When your self-care routine takes an unexpected turn into a medical drama, you find strength in places you never knew existed. Tune in as Mel invites us into her hospital room, transforming her bed into a confessional booth where she bares the raw reality of life with a rare infection. Her tale, though punctuated by medical interruptions and sterile backdrop of a hospital, is anything but clinical. With a mystery infection that has even the top doctors scratching their heads, Mel navigates through the labyrinth of healthcare with humor and unwavering determination. Our conversation swings from the emotional strain on her family to the financial burdens, all the while underscoring the paramount importance of advocating for oneself.
This episode also serves up a lighter side of the hospital stay—think of it as the comedy show you didn't know you needed. Mel finds laughter in the unlikeliest of places. We reminisce about roommates with less-than-ideal volume control and share a collective chuckle at the peculiar bonding that only a shared hospital wing can forge. We deeply express our gratitude for the prayers and support. Stay tuned for the journey ahead, and remember, a sense of humor might just be the best medicine.
When your self-care routine takes an unexpected turn into a medical drama, you find strength in places you never knew existed. Tune in as Mel invites us into her hospital room, transforming her bed into a confessional booth where she bares the raw reality of life with a rare infection. Her tale, though punctuated by medical interruptions and sterile backdrop of a hospital, is anything but clinical. With a mystery infection that has even the top doctors scratching their heads, Mel navigates through the labyrinth of healthcare with humor and unwavering determination. Our conversation swings from the emotional strain on her family to the financial burdens, all the while underscoring the paramount importance of advocating for oneself.
This episode also serves up a lighter side of the hospital stay—think of it as the comedy show you didn't know you needed. Mel finds laughter in the unlikeliest of places. We reminisce about roommates with less-than-ideal volume control and share a collective chuckle at the peculiar bonding that only a shared hospital wing can forge. We deeply express our gratitude for the prayers and support. Stay tuned for the journey ahead, and remember, a sense of humor might just be the best medicine.
Send us your comments or questions and we will answer them on the show! email - lastpieceofpiepodcast@gmail.com
Speaker 1:
Welcome, el Papers. This is the last piece of pie. I'm Jen, I'm Mel and we are coming to you. Live from room 24 of Mel's hospital bed.
Speaker 2:
M&M room. I have a roommate. Her name starts with an M2. So we're going to call it the M&M room. Oh, it's the M&M show of botched asshole. Yes, start all of the jokes now.
Speaker 1:
I've already heard it so Mel, to update our El Papers. Had a procedure last month to do something for herself.
Speaker 2:
On November 20th. I did it for my birthday.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, to make her feel good about herself A weekend to, it started to have a complication.
Speaker 2:
A tumor grow on the side of my head.
Speaker 1:
Went back to that surgeon a couple of times and now here we are, a month later in the hospital.
Speaker 2:
Longer than that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So what I did is I went in and so back in 2020, I got COVID and didn't know it and attacked my thyroid and so basically killed my thyroid and I gained 50 pounds. I lost the weight, except for that one area. I just had this section of fat that would not go, ever go away. And so I met him in July and it took me all those months to get the courage to sign up for it and it was like it's no big deal, it's just liposuction, we suction it out. You know you're going to be fine and it is a common, normal thing. People get liposuction done every day, and so it was. I was headed towards my 43rd birthday and I was like you know what? I have been a single mom for five years now. I never put myself on the table. I'm going to do it.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, we talked about that.
Speaker 2:
And now I did it, and now I'm going to be a broke single mom in trouble.
Speaker 1:
Well, I'm glad you did it for yourself and it's an unfortunate event that you had a serious complication from the procedure, because it is a serious complication?
Speaker 2:
Yeah, very. I've basically have seen Ben in two of the best hospitals, seen some world renowned doctors, and no one can figure it out. No one has ever even seen it.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, it's a. It's a weird.
Speaker 2:
Even I couldn't even my personal surgeon can't figure it out.
Speaker 1:
I know I was like, oh, it's got to be some kind of hematoma, it's got to be some kind of infection, which we know it is. We just don't know what kind of infection they. First they thought it was Merca, but now we're still waiting to see if it is actually.
Speaker 2:
Merca.
Speaker 1:
Yeah.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, so they. I came in Friday after work. I was having like just really bad pain. It felt like my face was going to explode, and so I just drove myself up, thinking I'm just going to run into the ER real quick, because you know me, everything's real quick. You know I'm just going to run in, get some antibiotics, get the hell out of there, get back to work. I worked, I was scheduled to work all weekend. We had houses and commercials on the line and I'm still here. Yep, no one will let me go home People.
