Settling At Home

Sunday 13 July 2025. After all the drama of the past few days, yesterday was a sit down in front of the telly and catch up on such gems as Supercar, a Family at War, Wheeltappers and Shunters Club, and of course The Footage Detectives, all from Talking Pictures TV.

I even spotted my own name crop up in an episode of the latter! I have also several films to watch from their schedules. It all made for a more relaxing and gentle day than we have had over the last nine or ten weeks in hospital.

I did nod off a few times, side effects from the many pills they've been stuffing into me. These have included morphine which sends you to sleep anyway. Come Monday I must see about ordering more meds - do I order from the old routine or the changed one that the hospital gave me? That adventure is still to come.

Anyway, I'm home, still with sore and bandaged legs but mostly they are healing rather than raw wounds and deep ulcers under the bandages. I see the District Nurses tomorrow. Fingers crossed for that.

Monday 14 July 2025. Yesterday was another semi chilled day.

I need to order fresh supplies of meds this morning for instance and whilst a list of changes went from the hospital to the surgery, what remains on the list of available meds is the same old meds as before my admission. Have had to list all changes but there is no feedback method built into the software so am already expecting more cock-ups and stress...

First visit to District Nurses in an hour, one leg has wept a lovely green stain onto my instep. We'll see how we go. Walking very painful this morning. Daughter Gill is giving us a lift.

Humidity and heat making nights almost unbearable. My tailbone has chronic (long-standing) fractures to vertebrae 1 and 3 and with all the enforced sitting over the past 9 weeks are causing swelling and soreness. Vertebra 5 is also close to popping the disc. Oh the joys!

Another Talking Pictures festival takes place very soon. Another I'll have to miss... Well, let's see what the future brings! I'm sure if I lived closer I'd be round every day wanting to see how I could help out!

Tuesday 15 July 2025 Yesterday I had an appointment for 11:30am with the District Nurses. We got there at 11:00am as sometimes an appointment finishes early and you can get in early yourself. However...

Receptionist: "Is it Mr Bump?" (name changed to protect the innocent)
Me: "No - Mr Burke"
Receptionist: "Oh, you're due in at 12:50..."
Me: "No - we were told 11:30..."

We went to sit in the little waiting space and by 11:30 no sign of any Mr Bump. My usual Nurse from before the hospital admission came out and said they were very busy but that someone senior was coming to see me to dress my legs. She turned up as I was being told this and so I now have a matching set of redressed legs.

Apart from that we have not been anywhere. I'm spending days catching up on sleep lost during hot nights, though I've found that by placing pillows behind knees and under heels lets me get off to sleep during the night. I've also caught up with tracking transactions on our various cards over three month endings, some of which have been a bit muddled. Or was it I who am muddled?

A white van arrived at lunchtime and a chap tried to give us a third set of toilet arms and perching stool. We explained we already had as many as we had toilets and sufficient perching stools for washing and cooking. He went away a sadder and more soaked man - it has been torrential rain here today!

Cancer and Leg Ulcers Index

March 2025, Leg Ulcers Carry On, the Car and Wardrobes Don't

28 February 2025. My new computer has landed on my desk. Yikes Windows 11 seems to feel the need to push A.I. at me all the time whilst ensuring that lots of what I already had in the way of software will now refuse to work. I've managed to get my sound software back up and running at the expense of having to download a new version - but at least it allowed me to download it.

My photo-editing software now has to be run online and is totally different. A.S. (Artificial Stupidity) has been built in to assume that I want to start every session based on a template, most of which seem to be designed to appeal to 14 year olds who might not have the knowledge to decide for themselves what they want to do and can be easily diverted by flashing lights and bright colours. I just want to start with my own photograph and maybe adjust the perspective to avoid leaning buildings etc.

Resize doesn't allow that. Stretch only seems to keep the same proportions but adds bars of colour at either side or top and bottom... "Do you want A.I. to help? Would you like a template to make a poster?"... A.I. can't even equate "Ltd" with "Limited" for crying out loud...

