Emerging Courageous Online Magazine

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A Bump On The Head by Linda Fullerton

Be aware that what I am going to say is 100% fact and is very gruesome.
I need to tell you all the gory details so you can truly understand what a
miracle it is that I am alive today. On Sunday 11/3/96, I bumped my head on
the doorframe while exiting from my car. It stung a bit for a few moments
and I thought nothing else about it. On Wednesday of that same week I
started to get headaches, and a huge lump called a hematoma (blood clot)
formed on the back of my skull so I starting taking Advil for the pain. I
called my doctor and was told that it would be very painful for at least a
month until the blood reabsorbs back into my system. On 11/23 I called the
doctor because by this time the pain was getting worse not better like he
said it would. I was referred to an after hours doctor who confirmed that I
had a blood clot and sent me home. On 12/9 I saw the doctor again and by
this time the blood clot had grown to a size of 6x2-1/2" and could be seen
from across the room. The doctor ordered a CAT scan to check for a skull
fracture. The blood clot did not show up on the scan because the contrast
medium was not ordered and there was no fracture.

For the next month I went to the emergency room twice and was sent home
both times with no results. I had x-rays, saw a neurologist, went to a pain
clinic, saw a neurosurgeon and visited my own doctor several times with no
relief in sight. I was given every pain killer known to man: Fiorinal,
Daypro, Amitriptyline, Tylenol 3 with Codeine, Ambien, Demerol, Clonazepam,
Darvoset and finally Roxicet (Morphine) - none of which helped at all. I
was taking a regimen of 3 extra strength or 1 prescription Advil and
alternating with 2 extra strength Tylenol every 2 hours for over a month.
Even this did not help me. I even tried alternative medicine: feverfew
which is normally taken for migraines which I have never had, and a topical
herbal mixture of St. John's Wort oil, Arnica oil and Aloe Vera Gel which had
a salad dressing consistency. I would plaster this greasy mixture onto my
head every day, which made my long hair a nightmare to look at and had a
nasty smell to it. During this period I only missed one day of work and
worked 45 hours a week even though I was not getting any sleep at all. I
have never been a fan of suicide but Dr Kevorkian was looking real good at
this point. I could truly understand for the first time why someone would
not want to live if that was how the rest of his or her life was going to
be. I would get down on my knees literally crying and praying to God to
take my life so I would not have to suffer that horrible pain anymore. It
really felt like something was eating my brain! You can read the rest at:
http://www.frontiernet.net/~lindaf1/bump.html

Linda Fullerton
Rochester NY USA
[email protected]

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