The last three days have been interesting! I'm really glad I got in my 14 mile long run on Sunday because the half marathon is about 10 days away and I haven't ran since. I should do a tempo run tomorrow but I'm feeling "off" and hoping I can get out for at least a short run before I drive to Colorado Springs. But more about that later.
Monday I went to work at the Rock. I was feeling pretty tired when I got there so we did our usual plane check, equipment check, med check etc and then I laid down to read. I was SOUND asleep in about 5 minutes. Luckily I laid down when I did because about 90 minutes later the phone rang for a call. I was excited because that is what I like to do. When I called for report the patient seemed pretty sick and I was even more excited. I don't wish for people to be sick, but that is what I'm trained on and work hard to keep my skills up for. Transporting a sick ICU patients is one of my favorite.
Unfortunately this patient was REALLY sick. My first glance terrified me and I was sure he was too unstable to transport. After some discussion with Medical Control and the receiving doctor it looked like we were on our way. I had a great medic that is super smart and meticulous (and hot! - well that's unprofessional! haha). We spent a good hour at the hospital getting the patients meds on our pumps, assessing, taping and moving. Let's just say this patient was over 300 lbs. Very difficult to care for someone that large. Very difficult to move patients that large. I know that obesity is a complicated subject and if it was as easy as "calories in" and "calories out" then most people would be thin. It's so much more complicated then that. When I meet a critically ill patient that is obese, I don't know them. I usually can't have a conversation with them because they have a breathing tube and I don't know the circumstances of their lives. I do know that no matter what the reason is for their condition, it's almost impossible to care for them how I would like to and for their bodies to fight a good battle because of the extra stress on everything! Sometimes, all the problems that my patients have (and this is not specific to any patient) that include obesity it's apparent that they aren't taking care of themselves. That is frustrating. Your body can only give as good as it's given.
Luckily for us, we were able to transport the patient slowly and safely to a hospital equipped to to take care of the issues without any severe instability. It took about 9 hours because of the care we had to take with moving and making sure the patient was safe and so were we. The bad news is: It totally kicked my ass. The adrenaline that gets pumping and the physical work along with flying is a recipe for exhausted! I LOVE my job! But now I can't seem to get enough napping in. I did make one mistake after the flight and I didn't have my EmergenC that I usually have after every flight with 2 bottles of water. I could tell the next day I was dehydrated.
At the airport we saw this Air Crane. How cool is it??? It is for fighting fires. I watched some You Tube videos about them and they are impressive.
On the flight to SLC we saw a fire that was burning just south of Bear Lake. It's pretty amazing to see it from the air.
Tuesday my son had to take our dog to the vet.
I hate it when something goes wrong when I'm out of town. Matt left the same day I did and we were both a little worried about our dog, Ted. He had been moping around, not eating well, puking and a little diarrhea. The kids left at home watched him closely and then on Tuesday my son, Daniel, called me and said he was worried and wanted to take him to the vet. We have the best Veterinarian ever - I called and he was able to take him right in. After stool and blood tests they confirmed some sort of intestinal virus that Ted probably picked up from a long walk and drinking some water or something. I guess there is a pretty big outbreak of it and the Vet had seen about 6 dogs in a week with it. Ted was given some meds and sent home. Today when I got home I noticed he was a little more lazy then usual. I love it when he lays like this, with his paws crossed. He's a great dog!
My favorite part of the day!
Opening these!!
I work - I get a reward. OR - my husband works, gets a bonus and I get new shoes!
YEAH, new shoes!!!
AGAIN? I probably need an intervention but when Road Runner had a 25% off sale on shoes for VIP's AND they had the new Asics in PINK in men's - it was kismet. The planets aligned and it had to happen. I have the perfect outfit for them too. Hahaha. I will run in them! They are stable enough and maybe I'll find they are the combination that will help my foot heal. Who knows??
Before I knew that I would feel sorta crappy today I signed up for an Athletic Conditioning class with the famous "ass kicking" Christian. I napped most of the afternoon so I decided to go. If you've never done Reformer Pilates then here is a pic of how they are:
Usually I just take a Pilates class but the studio 9th & 9th has other classes on the reformers too. About 45 minutes into the class I thought I was going to vomit. It was HARD! Then we ended on 100 push ups Doesn't he know I can only do about 10 push ups that are OK. I tried though and by the time I finished and got in the car I could hardly hold up my arms. Talking on the phone was painful. I just hope I can wash my hair tomorrow!
About Colorado Springs.
My great friend Chris has a daughter Lyndsi. (there will be a quiz later..haha) I have known Lyndsi since she was 7. I met her the same weekend I met Chris up camping. Chris and I have been good friends since. When he lived in town we spent many weekends camping with other single parents and kids and had the best time ever. He is truly a great man with a huge heart!
Lyndsi is now married and is having her second child. She really doesn't have contact with her biological mom, so I have wormed my way in as pseudo mom. I was there for the birth of her first boy and I'm hoping to be there for the second. She has been pretty miserable and having labor pains, but I'll be there by Friday night. I love this girl and think the world of her. I'll be in Colorado at least a week, then I drive to Moab for my race. I'll get some runs in before the race. I hope. One thing is for sure - there is going to be a lot of baby holding and sniffing. My blog may temporarily transform itself into a baby blog.
Long post....lots of rambling! Welcome to my head!
Do you ever just have a few days when you are exhausted???
Is there anyone in your circle of friends that you consider family?
How do you think the health care system should handle the ever increasing obese population?
Blog on...............
Check out SUAR website! She is giving away Yurbuds and they look pretty sweet!