Speaker 1:
I brought her snacks. I've brought her a change of clothes.
Speaker 2:
Oh, I've gone through a week's worth of clothes. Abby's coming up tonight with more sweats and she's got to take home my dirties and poor kids holding down the fort. But she actually likes it. She's like, mom, this is what it's going to be like to have my own house and my own bills. And I'm like did you get the mail? She goes does that come every day? I was like, oh, fuck my life I have failed you as a mother.
Speaker 1:
Does that come?
Speaker 2:
every day. I was like, yes, the mail comes every day. You should probably check it just in case you know your bills that you need to pay.
Speaker 1:
Yeah.
Speaker 2:
So she's she's loving it. But what's cute about it? She's loving it because she has no bills.
Speaker 1:
Right, she has a beautiful home paid for Clean. She just gets to do whatever she wants and eat the food. As long as there are foods there, she's fine.
Speaker 2:
Right, Exactly Remember. I just went to Aldi prior and spent tons of money because I wasn't going to go back for six months.
Speaker 1:
You're stocked up.
Speaker 2:
Now she's probably like did you plan to die?
Speaker 1:
You're not going to die.
Speaker 2:
Not really.
Speaker 1:
Oh man, I love teenagers.
Speaker 2:
Yeah. So she's good, we're, we're doing fine. It's nice to laugh today, and Today was like the day where I just felt like you know where you can feel like you're gonna have that breaking point, like I haven't had a good cry yet I actually haven't cried yet at all but I'm like I probably need to have a good cry and just release the, just the. I don't know, I don't wanna say a failure. Well, we already talked about that in the last podcast. Yeah, it's not your fault, that's happened, I know. Yeah, it's just stinks and I really don't have time and Well no, your body's telling you something different.
Speaker 2:
I know right Yep and I have been going hard for the last five years and I know you probably should have gotten in a week ago for this. Hey, remember I said that the episode with Ashley I was coming in on empty.
Speaker 1:
Yes.
Speaker 2:
My check engine light has been on broken hip Now I grew a tumor.
Speaker 1:
Yeah.
Speaker 2:
So good shit over here. It's always a shit show in the mall land. You know it's never quiet. It's yeah, and that's what one of my girlfriends said. She's like only you. Like seriously, this shit only happens to you, nobody else. I'm like, I'm aware.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, sometimes our body does not respond how we want to, but you also know your own body and that's why you have to be your own health advocate, because I don't feel like they've done more than they could have until today.
Speaker 2:
Right, well, that's it was the first day I felt like they actually Been aggressive. But that's the difference between Jen and I is Jen will ask questions and push buttons and I'm like, whatever you think, you're doing a great job. I'm like the encourager in the hospital. I'm like go, team go. And Jen's like we're here to ask questions and I'm like yes, I don't want to.
Speaker 1:
You have to be your own health advocate because you know your own body. Now I work with some great doctors. There's fantastic doctors out there and then there's times where things don't go right. But doctors are humans and there are really good ones who are trying to figure it out, but you also have to be. You have to be on them, yeah, because you know they haven't had the right answers yet.
Speaker 2:
No answers yet, because it is very rare, no one has seen it, and so it's like I just feel like we're throwing darts at a.
Speaker 1:
You are a special case oh girl.
Speaker 2:
I've always been special.
Speaker 1:
Just give me a helmet. You're going to be in some medical journals, I think. There you go, the case study of a white female, 43, with a tumor penis size on her face.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, my cute little nurse today drew around it and I went and looked at the mirror and it looks like a penis and I came out and I'm like you drew a fucking penis on my face and you start laughing like this is not funny.
Speaker 1:
And then this I love nurse humor.
Speaker 2:
And then the second guy came in. He goes only if you had like a splash at the end of it. I was like you guys.
Speaker 1:
What I could draw. A little tear drop next to it.
Speaker 2:
Oh my God, I'm like this is everyone's just having fun on my expense? Love it. Glad, everyone's having a good time. Yeah, so when you mentioned that I should have went in last week what she's referring to, al Poppers, is my first sign was fatigued. I was extremely, extremely tired. I was sleeping like 14 hours at night and coming home and taking like three hour naps every day, like I couldn't get through the day without coming home and it would be four or five o'clock, remember, and I'd pass out. I couldn't stay awake.
Speaker 1:
Yeah.
