Author Archives: dcreamer

By David Freeze

It had been 14 days since I could exercise or do much of anything physical. Everything started with a severe kidney stone issue very early on March 25. A night in the hospital and I headed home with plans to handle the offending stone and the resulting blood infection which became the serious part. Four days and three nights in the hospital, lots of new medicines and procedures and then it was Monday of this past week, where today’s update begins.

On the morning of Monday, April 4, I returned to the hospital for outpatient surgery at 5:45 a.m. Things went great as Dr. Lee Johnson pushed the big stone aside and took out two smaller ones behind it. Then he lasered the large one and brought out the pieces. He also took out the larger stent that was especially uncomfortable and replaced it with a lesser one to help with healing and urinary flow. A catheter had to be used for a day.

We think my stones come from dehydration issues, a very common thing on the long bike rides. I work hard at drinking water and other fluids otherwise but still we all have to stay hydrated. I have written many times about how the body needs proper hydration to do all the good things it should. The brain and every other organ are affected with poor hydration. I can tell that when I lose a couple pounds quickly that it’s likely hydration related. My cycling or running performance is immediately affected. I noticed on Friday morning that a poster in the urology office showed 12 different kinds of kidney stones and one of them looked just like mine. Next comes a 24-hour collection of urine which will be analyzed.

Home care with some stout antibiotics kept up the positive news on the blood infection. I had no fever through the various office or hospital visits.

No running or other exercise this week through Friday morning because every time I did anything remotely physical, more blood showed up in the urine. One trip to the roof to fix some wind damage on a farm building was the worst, but it had to be done. I spent way too much time sitting and taking it easy. Everybody says I should be resting, but I have had enough to last me quite a while.

The removal of the final stent was done in Dr. Johnson’s office on Friday morning, April 8. Two weeks after this saga began with a kidney stone, the stent removal was way easier than I thought. He just cut some tape, pulled a string and the stent came right out. I will leave the more graphic details unwritten, but I hope you have the idea. When I left the urology office, my kidneys were free of stones and my body of stents, a wonderful feeling.

Next week comes the follow-up visit on the blood infection with the infectious disease nurse practitioner Caroline Waller. I’m also waiting on a lab report from Dr. Brinkley about the current status of my blood clot issues. I was told by a nurse after being readmitted last week that blood clots can complicate things in the hospital when so little activity is usually done.

I went for a 2-mile run/walk as soon as I got home on Friday morning. A lot of improvement is needed before I head to Nevada and California in early June to run from Reno to Lake Tahoe and back on a relay team competition of 178 miles. Then likely on to a bike ride along the Mississippi River. I will keep at it and certainly appreciate all the kind words, prayers and encouragement during the past week.

The next race up is the Stomp Out Sexual Assault 5K on April 23 at Knox Middle School and on the greenway. Look for this and more events at www.salisburyrowanrunners.org. 

By David Freeze

Last week’s column addressed some help from Jeter Chiropractic for a nerve issue in my right leg and some discomfort in my lower back. I wrote that column on Thursday and one week later, I’m doing the next one after what seems like much more than just seven days have passed. My intent for this column is to share information garnered from a very challenging week.

Last Thursday afternoon, I noticed some blood in my urine. That isn’t always a bad thing for runners because it does happen once in a blue moon, usually tied to dehydration or hard training. I put the issue on the shelf and finished the day, the last time for over a week that I have attempted to exercise. The beginning of a continuing saga was the blood and lower back discomfort, both now tied to a kidney stone that reared its ugly head late Friday. As a long-time stone sufferer, five years had passed without a severe one. Severe usually means big, so large that it can’t get out of the body on its own. Since this story is not about kidney stones, I mention it briefly as the setting for a much more serious issue.

The stone hit hard on Thursday night with severe nausea that emptied my stomach and caused extreme chills while limiting my ability to urinate. Often, a stone stops moving and the pain subsides for hours before returning, but his one hit hard for 12 consecutive hours. My daughter Amber took me to the Novant ER and with arrival just after 5 a.m. Over the next day and half, I had surgery to place a stent that restricted the stone to the edge of my right kidney. I left the hospital on Saturday afternoon with further surgery to remove the stone and stent planned in a few days. Here is where this week’s story really begins.

I was home, not especially uncomfortable except when I had to urinate. Bladder spasms, caused by the stent, were terrible but usually went away within minutes. I got the first call late on Saturday to return to the hospital immediately due to a possible blood infection. Drop everything and get here!

It was serious enough that the doctor called my daughter twice when she couldn’t reach me. I talked to Dr. Spencer about 8 p.m., just about six hours after I had been released. She told me that I needed to immediately start treatment for a blood infection, promising to call back within 20 minutes and give me the plan for re-entry into the hospital.

Dr. Spencer called back and shared the good news that they wanted to run the blood cultures again to confirm the issue. I heard nothing more until Monday afternoon when Dr. Rickard called with the same issue. The cultures had confirmed the blood infection, now making every hour important.

I drove back to the ER, prepared to stay for as long as 12 days, which Dr. Rickard suggested as a possibility. New blood draws and vital sign checks continued as I was put in an ER roomette for constant monitoring. At that point, I felt great and had no fever, apparently a key sign if the infection had begun its work. Most important was an initial treatment with a specific IV antibiotic based on best knowledge of my situation. I was told that there are many types of blood infections and the right antibiotic had to be found to stop it and that some antibiotics used are hard on the kidneys. This work, chasing the right antibiotic, was done with ongoing cultures.

Sent thankfully to a regular room in the hospital at 4 a.m. on Tuesday morning, I settled in for seemingly constant blood draws and vital sign checks, while wearing a full-time heart monitor. I began to gather information on what the infection could do if left unchecked. Heart issues seemed to be the most pressing concern, but damage to other organs could be tremendous. Treatment was based on the right choice of antibiotic and use of the quicker IV as opposed to pill form intake.

Over two days, I followed Novant MyChart postings and realized that several departments were working together to beat the infection quickly, with urologist Dr. Lee Johnson very much aware of the activities. I spent the time trying to keep up some of my writing and other laptop work. More importantly, I began building a true realization of all the good things happening around me. The nurses and CNAs from third floor west became friends and sources of knowledge and comfort during the situation. More and more, doctors stopped by as good results kept showing up. Then on Tuesday afternoon, infectious disease nurse practitioner Caroline Waller visited for an unhurried discussion about my situation. She informed me that should those results continue, I would be able to leave for treatment from home on Wednesday afternoon. I was shocked that things were moving so quickly.

So, from home, and with the urology surgery now set for Monday, I feel very blessed and thankful for all the work done already at Novant Health and the fact they are still monitoring me. I’ll continue to update things next week.

The Dolphin Dash 5K is set for Saturday, April 9, at Sacred Heart. Look for it and more events at www.salisburyrowanrunners.org.