Reasons for being in the hospital for months?

[Lise]

Dear all,

I hope, I'm posting this in the right forum. I have a question that's been bothering me for quite some time, and I'm hoping some of you might have some insight that could help me:

In the mid-eighties, my BPD-mother was away for several months and I was in foster care while this went on. Her story was that she had to have an operation for capal tunnel-syndrome which required her to be hospitalized for appr. 2 - 3 months. She was not allowed to come home from the hospital except on one occasion where she spent one night at home and then had to go back. I was never allowed to visit her at the hospital. When she came home, she had a long scar from her right wrist and 15 cm's up her arm (consistent with an operation for capal tunnel-syndrome).

She was home for a couple of months, and then had to go back to have her left arm operated. The story repeated, and she came home 2 - 3 months later with a similar scar on her left arm.

So, what's bugging me is this: Even though it was in the eighties, I find it difficult to believe that a relatively simple operation would require a woman with small children to be hospitalized for months, not even coming home in the weekend. I suspect she was in a psychiatric hospital in stead, but I don't want to "make up stories" about her.

Can anyone help, all guesses and speculations are welcome. 

I do not have access to anyone who actually know what really happened for all those months.

All the best,

Lise

[Skip]

Both re scars and the length of capitalization are not consistent with carpel tunnel therapy.

[Lise]

Thank you Skip.

Your response is consistent with my suspicions, thank you for this.

Do you know what at typical scar from an operation for capal tunnel-syndrome would look like (with regards to length and such)?

[Louise7777]

Id suggest something very simple, sounds ridiculous: google it. Images, I mean. I thought the scar would fit this kind of surgery, but the time in hospital seems very strange to me. Also, the non-visiting policy.

[Skip]

A carpel tunnel is on the palm of the hand.

A six inch scar on lower arm near the hand could possibly be a suicide attempt.

[Louise7777]

Skip is right. I just googled it and the images arent pleasant for weak stomachs. ;-)

[Lise]

Thank you so much, Louise and Skip. 

I feel a little stupid for not googling the images sooner. I've been googling endlessly about the syndrome and hospitalizations, reading the text, looking for answers, but it never occurred to me to just look at the images in stead.

My mom's scar is no way near as tiny and pretty as those I can find on Google.

Skip, don't worry, I'm not confusing your suggestion for a fact. I know, it isn't possible to tell the origin of a lesion from the scar. But I've been thinking the same thing - that she's been operated on after an attempted suicide.

I am truely grateful for your answers. I've been worried that I was fabricating things, making up stories to smear my mother (take a guess as to whose voice those thoughts are spoken in ), so hearing that you're both thinking that the story simply doesn't add up, and that there is a far more logical explanation for it all lying right there in plain sight, is really a great relief to me.