Speaker 2:
And then I ended up back in bed by eight and so, yeah, it wasn't until the pain got so bad it made me go in and I might have, like, what white blood count doubled and some other things, and so we're gonna figure it out. Yep, they are.
Speaker 1:
There's hope. There is. We thought we would be out today, so it didn't happen. So we're just gonna keep trucking along, Even in a hospital. L-poppers, we bring you our sense of humor.
Speaker 2:
Our shit show. I'm glad Jen's having fun. I haven't washed my hair in a week. I'm like I could grease a door with this hair.
Speaker 1:
It looks beautiful.
Speaker 2:
Like seriously, we could WD-40 something. So I wanted to tell you. When I came in, they were like we're gonna do a series of antibiotics and they had to do them through at the IV.
Speaker 1:
Yeah.
Speaker 2:
And I was like okay, and we all were thinking like I would just be here a day and it would respond to the antibiotics and I'd be good. Well, it didn't and it kills veins. So I've blown five IVs, oh, and at like, probably three nights ago, they wanted to put a pick line in and I was like no, like I only had, like I was still on schedule. I was like I still have two more treatments and I'm going home. Yeah, like they said, six treatments and I'm leaving.
Speaker 1:
Yes, we were manifesting that it was gonna happen.
Speaker 2:
And now here I am. So now I kind of wish I had the pick line this one starting to die. Today was burning. I was like oh no, but I got through another session of medicine, so I guess we'll see if that vein makes it.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, I think it will. It's gonna last another day before something else happens. Sweet Jesus, your boobs look great, though right now Let me tell you.
Speaker 2:
Oh, thanks, love you know I've gained some weight. This Haspel food is amazing. Like I have not ate this well in like my whole life. Like the shit's good.
Speaker 1:
I know Mel's like getting three square meals a day, which he's never like done.
Speaker 2:
Like I never eat you know that like I eat a protein bar for refguss, protein bar for lunch, cause I'm always on the fly Time to get home. I'm too tired and still too busy to even cook, so we're like just making a quick salad. No, you're eating like cheese and crackers At home, girl, this today for lunch I had a chicken Caesar wrap, a fresh cut of vegetables with hummus. I have a chocolate milkshake with every meal.
Speaker 1:
Like a five year old.
Speaker 2:
Oh breakfast. Breakfast has got to be french toast with peanut butter and syrup, two strips of bacon, hash browns of salt and pepper, ketchup. And then they have this like warm berry, gooey yumminess topped with granola. Oh my God, I'm so in love with it.
Speaker 1:
It's bad, yeah, so like in the hospitals, up in their food game.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, it's called room service. Like I call on the phone and I'm like hello, can I have crab legs? They're like, I'm like hello, they don't serve crab legs. It's kind of bummed, but when.
Speaker 2:
I get out of here. That will be my first thing we do. Let's go buy crab legs and cook them at home, at your house, though, so your house can smell. Thanks, yeah, so like I'm on a cruise diet up in here like buffet lines are open. I am living large. Like you can order snacks to like 9 pm. It is like a cabin in here as far as the space. Right, I got my roommate Madison, hey Madison.
Speaker 1:
Hi Madison, Do you hear?
Speaker 2:
L-Poppers. How's the food over there? Yep see.
Speaker 1:
Madison sounds so sweet better than grandma, oh, whatever.
Speaker 2:
Madison's young and perfect and perky, and I'm over dying.
Speaker 1:
Nobody's perfect. If they're in this unit, everybody's dying.
Speaker 2:
Madison's only 25 and young and can conquer it all.
Speaker 1:
You got this.
Speaker 2:
Madison.
Speaker 1:
You gotta tell us, Mal, you gotta spill the tea on your former roommate that you had though. Oh sweet baby Jesus.
Speaker 2:
Madison, you gotta listen to this. So I came in on Friday night. It was late time I got in right.
Speaker 1:
Because I came in afterwards, it was midnight by the time you got to this room.
Speaker 2:
Yes, and there was a roommate. Okay, well, fun fact about this room is this whole wing was the old hospital, this was the baby floor and this was the nursery.
Speaker 1:
Oh, no, kidding, I know Well. I mean, come on, no one like think about all the babies.
Speaker 2:
Yes, oh sweet Jesus, jen can get pregnant up in here.
Speaker 1:
No, there's no baby factory. Nope, Latcho man is fixed. There would be no babies.
