"Unsuspected stomach ulcer"

Towards the end of July at about 3am I woke up to use the toilet which is normal for me. I felt a little light headed as soon as I was up but then I started to stagger and bounce off the walls in the hallway and then collapsed on the floor.

I crawled to the bathroom but was unable to stand and was also sweating profusely all over my body. I managed to stand and thought I have to get to the lounge quickly to lie down on the sofa but I was still on the verge of vomiting and collapsing but got there slowly but it felt like an age.

I couldn’t shout for help but had to use my iPad to call my wife upstairs. She came down and supported me and try and figure out what was going on...stroke, heart attack? It felt like something serious was going to happen. I managed to get to sleep and felt better when I awoke but still dizzy and lightheaded when I awoke.

I went to use the toilet and compared to last night I got there ok but when I opened my bowels I noticed that my stool was black and I knew I had to get this checked so I called 111 and was advised to go to A&E.

It was a long wait but I got to see a Doctor and explained what had happened but couldn’t figure what was wrong but was happy that I felt normal again and was going to send me home when I remembered to mention about the “black stool” I passed and he did an internal exam straight away and told me that I was bleeding internally and admitted me for tests.

I had bloods and observations taken and also an endoscopy which found an ulcer that was bleeding. This was fixed and I felt great after the treatment as the pain I had put up with for 3-4 years had gone and I just need to take some medication for a while to protect the stomach lining.

Whilst I was in the hospital which looked very clean due to the constant hard work of the domestic staff and carers, the treatment I received from the nurses who were spread thin from start to finish was amazing and it really made me proud of the NHS and Team St Mary’s Isle of Wight.

I am a senior in a care home on the island and what you do and how you care for people is important to me and what I saw and heard personally and from other patients experiences was good compared to Southampton and QA.

It could have gone very bad for myself if undiagnosed and also for the importance of mentioning all the little details for the Doctor to make a correct diagnosis which can potentially save someone’s life.

A massive thank you from me to you all at St Mary’s Isle of Wight especially AAU and SSU.