My cat bit me!

[Tina ☺]

It is itching! *screams*

I was playing with the silly animal the other day and she obviously got too excited while play biting me and bit too hard. Now that it's starting to heal, it's itching like crazy and is driving me mad!

[Sue]

Ouch, I know how that is. My cat used to bit and scratch me all the time out of playfulness. I have scars from it (my sister is by far worse off with regards to scars from that cat than I am).

The itching is just part of the healing process.

Have you had your tetnus booster within 5 years? Animal bites/scratches always remind me of that one.

[Tina ☺]

Yeah, I'm up to date on the tetanus shot...lol

I appreciate your reply. No one else seems to care! I used get all sorts of scratches and bites from my cats too, past and present. One day, the silly cat that bit me the other day was lying in the floor and was getting ready to step over her to go by and she panicked, jumped up to run, and one of her back claws dug into the top of my foot, leaving a long deep gash there! Ouch!

That one took awhile to heal.

[Sue]

I haven't had a cat in a little over 8 years (died the day before 9-11). I want another one, but my sister and dad are very allergic. She, the cat, got ran over by a vehicle. My mom and I found her. That was the same cat that nearly killed me - literally! Not that the cat knew what she had done/caused.

[Tina ☺]

Aw, how sad! Cats are always finding and 'adopting' us. The cat in question here was found in a motel parking lot when she was just a little thing. She was so sweet and friendly that I couldn't just leave her wandering around there. The people that worked at the hotel said she'd been hanging around there for about a week or so.

Wow, how'd a cat nearly kill you? Have you posted that story here before? I must have either missed it or forgotten it.

[Sue]

I know I've posted in somewhere, but it probably wasn't here.

Anyways...
One day, in March 2001 - a few months prior to graduation of highschool, I was on my way to head down the staircase leading towards the first floor, when my sister let the cat in from being outside all night. The cat nearly flew up the stairs, likely heading to the kitchen for her breakfast. When she reached the top stair, just as I had my foot in mid air as I was heading down, she bumped into my quite hard and tripped me. I went down the stairs, with a heavy backpack on my back packed full of binders, textbooks, and other school supplies. I, having a high pain tolerance, didn't think anything of the pain (which I had thought was minor) in my back, picked myself up and walked off to school.

Hours passed, the pain increased, I didn't think anything of it sufficient enough to complain. By the time I got home, from school, the pain had still been increasing. My mom, having heard the fall earlier, asked how I was. Of course, I answer as usual, "I'm fine."

My mom knew that I tend to understate things quite substantially. She took me to the doctors. Turns out I had internal bleeding, a cracked scapula, more broken ribs than I could manage to remember, nerve damage, and other damage.

After recovering from that, I still had a blinding pain in my left side of my lower abdomen area. It was quite intense, sharp - the worst pain I had ever had at that point.

I saw numerous doctors, none of which had a clue what was wrong. Some of which thought I was there for pills, some of which thought I was exaggerating, others which thought I had a stomach flu. I was probably admitted to the hospital once a week for many months.

In September I started college, I had a hard time concentrating and an even harder time getting to classes. This was when the cat died.

One day, in December, I experienced pain so severe that I could not move. My mom rushed me to emergency. They gave me three injections of Demerol within 20 minutes, the pain was still severe. I went through all the same questions, all the same tests, with all the same results. They told me everything was fine, I just had the stomach flu.

I went home, once again without any answers to my problems. Eventually the pain either subsided, or I adapted to tolerate the pain better. I couldn't eat or sleep. I spent most days sitting beside a toilet waiting to puke.

January rolled around, and I ended up back in the hospital for the bazillionth time. I had all the same questions, but not all the same tests. This time they ran a pregnancy test, even though I had told them it wasn't possible that I could be pregnant...they obviously didn't believe me. When the nurse came to tell me the good news that I was not pregnant (they probably had thought the pain was caused from an ectopic pregnancy) I burst into laughter. The pain was so severe at this point that I didn't stop laughing for hours. I was laughing through the pain.

