Please share your experience with an IV or Picc Line

I'm anxious to hear too...my llmd is talking the same for me. I'm afraid of the IV.

I understand that it is all in keeping your line and dressing clean and dry. If you have a good home health nurse and are careful yourself....you should have no problems with the PICC line.

Dr. C's protocol is very good and very explicit on how he wants the dressing, the flushing everything.

You are smart enough to know if something does not feel or look right..(I mean with some medical background that you have).

He will also give you an Rx for an Epi pen in case of reaction and instructions.

Please do not let your fear of a PICC line (I know, I am a good one to talk about fear of a PICC line!!) stand in the way of getting well!!

You have come a long way to get here...I think once you meet with him you will feel alot more at ease as well.

I do understand your fear...trust me I do. You know I chose not to have the picc but rather the mid-line for alot of reasons.

Maybe you can speak with him on having a mid-line. Just weigh all the pros and cons with him. He will listen.

I just spoke with a girl tonight that had a PICC for four months. She said it was not that big of a deal and that showers were the most annoying part of it. She knew I was frightened of it and advised not to be afraid of it. She also said it made such a difference so quickly in her symptoms and how she felt.

I don't know if that's what I'll be doing, but she was reassuring about it.

I'm more worried about blood clots than anything else.

Dr. C uses Heparin to flush your line each time you infuse. He has the SASH system..For each infusion.

Hey,
Had my PICC line in for almost two weeks now...it's no big deal. The only thing that "hurt" (and that's a relative term) was the shot to numb the arm area before they put in the line. That's about it.
Get mine taken out on Sunday and am a little anxious over that.

Just curious if anyone on here experienced horrible "brain fog" with their Lyme....this drives me crazy. I can take physical pain like backaches, but feeling like I am not in reality, or on drugs, makes me crazy.

Anyone? If so, how do you treat?

Hi CG! I only had my PICC for 30 days, and if anything my blood got a little too thin with the heparin. I understand your nervousness, but once you talk to your Dr. hopefully he will alleviate some of your fear. What helped me was talking to the nurses at work who reminded that if the elderly residents with their thin skin and weak arteries can handle it it would be no problem for me. There was even one resident who had one at the time and she helped me to feel a lot better about it. The funny thing was that once it was in, a couple of days later, I started thinking about what ist was going to be like to get it removed, but then a nurse called from the healthcare service that set up the visiting nurse and supplies, and said that it was like an itch that you can't scratch, but now you finally can, and that it doesn't hurt at all. When it was pulled I really felt nothing, and I thought it would be gross looking and it wasn't at all.

I just kept trusting that I would be okay and that it was what I needed and that it would work. As I said before, though, from all that I have read on here and hear from others, I don't know if it was long enough, but am hoping that the supplements and herbs will be enough to take over and keep it gone. Good luck with your appt! Did you get my e-mail?

No problem! You just do what you need to do in the time that you are able to do it in. That was one of the things that I needed to learn for myself. I have taken care of others in the nursing home for almost 24 years now, and have lots of patience with them, but needed to learn to apply it to me too. I do what I can, and stop myself from worrying about what I can't get to.

My garden is full of weeds this year, and I didn't get many green beans, tomatoes or peppers, but the potatoes and corn for some reason did really well. Somehow, only with my husbands help, I managed to plant it, when I was not feeling well or really up to it at all. Over the summer I have felt well, but once the weeds got out of hand, I just couldn't bring myself to try to keep up with it, and it seemed like it was always raining too! But my point is that I'm learning to be kind to myself.

Hello..

CG
I so relate to your Fears and feelings. I just got a Port a Cath inserted on Thursday. 2 Days ago! If you want to PM me I can go over the details of it and I am glad i choose it over the picc line from what i have read and heard. But it is a personal choice.

DD I am in az and have the same question about doctors in az that support Lyme Disease and use IV antibiotics. There are a couple who are homeopathic and will do Antibioitics too but insurance then can be an issue.

http://www.cpmc.org/learning/documents/nur-piccline-ws.html#Understanding the Risks and Benefits of PICC Line Insertion

The above website is helpful. I developed early stage mechanical phebitis with my first line. Trying a second one friday. Heating pads help.

Keephope and Cmacaran,

Thank you so much for the info!