossed and turned in bed. By about 5:00am, I decided to upload the English article that I couldn’t get on my site last night. Then, I chose to watch the movie The Experiment, which my older brother recommended. Wow, that was pretty intense! It was also a good movie. It was quite an experiment all right. The only thing I disliked was that they weren’t held accountable for their actions. I guess because it was just an experiment. It could be interpreted in a way that they will have to live with what they did for the rest of their lives.
I was able to finish watching it before breakfast.
Breakfast
I sat with Kaori and Nanami this morning and talked about a number of things. I reminded them that my last day is tomorrow and Kaori quickly added that she would miss me. I told her I would too. We enjoyed our meal and kept it short. The nurse went around giving anesthetic stickers, but did not give me one.
Today is my last full day at the hospital. I started off the morning with the same routine. I went to the restroom at about 4:00am and tossed and turned in bed. By about 5:00am, I decided to upload the English article that I couldn’t get on my site last night. Then, I chose to watch the movie The Experiment, which my older brother recommended. Wow, that was pretty intense! It was also a good movie. It was quite an experiment all right. The only thing I disliked was that they weren’t held accountable for their actions. I guess because it was just an experiment. It could be interpreted in a way that they will have to live with what they did for the rest of their lives.
I was able to finish watching it before breakfast.
Breakfast
I sat with Kaori and Nanami this morning and talked about a number of things. I reminded them that my last day is tomorrow and Kaori quickly added that she would miss me. I told her I would too. We enjoyed our meal and kept it short. The nurse went around giving anesthetic stickers, but did not give me one.
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
What did we eat?
The food was good as usual, except we had natto (fermented beans). I am not a big fan, but I ate most of it. It was a little too salty and it doesn’t quench my taste buds as much. I also had tofu soup, cabbage salad, rice and a strawberry yogurt drink.
After breakfast, I went to the office to ask for the anesthetic tape. Minutes later, another nurse came by to place a sticker on my right eye.
The IV Injection
A nurse came in and all I could hope for was that this one IV could be injected properly. She seemed to know what she was doing. She found the vein, yes! She went for it and before you know it, she hit a nerve. She poked it so hard that I yelped. I truly did not want to startle her, but I did and she felt bad. She quickly removed the needle and apologized. She covered it with an alcohol pad and walked out.
The food was good as usual, except we had natto (fermented beans). I am not a big fan, but I ate most of it. It was a little too salty and it doesn’t quench my taste buds as much. I also had tofu soup, cabbage salad, rice and a strawberry yogurt drink.
After breakfast, I went to the office to ask for the anesthetic tape. Minutes later, another nurse came by to place a sticker on my right eye.
The IV Injection
A nurse came in and all I could hope for was that this one IV could be injected properly. She seemed to know what she was doing. She found the vein, yes! She went for it and before you know it, she hit a nerve. She poked it so hard that I yelped. I truly did not want to startle her, but I did and she felt bad. She quickly removed the needle and apologized. She covered it with an alcohol pad and walked out.
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
A few seconds later, another nurse walked in and put the IV. She did a remarkable job. It was painless and speedy. I feel bad that the other lady had to run off. However, the pain from the poke continues to hurt. That’s usually not the case. It goes away in a few minutes or so.
The Eye Injection
Today was a special day. Yesterday, the doctor who injected me left a bubble on my eye. They say that it is normal. The problem is that every single day that I have been here, this has never happened to me. All of a sudden, now that I am getting ready to leave the hospital, why not mess up Jennifer’s eyes before she walks out into the real world? Yes, it is a little bit frustrating. I know they don’t do it on purpose, but it is annoying and the last thing I want is to look weird while I am strolling outside, dammit!
The Eye Injection
Today was a special day. Yesterday, the doctor who injected me left a bubble on my eye. They say that it is normal. The problem is that every single day that I have been here, this has never happened to me. All of a sudden, now that I am getting ready to leave the hospital, why not mess up Jennifer’s eyes before she walks out into the real world? Yes, it is a little bit frustrating. I know they don’t do it on purpose, but it is annoying and the last thing I want is to look weird while I am strolling outside, dammit!
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
During the procedure, I noticed that doctor was about to get too close to my eyeball when injecting and I told her, “please don’t go too close to the eye.” They usually don’t, but for some reason she did and guess what…I got a bubble again and a slight black eye. This is when I say, “I’m fed up!” Today! I’m just ready. I wouldn’t be surprised if I had another black eye tomorrow. I know I’m losing it, but I was calm until they started bubbling up my eyes. At least I asked today’s doctor to put something on my eyes to speed up my healing process. They have been adding an ointment on the area and patching it up from time to time. That helps.
