What Are You Doin' New Year's Eve

Little did I know when I decided to do this blog that the new year would bring life-altering news. We went to Salem Hospital on New Year's Eve to get an MRI. Dean was having funny spasms in his right hand, just a couple times since around Thanksgiving. Around Christmas they began to intensify and traveled up his arm, into his neck and face. We figured it was something pinched in his neck or shoulder and made arrangements to get help from a new chiropractor. But after a visit with Dr. Hall on Dec. 30, he ordered the MRI at Salem Radiology. They couldn't get him in until the following Monday, so I pressed to have it done at the Hospital. It was scheduled for late afternoon of the 31st.

Dean was awakened early the morning of the 31st by another spasm that frightened us both. He staggered out of bed and went to the bathroom to look at his face. Thinking he might be having a stroke, I asked him to raise both arms together and he couldn't. His right hand hung like a broken branch. But after about 10 minutes, it subsided as before, and his arm and hand control returned.

Then it happened again even stronger around 11:30 pm. Dean called Dr. Hall at home and he said to go to the ER and they should have the results of the MRI.



We got there shortly after midnight. The MRI hadn't been read. They were on a skeleton crew because of the holiday. The ER doctor arranged to have the MRI looked at by someone outside the hospital. We sat around until about 3 am when he told us there were a couple dark spots in his brain that seemed to indicate there had been a couple tiny strokes in the past, but that there was no evidence of new activity. We went home and slept till noon.

Early Friday morning January 2, I was awakened by the doctor on call for Dr. Hall who had ordered a second MRI, this time with dye. I inquired why and was told it was because of something that was seen on the first one (this time analyzed by a technician at the hospital). We would have to wait until next week for any results.