Speaker 2:
Yep. So anyways, this was the nursery room. So it just makes my heart happy. It's comforting because you know me and babies. Anywho, I got in here I was exhausted, I was in pain, I was scared. No one knew what the hell was going to happen. And my 87 year old roommate doesn't stop talking until three in the morning. Yep, folks, three in the morning, full conversations With herself, with herself.
Speaker 1:
We don't know if she was on the phone, but still Well her granddaughter was in the room.
Speaker 2:
But granddaughter now, like I'm sure by three o'clock in the morning, it's just not going to respond, right? She's just sleeping Once in a while, Mm, Once in a while. She probably threw something at grandma.
Speaker 1:
She's grunted Like, yeah, I'm listening.
Speaker 2:
So she finally slept from like three to five in the morning, and then at five o'clock she was back up and she was just chatting.
Speaker 1:
Chatting.
Speaker 2:
So this doctor comes in. Basically, what's happening with grandma is they're trying to get her into an assisted living.
Speaker 1:
And they're trying to convince her.
Speaker 2:
it's time oh man.
Speaker 1:
I've had that conversation before in L Poppers. I know we have some older adults out there who are dealing probably with a situation with their parents or grandparents. I've had that conversation. It's never fun. No, it's hard.
Speaker 2:
And I'm sure she was extremely resistant. Very, and she was like I've lived on my own my whole life. She's like I've done it this 87 years, I can do it three more.
Speaker 1:
Three. She only comes herself three more years.
Speaker 2:
And I was like, oh boy, and then they would argue back and forth and then the granddaughter get mad. And then the daughter came the next day and so now she's had like a series of doctors come in. Well, there's one doctor come in and he was kind of patient, kind of not. He was like kind of like you're driving me nuts, lady. So he was like we have to get you to continue this next series of your life, like we have to get you to look past and look into assisted living. The chief fall she must have fell or something. I don't know. It's against.
Speaker 1:
HIPAA violation. She can't be on her own enough anymore.
Speaker 2:
So he was basically wanting to ask like, basically, the cycle of life has stages, right, you got married and then, when you were married, then you retired and you did all the. He's like, now it's the next step. And she was like well, I told my husband, when he dies I'm going to date, but when I die he's not date, but that I think I'm done dating. I about died I was dating at 87. At 87.
Speaker 1:
I was like I wonder what that's like.
Speaker 2:
I was like. Lord Jesus, don't let that woman in her stone. She's going to be bed hopping.
Speaker 1:
They do that now. That's what I've heard.
Speaker 2:
Oh, she's going to tear it out she could be like a horny teen.
Speaker 1:
Danger in there.
Speaker 2:
Oh, she's going to tear it up in the nursing home All right, no doubt, no doubt, oh my.
Speaker 1:
God, even at 87, we're still frustrated as women dating.
Speaker 2:
Yes, like you know, I think I'm done dating. But I love how she told her husband if I die, you can't date, but if you die, my shit's dating.
Speaker 1:
She's like I'm sorry about Frank or whatever his name is. Rest in peace. She's like moving on that matter of the ground Moving on that matter of fact.
Speaker 2:
So I think it tells us two things there's hope. There's hope. I mean, grandma stuck it out for all those years. She did not go through you know all the men that was possible. She, you know she, kept dating and then there's not really a lot of hope.
Speaker 1:
I know it's like good for you, grandma, getting back out there after your husband died, but man must be slim pickets once you get to a certain age. You know what Her family Die before us, so Right yeah.
Speaker 2:
If her family was smarter, though, they'd be like hey, we got found a place you can date, where you can date. Hey, maybe we shouldn't do that, we can set up-, but grandma, we have a co-ed floor for you. Right, and we could invent an app where, like, they're in the nursing home and they swipe, but like oh, lord Jesus. And then they like swipe up if you want to meet at dinner, swipe down if you want to meet up, you can go. Swipe left if you want to do an activity together.
Speaker 1:
Oh Lord, I think the nursing staff has already too many plates going. I don't think they need to set up dates. No, we'll do it.
Speaker 2:
We'll do it on the app. I'll do it.
Speaker 1:
We're gonna have We'll go in and have a We'll be their dating gurus at the nursing home. We'll do a Valentine's Day dance.
Speaker 2:
I like how Jen goes back to 1930. I'm like I'm gonna develop an app so they can talk to each other. Jen's like we're gonna have a dance and I'm gonna make cookies and I'm gonna make hearts and cut them out in red velvet.
Speaker 1:
None of those 80-year-olds know how to use a phone.
Speaker 2:
I said swipe left, swipe right, up or down Left. I mean it's just it's easy Up or down, right or left.
