On March 26 around 9pm, I had my mother drive me to the emergency room. I was doubled over with just unbearable pain in my abdomen. 2 hours later, I was finally seen, and then I layed in a bed in the hallway of the emergency room for god knows how long. The next thing I know it's April 3 and I have a breathing tube in my mouth down into my lungs. I can't talk. I am scared shitless. I find out that I had a bout of pancreatitis which ended up attacking my lungs so severely it nearly killed me. At one point my family and friends were told it would be a miracle if I made it through the night. Obviously, I'm typing this, so I did. Two days after I came to, the tube was removed. The single most excrutiating pain I have ever felt was the instant just before the last little bit of it came out. And then euphoria as it popped out. I yelled out, "OH MY GOD!" I then spend almost another week in ICU, follwed by a stay in a general room. So for 3 weeks I had done nothing but lie in a bed and lose all muscle control in my legs. Off to a Rehab hospital to learn how to walk again. 3 weeks there, and I am home as of this past Saturday. Walking, albeit slow, on my own. I have almost no appetite and am hungry all the time. At the 1st hospital the doctor told me he "thought" I might have diabetes too. THOUGHT? He said, "go see your doctor, he'll know for sure." To which I said, "GO SEE MY DOCTOR??? ISN'T THIS A HOSPITAL? AREN'T *YOU* A DOCTOR?" No answer other than a polite nod. Then at the rehab hospital one day the doc told me I had hypoglycemia (sp?). The next day I now had diabetes. Oh yeah and at hospital #1 the cause of my pancreatitis was a major alcohol binge. The day before I went into the hospital I had 3 beers, not unnormal for me for a Sunday afternoon. The day night before that maybe 7 drinks over 5 hours. Hardly major binge material. Doc at rehab hospital says to me as an aside, "oh by the way, I don't think it was the hooch that caused your pancreatitis." I asked why he thought this and his brilliant medical answer? "Why did the doctors at the other hospital think it did cause it?" Jesus. Anyway, I have an appointment next week with an internist, so I hope to eventually get some accurate answers. In the meantmie I'm taking a zillion pills, I'm off the hooch, and I'm eating next to nothing, let alone sugar. Well cept for sugarfree Ensure type drinks. MMMmmmm. Any thoughts?

omigawd. no thoughts.... just hope for you. be well.

all the best, jim. and as someone who's got some serious hospital time under his belt, all my sympathies - extended time in hospitals and bouncing around between doctors, therapists, and whatever the hell they can come up with is like being in a marx brothers' movie with a script by franz kafka. so you'll have lots of interesting stories. keep us posted. buena suerte.

jim!!!!you're back!!!!! i've been wondering where you were!!!! it's been a long time.............remember my daughter and i used to instant message you.........i am so sorry to hear about your health probs.......that's kinda why i disappeared for a few years.......kidney failure, blah, blah,blah, etc........i know pancreatitis is terribly painful.....and i know how hard it is to learn to walk again...i went through it....... it's just good to know you're still alive out there............

Thanks all! Will keep ya posted.

Uhmm, Jim, Since the Doctor didn't have the answer about the health problem, what are they doing on the job? Some Doctor can't answer to my questions.

welcome home again, jim.......stay outta those dc chat rooms............

Lol Mee.....

scary glad you made it to the other side

I know this isn't funny, but I love this image... And then euphoria as it popped out. I yelled out, "OH MY GOD!" I'm so glad you're alive. Make sure to take good care of yourself, or some we might need to make sorabjifest 2008 the "come to DC and kick Jim's ass"-fest.

:-)

"And then euphoria as it popped out. I yelled out, "OH MY GOD!" " That statement could be taken quite differently without any other context, Jim. (And thus the obligatory ass sex reference requirement has been fulfilled) Stay well!

wow, that sounds incredibly scary. i can't imagine what it would be like to go to the hospital one day, and wake up a week later. thanks for letting us know, and i'm happy you're feeling better. i want to hear when the brilliant medical industry assesses the cause of the pancreatitis... and how does it attack the lungs?

yeah, that's really weird that it spread to your lungs........did they explain it to you? and if so please 'splain to us......luv ya,pj........

Thoughts? Jim, you're alive. Time to paaaaaaaaaaarrrtaaaaaaaay! :) And remember, as you get older, "7 drinks over 5 hours" could be binge material, especially if diabetes is in the picture. Don't take that shit lightly, unless you like that whole going blind and losing limbs action. Hey, every day is a gift now. That's how I've seen it ever since my "right eye trying to explode out of my head" incident when I was 13. Time to do all of that stuff you've always wanted to do, be all that you've wanted to be. Do it before you forget you almost bit the big one. Just like I did. :P

You're right eye tried to explode out of your head? That sounds like an interesting story...

Got an infection behind my right eye. Puss buildup happened and was pushing the eye out of the socket. Had to have surgery, where there was about a 10% chance the puss would blow back into my brain instead of out, like it should. So, the first thing I remember hearing in ICU after surgery was the doctor dictating the results: "Explosions of puss emanated from the initial incision..." I will always remember those words... :) As a result I have no sinuses on the right side of my head, just one big sinus. (i.e. a big bubble instead of lots of little ones)

Ewww! How delightfully gross! I've never heard of anything like that. It's freaky to me how the human body can be simultaneously so fragile, yet so resilient.

i love that story simply because it involves pus.

interesting story, antigone.......we're lucky you still have that sharp brain of yours........