6 March 2025. Agony day after the District Nurses yesterday. My right leg is now in a compression stocking over the dressing rather than bandages, which is good except that the slightest pressure on the now much thinner covering is excruciating. Pressure such as that caused by walking, resting, standing with the leg held out in mid air etc... (I don't do the latter a lot...)

The left leg, which was first and always the worst, looks miles better, but again doesn't necessarily feel like it. But a good sign for the future I hope. Note to anyone waiting for me to send CDs or DVDs - the new computer doesn't have a disk drive... should be sorted soon! It was sorted by setting up the old computer in the conservatory, hooked up to the TV as I didn't buy a new screen for the new PC. I've disabled all access to the Internet on the old machine so that any nasties can't get to it and Windows 10 won't be being updated anyway...

20 March 2025. Well today me and the memsahib clock up 49 years of married life. Happy Anniversary Miss Franny.

It's been a funny old few days. We are having new wardrobes fitted and the car refused to come off the drive to allow for the skip. S-I-L Eddie got new key batteries and tried again but it was the car battery that is defunct. Luckily our lovely neighbours allowed us to have the skip put on their drive. Wardrobe parts delivered yesterday afternoon much to the confusion of the driver who saw skip on wrong drive and wondered whether he had wrong address...

Meanwhile after the car sitting on the drive for more than a year, I've decided to get rid of it. I'm told I'll be carrying the cancer about indefinitely now and the legs also make driving a no-no at the present time. I'm over 70 now and have seen too many drivers of that age, who consider themselves fit for driving, make the most dangerous decisions or show a deteriorated ability to judge distances. Even my dear old Dad scared me on the last couple of occasions he drove me anywhere once he got over 70. And my current level of exhaustion means I'd be scared of falling asleep at the wheel.

Although there have been few signs to date that I would when I need to concentrate, I only need to stop concentrating for a few seconds and the next thing I find is that my eyes are closed and I'm sitting chin on chest at my desk or whilst watching TV. Not going to risk it!

The District Nurses on Monday referred me back to GP for leg swelling and I saw a GP (!!!) yesterday, resulting in another change of meds followed by more blood tests then booking to see him again in a couple of weeks.

The wardrobe fitters arrive tomorrow so hopefully we will have new flashy wardrobes by Friday evening. The old ones are shown above.

The new ones are shown here. It's the same TV which was perhaps a mistake as it may be HD but it's not a smart TV and I'd have loved a few more USB inputs if I'm honest. I might get round to it at some point... We gained some wardrobe space and shelf space and can now watch the TV from a remote Sky box.

30 March 2025. The leg ulcers seem to be getting better, in that areas are scabbing over and splitting into islands leaving more healthy new skin showing inbetween. But the pain meanwhile is just the same. I am now seeing the District Nurses twice a week in the surgery which is much better than the once weekly arrangement. I had another bad session last weekend with leaky wounds oozing out through bandages and the District Nurse command centre did send someone to the house.

She turned out not to be allowed to touch compression bandage so she just put a layer of cotton wool bandage on after cutting off the compression bandages and said someone else would come later the same day. This second nurse just put compression bandages on top of the cotton wool, leaving my legs looking as thick as tree trunks and very hot and painful. This prompted my usual nurse to say she would make two slots available at surgery for me each week.

Meanwhile I have seen a GP about the swelling and have more blood tests this coming week. I am now on two different diuretic pills daily and have started to notice the tightness slackening off a bit. That's all good. However, hobbling to the loo in time is an adventure! I'm reminded of my dear old Uncle David who used to develop medical products and who related this story....

'We had been to a conference and stopped on the motorway for a meal on the way back. There were a few of us. One of my mates said, "David, how do you know if your incontinence pants will hold up when you need to wee?"

'I said "Well the only way is just to wear them and test by letting go". So he did. In the queue at the counter. And they didn't...'

Cancer and Leg Ulcers Index
Family Memories: Personal Index