Jitters and then some....

Well im having all the last minute jitters, (surgery is on the 22nd of August) but now im also scarred that ill be post-poned. I developed a nasty infection on my right arm. It started on Wed. as a small bump like a pimple. It only went crazy from there. I have been to urgent care x2, the ER x2, cut open and drained x2, antibiotics thats right x2, even one starter boost antibiotic through an IV, (my first iv ever, i thought it would be the one for surgery, thats what i get for thinking...) just to still have the redness continue to spread though the swelling is going down a little, but it wonts stop draining and the skin is hotter than the dickens... To top it off i have a "friend" who basically is telling me that she thinks i am doing this to look better, and that the infection on my arm is a "sign". She isnt listening to what i keep saying...."This isnt at all about my apperance, this is about me wanting to be able to have a baby" I cant now, i have PCOS. How can i make her listen? Do i strangle all the doctors who keep messing with my anti-biotics rather than really try to get to the core, and dont seem to listen to my concerns about surgery postponement? Has anyone else had any infections and or know if this would keep me from having my surgery? It has been a pain to get the time off with FML and insurance and Short Term Disability and all that to just to have to redo it all !!!!! Gahhhhh im so frustrated!!!!!!!!!!!~Peace~Amy :help:

Amy: I am also having surgery on the 22nd of August, thru Kaiser Permanente. I have a hernea that also has to be taken care of when I have the surgery. I was supposed to have my surgery on July 31st, I went in for my final pre-op appt, and the dr said that I had an infection in and around my hernea. He put me on Keflex for 10 days and some triple antibiotic cream that he had ordered. It is healing up quite nicely. I go back in on August 21st so that he can check it. I am hoping and praying that everything goes for the 22nd. Hope your surgery goes ahead also. feel better, Peggy

Have they identified the bug causing the infection? If it is still hot and red, I think I would go to a specialist. It sounds like staph and that can, indeed be problem. Go for round 3 and 4 if you must. Being that it is hot to the touch, I advise you to go to a doctor ASAP an have it checked again. tee PS Your friend is a dope. They don't listen no matter what you say.

So i woke up this AM and my arm isnt as swollen! Yeah!!!! Its wierd, where its been all red now looks like a dark tan like i sun burned it from the inside. Its still a little warm to the touch but not stark raving hot anymore. It drained more while i slept, i'll again have to change the dressing on it. I am not looking forward to having the packing taken out tomorrow though. My other arm though, where i had the IV, that has got one NASTY bruise. It looks darn near like im still bleeding there. Oh well. Hopefully i hear from my surgeon tomorrow and all is well. Thank you very much to all those who have given words of encouragment, on here and via email. I never expected support from strangers, it is very comforting. Well I guess thats it for now, its back to work today, so i better go get ready. Talk to everyone later ~Peace~Amy

Good to hear the swelling is going down. I am wondering if this was a spider bite - sounds like an odd place for an infection, but either way, the antibiotics seem to be doing well for you. As for the surgery, everything in it's good time. If you have a set back, look at it as a temporary reason for a setback. I had to wait 2.5 years from my initial attempt to get the surgery. At first I was really down about it, but later I found out the doc I was supposed to see ended up losing his license and lost several patients in the process. Perhaps there was a bigger reason. So look on it with a positive spin and if you have to be delayed a month, no big deal. Just go with the flow. Take a deep breath and know that if you have an infection that needs to clear, at least you will have that risk factor taken care of. As for the friend, easiest way to deal with her is to just say "Hell yeah, I am going to be HOT. Why in the world would I care about anything else other than looking good? Because we all know it's better to look good than to feel good." In other words, throw her words in her face. Let her take it as she wishes, then go on with yourself as you wish. People will make of it what they will, but you know deep down what is right for you. And along the way, you will also appreciate what the weight loss does for your appearance as well. It's not all bad to want to be attractive, you know. If that's all there is to it, then yeah, vanity is taking over and perhaps there are some issues that need to be deal with in counseling. However, most of us know there are other issues that are much bigger and more serious than if we look good in low-rise jeans. So let them say what they want...and have fun with them in the process. Play it up and what can they do then? They'll shut up eventually. Some will be sour. And some people you thought were your friends might just alienate you. I've been fortunate enough not to have that happen, but it does. And you can't fix everyone of their own emotional baggage. You just have to deal with your own. Good luck - keep us posted! Dina

Another update....So i got to work today and one of my coworkers was concerned that if it is Staph i may be contagious. I had honestly not even thought of this. So i called up the urgent care where i originally went and they said that they actually had the results back from the culture. It is in fact Staph. They think it may be some different strand called something like merna? Its a form of cellulitis. They dont know what originally caused it and probably never will. However they wanted me to come in and have the packing changed and look at it since it is STILL red and warm. While there the doctor asked exactly what i do at work. He said that due to my line of work and the fact that i am running a low grade fever that theres too much risk of me transfering the Staph to the clients i support. So, with this, they took me off wor****il the 17th. He said the wound itself looked great and on Tuesday i can take the packing out again, this time i get to do it myself....(not too thrilled about this... ) and start flushing out with saline like 4 times a day to flu**** out and it should hopefully be closed up to go back to work Friday. Well, I guess we'll see. I hope to talk to my surgeon tomorrow too, so ill post on that later. Thank you again for all the support. I never expected this much encouragment and support, I love it! Thanks again ~Peace~ Amy

Heres an update.... I got a call this AM from my surgeons office. Well The infection turned out to be MRSA staph ( a more resisent form of staph, only certain antibiotics work, and it can even build a resistance to those ) so due to this i got rescheduled. I figured this would happen, and honestly as annoying as it is to go from 6 days away to 27 days away (new date, Sept. 12), i prefer that to battling the infection somewhere else on/in my body. It has been draining and this is just from a pimple/ingrown hair. I cant imagine what this could have done to 5 little incissions of various size that go through to my insides.... ! So i guess im back to this point, time to redo my paperwork for FMLA and Short Term Disability ( i would abbreviate, but it comes out STD!) Okay, well thanks for all the support, hopefully all goes well from here on out. Thanks again ~Peace~ Amy