On Monday, September 21st, Steve came home from studying at the school library with a really big headache. We didn't think much of it though since Steve gets headaches every so often. He took some Ibuprofen and we went to bed. The next morning, Tuesday, he said his head was still hurting and he'd gotten up to take some more meds early that morning. I got up w/ Nyles while Steve tried to sleep a little more. I went to work shortly after he got up. By noon his headache wasn't going away, so he called his friend Duane Bates, who is a Physician's Assistant. Duane said to try taking Lortab, and if that didn't work, to go check himself into the hospital, for there must be something else going on. After Steve picked up Nyles from Preschool he went up to Joann's and got the Lortab, then came home so he and Nyles could take a nap. After he woke up it still wasn't going away, so he asked Joann if she could come down to be w/ Nyles and so he could try and sleep some more. Steve was supposed to take a test that night, so was hoping the headache would go away so he'd be able to go take it.
I hurried home from work that afternoon. Steve was trying to sleep but was now getting chills. He said his headache still wasn't going away. I asked him what Duane said then decided we'd better go to the hospital to check it out. Joann left and we packed up to head to the ER. Steve wanted me to just drop him off, but we decided to stay w/ him to see what was going on. I honestly thought he was having a migraine, so I figured they would just give him some heavy meds and we'd be on our way. It didn't turn out that way though.
They took him right back, took his vitals and asked him what was going on. His blood pressure was definitely high as well. We then went back to a room where they drew blood, then the Dr came in soon after. He said they wanted to take a CT scan to make sure he didn't have a brain aneurysm, then if that came back negative to do a spinal tab to look for Meningitis. Steve was starting to get nauseous by this time as well. They took him back for the CT scan. After he got back they hooked up the IV's and started to give him some pain meds, but they didn't seem to be helping either. By this time it was getting late and I needed to get Nyles to bed. I asked Dave if he could come be with Steve so I could take Nyles home to bed.
Steve at the ER, having a severe headache.
I went home and put Nyles to bed. When Dave got there they tried to do a spinal tap, but the Dr couldn't get it. He didn't want to try it again by himself, so he called in a specialist. While they were waiting Dave asked Brandon Lake to come and help give him a blessing. Steve said he doesn't remember any of it, but Dave told him that they would figure out quickly what was going on, then he'd be on to a quick recovery. After Brandon left the Specialist came to do the spinal tap. He was in Syracuse though, so it took a while for him to get there. After the spinal tap, they had to wait for the results. They were trying to give Steve more pain meds, but it still wasn't helping.
Steve in the ER, waiting for results.
A little while later, they came back w/ the results. Steve had Spinal Meningitis! His results were off the charts in terms of his white blood cell count. They said they were going to need to admit him to the hospital. Steve talked to me for a minute on the phone then I spoke to Dave who filled me in some more. About this time (11:30pm) Joann was showing up at the ER to trade off w/ Dave so he could go home and get some sleep before work the next morning. After we all found out what was going to happen, they wheeled Steve over to the hospital to get admitted, and Dave headed home. I sent my manager and coworker an email letting them know I wouldn't be in the next day, then went to bed. Steve said it was around 2am before he finally stopped hurting and was able to sleep. They had given him some intense pain killers by this time.
Steve in the hospital now.
The next morning, Wednesday, I was planning to go see Steve. We didn't want Nyles to be around him for safety measures, so Joann was going to watch him. Nyles wanted to go ride his bike though, so we went outside for a little while. About this time the police and fire department showed up at our complex. Someone had apparently fallen and hit their head. The police, fire truck and ambulance blocked our driveway, so we weren't going anywhere soon. It was after 10:30am now, and Nyles would be going down for a nap in an hour, so I decided I'd better wait to go see Steve during Nyles' nap. I put Nyles down for his nap, then Joann came over to sit w/ him so I could go see Steve.
I brought Steve some new clothes to change into, some hygiene items, and a few Duck magazines to read. The pain meds were working pretty good by this time, so Steve was feeling much better. I stayed with him for a few hours, then left so he could get some sleep. He said he didn't sleep much the night before since they woke him up every couple hours to either draw blood of give him more pain meds.
Steve wasn't a fan of the hospital food, so he asked me to pick him up a burger for dinner. They said I could bring Nyles this time, so we went and got burgers for dinner, then went to the hospital and had dinner together. Nyles thought it was fun to play on the rolling chair. Dave and Joann came a little while later as well. We had slushies together, provided by the hospital, then went home to put Nyles to bed.
Steve feeling better now ;)
The next morning, Thursday, September 24th, I used another one of my "sick days" for work, and stayed home again. I got to take Nyles to Preschool that morning though, which was fun. After I picked him up we decided to go to the park for a minute. About this time Steve called and said he was getting discharged. We hurried home to change and grab a few things, then headed over to Alta View Hospital again, this time to take him home. Steve was definitely glad to leave! After we got home, we had a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch, then Steve laid down for a nap. Nyles decided he didn't want to take a nap (though he took a 3 hour nap the day before), so we went outside and rode his bike again.
I went to work on Friday. Steve has been doing better, though they said he'll most likely continue to keep getting headaches for the next week or so. They gave him some pain meds to help with it. They confirmed that he had Viral Meningitis vs Bacterial Meningitis. We are thankful that we were able to catch it pretty early on. Meningitis can be life threatening. We are thankful we listened to Duane to take him in to the ER, rather than trying to wait it out some more. We're also thankful for Priesthood blessings!
Ironically about the same time my dad was diagnosed with C-Diff. He's on a heavy dose of antibiotics himself to trying to get better. We pray for his speedy recovery as well.
I'm thankful for family and the love and support we have for each other. Be grateful for every second of every day that you get to spend with the people you love. Life is so precious!
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