Today has been a busy day. I have been going down to the second floor to have a number of eye tests completed. I started the day of with an MRI, whose results I will be discussing with my doctor. By the time I returned to my room, my lunch was sitting on the table. I decided to take it to the eatery area and sit with the ladies, but they had a table full. I know they were all chatting, but they made me feel comfortable. They were a bit surprised to see a patch on my eye and I told them that the doctor made another mistake. Although, I am sure the doctor would not admit to that.
Actually, the doctor explained that when they inject the steroid liquid, there is a chance that the liquid may return to the frontal part of the eye and cause it to bubble up. It doesn’t happen often, but inevitably it could. Like it has been happening to me.
Today has been a busy day. I have been going down to the second floor to have a number of eye tests completed. I started the day of with an MRI, whose results I will be discussing with my doctor. By the time I returned to my room, my lunch was sitting on the table. I decided to take it to the eatery area and sit with the ladies, but they had a table full. I know they were all chatting, but they made me feel comfortable. They were a bit surprised to see a patch on my eye and I told them that the doctor made another mistake. Although, I am sure the doctor would not admit to that.
Actually, the doctor explained that when they inject the steroid liquid, there is a chance that the liquid may return to the frontal part of the eye and cause it to bubble up. It doesn’t happen often, but inevitably it could. Like it has been happening to me.
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
Lunch
At lunch, I didn’t feel like talking too much, because I was in my own zone. For lunch, we had a pretty delicious meal. They served breaded fish with lettuce, rice, green and corn soup, tomato, cucumber and green salad and a delightful raspberry gelatin dessert. It was quite filling I must say.
After lunch, Kaori told me that she would speak with me a little longer later on. I know she felt bad and I don’t want her to. I think that it is nice that she mingles with other people. I agreed and said I’d see them later on today. I went back to my room and in no time I was being told to go to the second floor for more tests. I spent most of the early afternoon down there and gladly it was all done after 2:00pm. I headed back to my room and shortly afterwards I got my IV injection removed. That was the very last one. What a relief! No more poking me around and trying to find my veins.
The Nurses are Awesome!
The nurses have been showing concern about my eyes and the way they look today. I asked if the red scars would remain there for a while. They said that I’m young and that it should go away in a week or two. They were trying to compare me to everyone in my room by telling me how their scars would take longer to heal because the ladies are all older than me. They made me laugh. I love that they were trying to make me feel better. The nurses here have such beautiful hearts.
One of the nurses went to Saipan on vacation about a week ago and she was telling me how she did some pretty fun activities. She said that the beaches are very clean and clear and how she had a wonderful time. I was pretty excited to hear all about it. She gave me my medication for today and tomorrow and then left.
At lunch, I didn’t feel like talking too much, because I was in my own zone. For lunch, we had a pretty delicious meal. They served breaded fish with lettuce, rice, green and corn soup, tomato, cucumber and green salad and a delightful raspberry gelatin dessert. It was quite filling I must say.
After lunch, Kaori told me that she would speak with me a little longer later on. I know she felt bad and I don’t want her to. I think that it is nice that she mingles with other people. I agreed and said I’d see them later on today. I went back to my room and in no time I was being told to go to the second floor for more tests. I spent most of the early afternoon down there and gladly it was all done after 2:00pm. I headed back to my room and shortly afterwards I got my IV injection removed. That was the very last one. What a relief! No more poking me around and trying to find my veins.
The Nurses are Awesome!
The nurses have been showing concern about my eyes and the way they look today. I asked if the red scars would remain there for a while. They said that I’m young and that it should go away in a week or two. They were trying to compare me to everyone in my room by telling me how their scars would take longer to heal because the ladies are all older than me. They made me laugh. I love that they were trying to make me feel better. The nurses here have such beautiful hearts.
One of the nurses went to Saipan on vacation about a week ago and she was telling me how she did some pretty fun activities. She said that the beaches are very clean and clear and how she had a wonderful time. I was pretty excited to hear all about it. She gave me my medication for today and tomorrow and then left.
© 2014 Jennifer Gutierrez
Thankful
I am so grateful about the way these nurses and doctors have treated me. They have been like a family to me. The ways they show that they care make me feel extraordinarily special. Life in this hospital has been an amazing experience for the most part and I cannot complain. Although I may fuss a bit here and there, I am 100% satisfied with the services, the love, the solidarity and the professionalism.
The Documentary Film Happy
I decided to watch another documentary. One named Happy. How perfect is that? It is about the way people in various parts of the world live in happiness or unhappiness. Some people desire to be happy, while others already are. It is a marvelous film that showed me that being happy doesn’t need to be hard to be. It can be simple and does not need to be tagged to making more money for it to happen. It makes me think of close friends and family members who live decent lives but feel like they need to have more means in order to be ‘happier.’ Generally, I can admit that I have thought that way. The more money I have, the happier I am. However, the more I think about fun activities to do, ways where I can a volunteer, the more active I am and the more I meet people who are on the same wavelength as me, the happier that makes me. Money will always be there. We can make more of it, but it only serves a few purposes, to buy and replace, to feel more powerful and can cause isolation. Don’t get me wrong, being financially free is definitely rewarding, but aiming to be happy solely for money can make us a slave to paper. Those are purely my thoughts. We all have our own opinions and I respect that.
