Some of you already knew I was hospitalized the past few days and had been really ill prior to that. As many of you have expressed your concern about my current status, for which I am greatly grateful, I thought I'd take this opportunity to offer you a brief explanation.
I started to have fever a week before Wednesday. I went to work as usual, hoping it would go away with a few Advils. The next day I actually felt much better. Thinking it was just a cold, I decided to go ahead and fly to Vegas for my sister's bachelorette party over the Easter weekend, instead of seeking medical help. I was alright until Saturday evening, when all of a sudden I had a high fever and extreme pain in my throat and on my right jaw and ear, and found it difficult to breathe. I also felt my throat and face were swollen. I could hardly open my mouth, let alone talk and eat. Even drinking was next to impossible due to the pain in my throat. Basically, I felt like I had a combination of strep throat and tonsillitis.
Flying back to Detroit Monday morning, I immediately went to my family physician, who thought I had strep throat and gave me a shot of antibiotics and prescribed oral antibiotics. He did warn that I might have an abscess, and that if I didn't feel better in two days, I should go to the ER. In hindsight, I wished he had ordered me to the ER right then. By Wednesday afternoon, my condition was getting even worse, and my fever had returned. I asked a friend to take me to the ER at Beaumont.
It turned out I had a "peritonsilar abscess." In layman's terms, a blister the size of a golf ball full of muddy-color pus had formed next to my right tonsil and reduced my airway to less than one-third. The hospital contacted two ears, nose and throat surgeons to perform the drainage. I was told I was pretty lucky. Had I come in a day later, my airway would have been reduced to one-fifth, and a tracheotomy would be necessary. Frankly, a tracheotomy gone awry would mean the end of my career! Nonetheless, even after a morphine injection and numerous topical anesthesia, watching surgical knives and needles going into your mouth was a really horrifying experience. Moreover, it hurt so badly for a split second, I thought I could have passed out. Miraculously, almost immediately after the surgeons sucked out two four-inch syringes of pus (I am not kidding), I could speak! The first few words I uttered were "Wow, this is unbelievable (or something like that)!" 15 minutes later, I was able to drink fluid and eat JELL-O. I have to admit I had four cups of JELL-O right away.
Right now, I can speak, but not up and about, and I still tire easily. However, I do expect to return to work starting Monday and will have a crazy work schedule ahead after taking seven work days off.
I have to ruturn to the hospital in a week because the doctors strongly recommend a tonsillectomy. I am sure this whole episode will cost me at least $5,000 dollars. :-( However, if it means no more strep throat, tonsillitis or peritonsilar abscess in the future, it would be money better spent than on fixing my teeth or nose, or microdermabrasion.
Since this was also my very first time to spend the night in the ER, while it was not exactly a life-and-death situation, it did force me to think about the real priorities in life as I was recuperating on the hospital bed. Hopefully I will change for the better. For now, though, I am not going to bore you with my internal philosophical rumination.