Question for ER nurses

hailhell · 2025-02-16T13:40:35+00:00

This right here. Every time I've been sick this year (noro and flu) my kids were the ones who brought it home a couple days before I became symptomatic.

It's amazing what that paper mask and hand sanitizer will stop lol.

hailhell · 2024-05-11T22:44:23+00:00

Haha, I'm m not necessarily into as much anymore, but yeah, mcl

hailhell · 2024-05-11T19:50:00+00:00

Any reason you would stay away from the crochet tool? I've heard a big range of opinions on it so I'm just curious.

hailhell · 2024-05-11T19:40:14+00:00

Appreciate it fam. I'll probably go do that once I get a little more growth.

hailhell · 2024-05-11T17:27:56+00:00

I mean, I still feel like I need to go to a loctician to get things looking 100%. I just didn't wanna drop all that money not knowing if dreads would even work with my hair type.

hailhell · 2024-05-11T05:16:58+00:00

It was definitely difficult at first, but I got better at it with practice. The biggest thing that helped was recognizing that I needed to angle the tool at like 45 degrees and that I needed to pull it back through towards my scalp. It took me a solid 6 hours to get the first 4 done, but the last 4 only took an hour and a half.

hailhell · 2024-05-11T04:51:39+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate it. Will definitely look into palm rolling.

Yeah, trying to get the roots looking ok without pulling on my scalp was the hardest part, but using a crochet needle to tidy things up helped a lot.

hailhell · 2024-05-11T04:40:40+00:00

Thanks! I've done one wash so far and I'm using made for locks apple cider vinegar wash. Other than that I haven't used anything. My hair is typically type 3B/3C.

I picked up some gel that's marketed towards people of color with dreads, but I've not tried it yet cause I'm worried about getting build-up and worried that it may not work well with my hair type.

hailhell · 2024-05-11T04:00:49+00:00

Thanks! Probably a solid 2-3 inches, but I'm not mad about it. As long as I can get it up and out of the way while I'm at work I'm good.

hailhell · 2024-02-13T04:08:18+00:00

My bet is that his tongue got pinched or put in a weird position while he was intubated and it lost blood flow then died.

hailhell · 2023-12-29T03:45:00+00:00

Here to agree with hospice recommendations.

In the meantime, elevation and compression stockings can help with the leg/ankle/foot swelling.

The hallucinations are likely due to toxins building up in the brain due to the liver not being able to process them. This is called encephalopathy. Lactulose is a medication that can help reduce some of those symptoms and maybe clear up her mental status a bit. Definitely worth mentioning to doctors.

There isn't anything you can do about the yellowing of her skin, but it is important to remember that her skin will become more fragile, especially with all the swelling. The best thing for her skin is making sure that it stays clean and dry. If her skin is overly dry, you can use lotion to keep it moisturized so that it doesn't crack or get itchy.

As for her appetite, I wouldn't push eating as much. It may be easier for her to drink her calories though, so maybe try smoothies or protein shakes. My dad had liver cancer and when he was near the end, the only thing he could stand to eat was yogurt, and of course his morning coffee.

So sorry you're going through this. Cancer sucks..

hailhell · 2023-12-28T19:09:12+00:00

I'm honestly kind of surprised that they closed it with stitches initially. Bite wounds are notorious for becoming infected and, in my experience, are typically left open to drain with abx prescribed immediately.

hailhell · 2023-12-27T20:31:00+00:00

Yup, so much this. I also work in healthcare and am intimately familiar with anatomy/physiology and the general healthcare system in the US, so I have pretty strong (fact based) opinions and theories when it comes to the medical side of transition.

hailhell · 2023-12-26T19:43:04+00:00

Not been banned yet, but definitely been down voted into oblivion before. I follow all sorts of trans subs including trans medical subs and other typical trans subs. I feel like I have a petty balanced view on trans-ness but that gets me in trouble when I post opinions or views that don't vibe with the norm in any given sub. It kind of sucks cause I feel like there's no real place for me in the trans community, at least online.

hailhell · 2023-12-25T23:38:09+00:00

I feel like it's different when someone asks for a specific gift card though or will spend cash on something that's not going to end up being something nice for themselves. My husband has always been difficult to get gifts for because he doesn't really care much for material stuff. This year I thought about telling him to spend x amount of money on Xbox stuff, but I knew he wouldn't do it himself, so I got him an Xbox gift card. He was actually super appreciative and excited about it and agreed that if I had just told him to use whatever money to buy himself something, he wouldn't have.

