Caspian-Division

08/19/2024

Update: 08/18/2024

Release DAY!!!!!

In process of getting out of hospital and to new home. It cannot come soon enough.

Last night while asleep I had a room invasion by a nutcase veteran wanting to escape the hospital.

He ran to the storage area where he then began throwing stuff out trying to make a door!

I yelled, he began throwing more stuff. VA Police, Nurses, all were chasing him. Finally corralled him and dragged him out of the room.

This was at 1030 PM. I got up, and picked up stuff that got thrown including my feeding supplies.

Finally went back to sleep an hour later.

I am SO SO happy I am leaving this place!

And one ponders why patients are so tired in a hospital setting.

08/16/2024

Update August 18, 2024

Finally got the damaged PEG replaced. Now I can feed again!

Awaiting the Immunotherapy treatment today. I will be getting two different types of Immunotherapy.

We are working on offers for the house so that is coming together too.

I had a weird weight discrepancy that we are going to get weighed properly on a normal medical scale.

If it holds to be true I am going to ask some more questions to the doctors.

07/24/2024

Well here is the update.

Surgery was canceled due to ongoing Gnat infestation in ALL of the Operating rooms. They have been fighting these pesky critters since last week.

I have been transitioning from liquid morphine to liquid oxycodone which comes in premeasured amounts and is delivered by the feeding tube thingy via a screw-on syringe delivered directly to the stomach.

The syringes are reusable and can be rinsed out. There is no needle attached so the accuracy is precise. We put in distilled water after each administration of medication. Lift it upright and vacuum action takes place.

This bypasses the esophagus pathway that is partially obstructed by the cancer.

The pain in the left leg is subsiding with the help of Diclofenac Gel, and I can put more weight on it too. The doctors involved are flummoxed because the X-rays did not show any of the indicators of Gout. Other tests also did not show the presence of Gout or its associated nastiness.

We are focusing on finding what works and what does not work. The oxycodone lasts longer which helps since I have the tube in the chest. The chest muscles have to adjust too.

Doing simple bed stretches is painful and needed. The first time I did it alone, I let out a rather loud yelp!
Nurses came running quickly too. They apparently heard me at the second nursing station down from the one that runs my area.

The doctors are firm on this point that they want the elbow surgery to be carried out. They are going to do a partial release of the ulna nerve I can get the feeling back and sensitivity recovered from my hand.

Some have asked about why I have a GoFundMe account. I do have to pay a deductible for VA services, in addition to the ambulance bill that just showed up. (OUCH!!)

If I had been taken to a regular hospital I would be close to a million dollars in medical bills.

So thank you for the prayers and support you all have shown.

Dear Friends, I am reaching out to you today with a humble request for assi… Stephen E Sauls needs your support for A Veteran Seeks Help With Medical Debt

07/16/2024

Had chest x-ray today. I have had specialists swarming the room. Emory Specialist is looking at the elbow closely with the option of doing a minor procedure in room or full surgery in hospital.

I get second round of immunotherapy on Friday.

I start learning on how to use a feeding tube on Wednesday. The hospital nutritionist is ordering take-home supplies. I will get to use a 1-liter bottle of feeding stuff attached to the pump so it is a closed system and will not spoil.

Interestingly Amazon sells flavored stuff but not exactly how that would work. Too expensive in my view since I would not know exactly how the stuff would do.

Have a burp of flavor from something not eaten directly? Don't know about that.

The ulna nerve is damaged, making the right ring finger (right side) and the entire pinky numb. Cannot grip very well.
Numbness goes to the elbow.

07/16/2024

Back in the room. I am super loopy. They gave some fentanyl for what ever reason. I see stuff I don't want to see. I will hug the morphine when I see it again.

I will have a second surgery for elbow damage related to the damage from my doggy trying to wake me up.

They have to debris the bone, fix pinky nerve, and do skin stretching to fix things.

Tube is in. Looks weird.

07/14/2024

We met with doctor on Sunday who stated there will be another attempt made to put in the feeding tube on Monday.
I’ve hope for it, and want the food one way or another.

07/10/2024

we will be getting a feeding tube put in this week. Duration is 3-6 months. The tube was decided to be the best option.

The problem with my stomach blockage was resolved with a little bit of self-medical experiment.

Thanks to Cran-Grape, I swallowed a 4oz size and braced for the results. Yeah, it hurt like hell for about 20 seconds.

Then things began to flow. Finally!

So the following things are off the menu. No crackers, breads, etc. Even eggs are off too.

So onto the next step.

06/30/2024

Have had to go go back to a bland liquid diet.
My stomach just cannot handle food.

I will be getting a PET Scan at VA Hospital in Decatur, GA in the morning where I am hospitalized.

On the scale level of the cancer, I am at T3.

Mainly it is to determine how far and wide the cancer is in the lymph nodes of my esophagus.

So we are hoping for the best.

Thanks for the prayers and support you have been giving.

Dear Friends, I am reaching out to you today with a humble request for assi… Stephen E Sauls needs your support for A Veteran Seeks Help With Medical Debt

06/15/2024

Good morning,
I am continuing to improve, and I have been able to return to more normal foods. It has been a rough week, for sure. As many know, the medical debt I incurred has been rough, but I am working on it.

The medical debt will include the payments we have to make to the VA debt bill. Thankfully, this issue can be handled without too much stress. The outrageous medical bill from an ambulance ride and the for-profit hospital bill are a bit more disconcerting.

I am still healing, and I discovered that some diet-based foods have certain types of sugars that can be like eating fire as my esophagus, which is still raw from the peptic ulcer, reacts. So, that requires certain finess to figure out what is good and not so good.

At least the grits I am going to make will work great and thank goodness for my little rice cooker. They come out great!

Everybody have a great day.

Dear Friends, I am reaching out to you today with a humble request for assi… Stephen E Sauls needs your support for A Veteran Seeks Help With Medical Debt