They ran the normal blood tests and did an ultrasound which had been done on every single trip to the hospital that I had been through at this point. This time, however, the doctor came and talked to me about the results.

Instead of say that everything was normal, he said that they couldn't find my appendix in the ultrasound. He said that he did see what may be some swelling, but it was inconclusive. He also said that my white count was very low (I don't remember what the numbers were anymore). He told me that most surgeons would think that white cell counts being low would rule out infection, but he said that he didn't entirely agree. I met with the surgeon.

The surgeon said he would only do the surgery to remove my appendix if I agreed to certain things with witnesses to prove my statements and if I signed paperwork to also say the same. I of course agreed to this.

Hours more passed, I eventually got into surgery.

It was a success.

The next day, the doctor, surgeon, as well as my family GP came individually to profusely apologize for not having believed me. And for making me go through this most excruciating pain.

Apparently, my appendix was blocked by a piece of fecal matter, which can happen in the case of a fall. The only fall I had was from when my cat tripped me. My appendix was working excessively hard to push out this obstruction, to the point that it was mere minutes away from bursting. The surgeon said that if the appendix had burst, I would have died instantly. And not just because of toxins from my appendix being thrown into my body, but because it would have literally ruptured a very large hole in my body. From front to back. He said that there was a lot of repairing done during the 22 hour operation (which is normally a half hour operation to remove an appendix).

So, that's what happened. The surgeon told me that if they had even wasted 2 minutes before conducting the operation, I would have died.

This was not a first, nor a last experience; I have had several other near to death occurrences in my life. I've just been luck so far.

[Tina ☺]

Wow! That story leaves me almost speechless, Sue. It is truly amazing how some people are able to survive such traumatic events. I'm always watching shows on TV that tell amazing stories of people's strength and determination to survive. Your story could be one of them.

You are definitely strong and lucky. I'm glad you made through!

I had a similar experience in my early twenties when my left fallopian tube got infected for some reason, spread to my ovary, and caused it to burst. I lay there for two or three on the couch, feeling like an 18-wheeler was sitting on my abdomen with a high fever, until I went to a minor emergency center to see a doctor. They told me I was too sick to be there and called the hospital to tell them I was on my way.

Once there, they rushed me into emergency surgery. When I woke, the doctor told me that my ovary had burst and attached itself to my intestine. *cringe* If I had waited much longer, I would have died. Being that close to death is an eye-opening experience, for sure.

[jillyson]

Geez, Guys! I'm glad everyone's OK!

[Sue]

Oh, that's not very nice to go through. Luckily they got you in surgery quickly.

[holleyberry]

Wow! I am glad they finally found out what was wrong!!!
You have been through quite a bit. That fall, the surgery, your recent bike accident. How are you doing now, by the way?

[Tina ☺]

Thanks Jill and Sue!


Gee Holley... thanks for the concern for my cat bite and my bout with near death as well!

[holleyberry]

Oct 21, 2009 15:51:34 GMT -5 Tina ☺ said:

Gee Holley... thanks for the concern for my cat bite and my bout with near death as well!

Oh God! I am so sorry! I didn't even read the whole thread, I just saw Sue's post in the "Recent 25" and commented from there.
I'll go read about your near death too Tina.

edit: LOL! Sorry about the "itching" Tina!

[Tina ☺]

Thanks Holley, but I wasn't referring to itching to death. I have a post in here about when I had to have my left ovary and fallopian tube removed. THAT was a bitch!

[joandsarah]

Wow i just read through Sue's post. You are like a cat Sue (Even though one nearly killed you) Nine lives.

Tina I did try to post to the thread yesterday, but after my internet flashed at me for the billionth time I gave up in disgust and went to play sims. I was actually thinking of pming you and asking how you were lately with the P med and feet.

[Tina ☺]

Well, my Prednisone dose is at 5mg now, which is what it's going to have to be for a while. My feet? My feet are no better whatsoever. The pain, tingling, stinging, and weird numbness is still there. The swelling comes and goes.

Thanks for asking, Jo!