Speaker 1:
You know what? We just give them like a Bingo punch card and be like with their faces on it and be like I want to meet that guy In the library.
Speaker 2:
We'll be fighting over room 69. That's my favorite number.
Speaker 1:
So I think we thought we found our new next business adventure.
Speaker 2:
That's why I'm in here for for dating up for grandmas and grandpas, yes, perfect. Well, you know what I'm happy to my grandma. I'm a little sad that she's now decided not to stop dating at 87, but you know, it might be time. Might be time just to get you know. It's time for me time.
Speaker 1:
Yep, grandma, you know, let's get you an assisted living, get you safe, yep, but take the pressure off your daughter and granddaughter so they're not stressed out.
Speaker 2:
Exactly so. Yeah, Abby's not gonna go through any of that with me. She's already told me she's like I will not tolerate you. She's like I will leave you at home to die. Oh, like you were so mean. Oh, she's mean. She won't build it to it. She has no patience. She's just gonna be like listen, I'm gonna give you your keys to your nursing home. You show up, you show up.
Speaker 1:
Oh, I have no room. There's no room at the end. Here's your nursing home. Yep, shove you in there.
Speaker 2:
And Jen will come visit you.
Speaker 1:
I'm a room next to each other.
Speaker 2:
I know, oh see, there we go. Old-timers podcast what not to do in a nursing home date.
Speaker 1:
Getting fights over bingo. That's awesome.
Speaker 2:
So, yep, that's my story, that's my week. Elpoppers, thank you for all the love and support and messages and Especially your prayers and your positive vibes and loving on me and thank you. Thank you to my Jen for coming up and seeing me every day and allowing me to be a pain in her ass. She got a little grumpy with me today, folks, but I told her settle down. I was giving her jobs to do for the podcast and she's like listen, mom.
Speaker 1:
I have another job I have to do besides this one. It's very grumpy about it.
Speaker 2:
Yes, but it happens, it happens.
Speaker 1:
I was a little overwhelmed, but it's all good. I know being in the hospital sucks, especially this long.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, look at my positive attitude, see, you should learn from the young one, mm-hmm. No, I'm a-.
Speaker 1:
You've had your moments, which you're allowed to.
Speaker 2:
This podcast makes me happy, so I'm glad for this moment. It will carry me over, especially if I have to do a face surgery at the end of the week.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, el Papers, let's pray. Mel has to have surgery to clean out all of the bacteria and hopefully, if there's any dead tissue in there, and be back to her beautiful face.
Speaker 2:
Yes, and my brother can stop making jokes. I'm not surprised that he has Dante's like what are you gonna do now when you're on a date? Hey, look at my neck, it looks real good. Just don't look at my face.
Speaker 1:
Just, I'm just missing half of my cheek.
Speaker 2:
it's okay he goes you were better off before. At least your face was pretty and your neck was fat, he's like. Now you're screwed, oh my.
Speaker 1:
God only a brother.
Speaker 2:
Oh, he thinks he's hilarious Well.
Speaker 1:
I'm glad to see your spirits are up today.
Speaker 2:
Thank you.
Speaker 1:
And hopefully we're not recording in the hospital again next week, but-.
Speaker 2:
Yes, hopefully, madison and I are out of here.
Speaker 1:
Yes, we're gonna continue prayers for both of you.
Speaker 2:
She's gonna graduate with her PhD and I am going to go slay the world.
Speaker 1:
Yes, start building companies, build them, build them Gonna build an empire from this hospital room, cause you have all the time in the world on your hands.
Speaker 2:
I know one of my girlfriends texts me today. She's like, well, you just for the love of Jesus write the damn book. She's like baby gosh, just making you sit for that reason, like start writing.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, this is gonna definitely be a chapter.
Speaker 2:
I feel like, yes, oh yeah, there's lots to learn the nurses here, so hopefully doesn't plan to draw balls on the other side of my face, el Papers.
Speaker 1:
El Papers. Well, we are gonna give you our love and thank you for your support. And remember you have to be your own health advocate. Don't go on empty like Mel. Whatever, take care of your body, take care of your mind. Stay tuned for our exciting merch drop that's coming up. Yeah, how am I gonna do that? We'll figure it out, we will figure it out. Yeah.
Speaker 2:
I'm excited. So thanks, el Papers, for all your love and support. I will be in touch.
Speaker 1:
We'll keep you updated and keep sending us your prayers and love and light and see you soon. Peace out Peace.