Last Dinner
Today, I joined Kaori, Nanami and about four other women to dinner. They were all such sweet ladies. I mainly spoke with Kaori, because she is the only one who could speak English fair enough. Nanami tries very hard to get a word or two and I am thankful to her for that. We talked about the people who are leaving tomorrow. Nanami will be leaving. The roommate who is sleeping in front of me will also leave tomorrow. I found out that she had fat under both her upper eyelids and had to undergo surgery. Now that that’s done, she’s ready to leave. Good for her! We had a great time and Kaori gave me some bean dessert after dinner. Her husband brought it to her earlier today. I love her! She is the sweetest person! She also wants to invite me to her home and I thanked her for thinking about me.
What was for dinner?
I decided to return to the room to complete this diary entry and translate it. This is my last full day’s worth of my hospital stay at Olympia. It has been a wonderful, learning and touching experience.
Life
Life comes at us in many forms. We can take it like a grain of salt or we can make the best out of what is thrown in our direction. I know that the moment I stepped foot onto this hospital, I could have been miserable for 18 days. We choose how we let experiences pan out in our worlds. I could have been here wishing to be home and always complaining about some problem. I’m sure there were times when I complained about an incident or two, but the stay, the personnel, the patients and my willingness to be present with them is what has made this one astounding ride. If I had to do it again, I would in a heart beat. I take none of it back. For some people, their life conditions are in dire states (compared to ours) and at times some of those same people live happier than us.
Thank you for sharing this journey with me!
I am so grateful about the way these nurses and doctors have treated me. They have been like a family to me. The ways they show that they care make me feel extraordinarily special. Life in this hospital has been an amazing experience for the most part and I cannot complain. Although I may fuss a bit here and there, I am 100% satisfied with the services, the love, the solidarity and the professionalism.
The Documentary Film Happy
I decided to watch another documentary. One named Happy. How perfect is that? It is about the way people in various parts of the world live in happiness or unhappiness. Some people desire to be happy, while others already are. It is a marvelous film that showed me that being happy doesn’t need to be hard to be. It can be simple and does not need to be tagged to making more money for it to happen. It makes me think of close friends and family members who live decent lives but feel like they need to have more means in order to be ‘happier.’ Generally, I can admit that I have thought that way. The more money I have, the happier I am. However, the more I think about fun activities to do, ways where I can a volunteer, the more active I am and the more I meet people who are on the same wavelength as me, the happier that makes me. Money will always be there. We can make more of it, but it only serves a few purposes, to buy and replace, to feel more powerful and can cause isolation. Don’t get me wrong, being financially free is definitely rewarding, but aiming to be happy solely for money can make us a slave to paper. Those are purely my thoughts. We all have our own opinions and I respect that.
Last Dinner
Today, I joined Kaori, Nanami and about four other women to dinner. They were all such sweet ladies. I mainly spoke with Kaori, because she is the only one who could speak English fair enough. Nanami tries very hard to get a word or two and I am thankful to her for that. We talked about the people who are leaving tomorrow. Nanami will be leaving. The roommate who is sleeping in front of me will also leave tomorrow. I found out that she had fat under both her upper eyelids and had to undergo surgery. Now that that’s done, she’s ready to leave. Good for her! We had a great time and Kaori gave me some bean dessert after dinner. Her husband brought it to her earlier today. I love her! She is the sweetest person! She also wants to invite me to her home and I thanked her for thinking about me.
What was for dinner?
- I had fish with asparagus
- Curry infused potatoes, peas and carrots
- Rice
- Mushroom, corn and greens in a milk side dish
I decided to return to the room to complete this diary entry and translate it. This is my last full day’s worth of my hospital stay at Olympia. It has been a wonderful, learning and touching experience.
Life
Life comes at us in many forms. We can take it like a grain of salt or we can make the best out of what is thrown in our direction. I know that the moment I stepped foot onto this hospital, I could have been miserable for 18 days. We choose how we let experiences pan out in our worlds. I could have been here wishing to be home and always complaining about some problem. I’m sure there were times when I complained about an incident or two, but the stay, the personnel, the patients and my willingness to be present with them is what has made this one astounding ride. If I had to do it again, I would in a heart beat. I take none of it back. For some people, their life conditions are in dire states (compared to ours) and at times some of those same people live happier than us.
Thank you for sharing this journey with me!