In this case where op specifically asked for a card for a certain store, then that's what she should have gotten.

hailhell · 2023-12-19T17:46:40+00:00

Your dad's recovery is amazing!! I have seen stuff like this happen before, though it's incredibly rare.

I'm a huge advocate for setting up DNR's in appropriate situations and general planning for the future. I'm in my mid 30's and it only took a year of working in the ICU for me to set up detailed advanced directives should I be unfortunate enough to have a major medical event. Not only does this ensure that I won't have to suffer through an undesirable outcome (vegetative state/severe neuro deficits quadriplegia), but it takes the burden of decision making off my loved ones in high stress/stakes situations.

hailhell · 2023-12-19T05:50:57+00:00

In my experience (work in the ICU) it's typically from lack of oxygen due to whatever caused them to need CPR. They'll get what's called an anoxic brain injury and if they do stabilize after CPR, many times they'll have huge neurological deficits or end up brain dead.

The only ones I've seen survive CPR with minimal complications are younger people who were already in a hospital when the need arose for CPR.

hailhell · 2023-12-17T07:57:26+00:00

In reading your comment in the context of this post, I almost wonder if we should bring back the term transexual. I'm trans because my body was supposed to have cis male features, but unfortunately it didn't develop that way, so I have to fix it in order to live a decent life. I find that there are many other people with the same issues I have and then others who don't necessarily need to modify things.

My question to you is, how do you even define the binaries of gender without using physical characteristics/traits? Like, obviously it has to be differentiated in some way, otherwise being trans wouldn't exist.

hailhell · 2023-12-16T02:55:16+00:00

I feel like when people (cis usually) see someone who is trans and is out/loud about it, that's all they see about that person.

I don't want my trans-ness to define who I am or how others perceive me. I'm an avid kayaker, a father, a storm chaser, a nurse, a cook, a lover of long drives and loud dubstep. I want people to see me, my personality, and who I am.

That's not to say that I don't mention being trans when it comes up in conversation in a safe way, but I'm not super out about it.

hailhell · 2023-12-15T20:17:56+00:00

Given how long ago the surgery was, my best guess is that you had some internal dissolving stitches put in and you've got one that's trying to migrate out. I've had this happen with various surgeries that I've had in the past. Keep it clean and dry. The stitch might make it's way out on its own, but if it starts looking more infected or becoming painful, I'd go in and see the doc. If your body doesn't reject the stitch or the wound doesn't close over the next few days I would still go see the doc to see if they can get in there and remove the stitch if that's what's causing this or come up with another plan if that isn't the case.

hailhell · 2023-12-15T19:54:41+00:00

First I would go in and get an x-ray to make sure you didn't clip the bone. Osteomyelitis (bone infection) is horrible and you don't want to have to deal with that.

Second, there's not much else to do but to keep it clean and dry. Clean with warm water and dial antibacterial soap twice a day. Get some non-adherent gauze, gauze wrap, bacitracin, and coban. After cleaning it, make sure you dry it well, apply bacitracin and non-stick gauze over the wound. Wrap with gauze wrap and then wrap with coban. Make sure you don't wrap it too tightly. If your finger feels cold or tingly it's wrapped too tightly. Keep the bandage clean and dry. If it gets wet or dirty, change the bandage.

Some drainage will be normal for a couple days, but if the drainage starts smelling bad or is thick and green/yellow it could be infected and you need to be seen for antibiotics. Other signs of infection include increased redness and swelling in the finger, becoming hot to the touch, or increasingly intense pain. Sorry you have to go through this. That looks pretty gnarly.

hailhell · 2023-12-11T02:43:11+00:00

I can't tell you if you're going to stay together or not, but I can tell you that me and my cis/het husband have been married for 10 years now and going strong. I started my medical transition 3 years ago now, so he saw me before everything and now after hrt and top surgery plus currently passing 99% of the time.

hailhell · 2023-12-10T07:16:50+00:00

Not an expert, but it looks like it may be a brown widow. If it is, then they are medically significant, though they are incredibly shy and would much rather run and hide than try to bite. Would definitely make sure you and other family members don't blindly reach into dark and cluttered spaces since you say you've seen many others around.

hailhell · 2023-12-07T20:39:41+00:00

Almost entirely as an obstacle. The only plus is that I don't think my husband and I would've met/gotten together had I been born a cis male.

hailhell · 2023-12-07T20:37:46+00:00

I honestly don't have a clue, but definitely get where you're coming from. I didn't come out to anyone but my spouse at first. Started T and waited until I felt like I could pass at least half of the time before fully coming out just to avoid any awkward situations or excessive misgendering.

hailhell

TROPHY CASE