Title : Alone.............
link : Alone.............
Alone.............
As I wrote the stitches were removed Sunday ( Easter Sunday) lunchtime. What a hospital, operations are happening around the clock. My experience of hospitals in Spain is that during a 'normal' weekend, there might be one doctor on call. How different this hospital is.A silly little side comment, which made an impact on me, were the beautiful and tastefully arranged Easter decorations throughout the hospital. It looked lovely, on every one of the 21 floors, the coffee shops, the hallways, waiting and reception areas. It gave the entire place a happy , sunny feeling.
Something else that hit me was the difference in noise levels. In Spanish hospitals, no thought is given to the patients. The corridors are like Piccadilly Circus, with nurses shouting to each other from one end of the corridor to another, where doors are not closed, but slammed and as for visiting times, you can hear yourself think, as the Spanish tend to drag their entire families in. We are talking parents, with children ( who skate up and down the corridors screeching), grandmothers and fathers, aunties, neighbours and god know who.
In the Charite Hospital, I can only say, I heard nothing. Nurses entered quietly and left quietly. It was bliss, as it meant the only thing from stopping me from sleeping was my pain and my 'head' ( too much time to think).
Rhea and I did have a minor panic attack. Sunday night ( the day the stitches had been removed), we were both lying in bed and I have to admit that my chest / side / arm really hurt. We removed the bandage to have a look if everything was ok. Not that we would have known, but I was worried I might be bleeding.......... Well, I was not bleeding, but with the help of a mobile phone torch and mirror, we established that I had stitches sticking out. Had the doctor made a mistake and not removed them all? What now? Our train to Bremen ( Varle, which is in the middle of nowhere on the map), in fact 4 trains were booked and we were due to leave a lunchtime the next day.
I have always worked on a 'let's see if we can fix this, before we go to a doctor basis', something the kids remind me of every time I see them. Whenever they were 'ill', my advice was 'drink water and go to bed'. I have never been a fan of chemical substances. Note the way I said 'chemical' and not 'toxic'! I am not willing to exclude wine in my theory. Anyway I distract, I asked Rhea to take some tweezers, whilst I held the skin ( also a challenge when it is under your armpit next to your breast), and to pull the thread out. She pulled and pulled more, but refused to do anymore, as apparently my 'skin was screwing up'. I managed to cut a bit of the thread that Rhea had managed to pull out, but then gave up. We decided to go back to hospital on the way to the train station the next morning.
In hospital the following day, yesterday, a doctor inspected the wound and informed us that yes, there were stitches ( we had noticed!) but that they would dissolve in time. If only I had known and if only the doctor on Sunday who pulled the stitches had told me that I had more, but that they would dissolve............ So all seemed well and we proceeded to the train station. God knows what people must have thought of us. Rhea struggling with two large suitcases and large cabin bag, with me walking next to her, holding a handbag. Thank you Rhea! 4 trains, meant 3 changes, Rhea had more than a gym workout that day. We arrived in Varel late last night and were picked up by Inge the lady who's apartment I have rented, which was lovely of her. I had intended on renting a car, but with it being Easter Monday yesterday, no location was open. A good thing anyway, as I found out that I should ideally not drive for 4 -6 weeks after the op. Now that is a challenge, I like my independence and being in Varel really means, one needs a car. I guess I will get fit, walking, let's hope that it does not rain all the time.
I said Good bye to Rhea this morning and I have to say, I cried like a baby. The help she has given me the last two weeks has been unmeasurable, not to mention the emotional support. We have laughed so much it hurt, we cried, Rhea organised everything and I just followed. I will never forget this time , under shitty circumstances we had a lovely lovely time and I am very impressed hearing Rhea ( for the first time) speak German. My daughter speaks German and I had no idea how well. ( She refuses to talk German to me).
So here I am in Varel, Rhea has left and I am not sure what to expect, nor am I sure how much I will write about it. I am here on recommendation by my Professor and a dear friend , to meet a man 'who will help me to help myself'. Does that person exist?
Thus Article Alone.............
That's an article Alone............. This time, hopefully can give benefits to all of you. well, see you in posting other articles.
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