Ive been in the hospital for 8 days... And I wanted to tell you why. It all happened so fast. I was taking an antibiotic for an infection. My body had what has been described as a severe, rare and toxic reaction to that antibiotic. My fever spiked to 104 and could not be controlled. My blood pressure dropped dangerously low. After all of that was under control... There was minor damage to my kidneys. They my liver showed signs of injury. So we began to watch those levels and they would not come down... Just kept going up! It was very scary for about 48 hours. Sort of changes your perspective on EVERYTHING! I had a lot of time to think about whats important in life. Ill spare you all of my thoughts... But I wanted to tell you this... I thought a lot about HOME. This past year... I moved my family from our HOME in NJ. Moving from friends and loved ones was beyond hard. Being here in Boston... the place where I was born... Where I grew up... Where my family is... Has been amazing... Especially during this past week. But Ill tell you this... New Jersey, New York, Kingston, Miami, Idaho or Boston... HOME for me is where my wife Juli is. I know this... I would not have survived this week without her sleeping in my room night after night... Covering me in ice when my fever was uncontrollable... Holding my hand and crying when my blood pressure dropped. She is a saint, my better half and my strength when Im weak (and you know how I hate being weak). Besides Juli... The doctors and nurses here at the Beth Israel are so smart and thoughtful... This was a real mystery at times and they worked together to figure it out... To put me on the road to recovery. Between the BI and those in the Harvard Network, I have never had better care. Thank you, thank you, thank you... Especially Doctor Steven Chen. He is EVERYTHING a Doctor should be. So with my liver heading back to normal... It will be 6 weeks of high doses of steroids and an antibiotic with countless blood tests, just to be sure but it looks like Im headed home today. A little thinner... An Unintended beard and the knowledge I am lucky to be alive. A new lease on life my Dad said after his cancer went away the first time. A new appreciation for the best medical care in the country here in Boston... And a much deeper love for my wife, children and family. For all of you... My viewers... Sorry Ive been absent - bringing you the news means more to me than you could know. Ill be back as soon as possible... Liver and all! (The pictures below - a shot of the ambulance ride... Me wandering the hallways after I got some strength back... Me trying to break out to get some fresh air... And when that couldnt happen... I found a crack in a window.. That had to do. Ill spare you all the other not so pretty pics!) #wcvb Michelle CharlesworthAmy Freeze
Posted on: Fri, 22 Aug 2014 16:34:53 +0000
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