My Story Compels Him...

Sunday, August 7, 2011 7:45 PM, CDT

So after asking me several times which hospital I wanted to go to and me telling them I was not from there and had no idea what hospital to go to, Tracy asked which one was closer and they said, "Carl" and Tracy says, "how about we go there?"  Relief, decision made and I am on the stretcher and being wheeled to the ambulance.  I guess there were two ambulance services on the scene and unimpressed boy was not with "Carl" so he disappeared but I could not swear to that because I had no idea what was going on.  All I noticed was those licks of NTG were decreasing my pain and just as I thought that to myself, the older paramedic, who was now my primary caregiver in the ambulance said it was time for some more.  Yes!  He actually sprayed it under my tongue and I felt the burn and was so excited that my pain was decreasing.  Tracy followed behind us and we drove on to "Carl" which turned out to be Carle Foundation Hospital.  The paramedic gave report to the ER on me and seemed to be concerned but also mentioned no EKG changes and normal V/S.  I received another spray of NTG before we pulled in and by the time I was being pulled out of the ambulance my pain was about a "3"  Hmmmm....by now I was starting to feel pretty stupid.  For some reason it never occurred to me that the NTG STOPPED my pain and though pain gone is good, it was obviously cardiac pain but my EKG was normal so I am thinking esophageal spasms maybe, I dont know and then I am in the ER at Carle. 

A nurse and a tech come right in with me and tell me they are going to be doing lots of things fast and following their chest pain protocols.  I am thinking, Yep, I know all about that.  When she questions me about my pain I tell her it is now around "2" and again I am feeling really dumb.  They do a 12-lead and it looks perfect.  WOW!  I am looking at Tracy and starting to apologize for having him call an ambulance and being so overdramatic but I just couldn't forget that pain.  It was the most excruciating, terrifying, debilitating thing I had ever felt.  Nevertheless it was completely gone by now and I am thinking maybe they can just discharge me now.

The ER doctor comes in almost immediately and by now I confess I am an ER nurse and I am feeling really dumb and probably shouldn't have come and certainly not by EMS.  He asks me about my pain and I suppose what I said really compelled him because I kept telling him it hurt beyond anything I could imagine and that I thought I was going to die.  We discussed some of the things I had already considered and he was concerned about the possibility of a dissecting aorta in my chest although it seemed nearly impossible that the pain would be so intense and stop.  Still he took me very seriously and explained to me that we would determine what caused my pain or give up when we ruled everything else out.  He was super nice and never once seemed to question me or act as if I was overdramatic.  I felt like I was in good hands and Tracy and I chatted while we waited for me to go for a CT of my chest.  My troponin results were 0.02 and my CXR looked good.

Next they took me to CT and I still was experiencing no pain.  I "hopped" from the ER stretcher to the CT table with no difficulty and laid there waiting for the CT to begin.  A few minutes into the CT that pain in my mid back returned full force.  I could barely lay there and the tech kept encouraging me and saying just a few more seconds but I was about to come off the table.  She quickly finished and wheeled me back to ER calling out for help as she moved me into the room.  The ER nurse was right there at my side and attaching me to the EKG machine and giving me a NTG and calling for the doctor.  He looked at my EKG and there it was...ischemia in the anterior leads. 

By this time my pain is way up there, nearly as severe as it was at the motel.  The doctor is trying to explain what he thinks is going on and drawing some pictures and they are hanging a NTG gtt and giving me Morphine and it is just as crazy now as it was calm earlier.  They are calling a cardiologist and if the NTG gtt doesn't help in 10 minutes they will cath me emergently and if it does stop my pain they will cath me in an hour...oh my gosh!!!  I am overhwhelmed!  But then the NTG starts to help and my pain is decreasing but I have huge hives and redness up my right arm and it is itching wildly!  News to me: I am allergic to Morphine, then comes the Benadryl IV and by now I am calming down and feeling really sleepy and waiting for the cath lab staff to come get me. 

Stay tuned...