Update on my health
I guess if there weren't any drama related to my health, life just wouldn't be interesting! haha Just wanted to take a minute to update you all since many have been asking, and some of you might not know the latest. Early Friday morning about 1:30 am, I awoke to the most horrendous pain I have ever known. It was in my left upper abdomen and was not like my usual endometriosis/ovarian cyst pain. It was indescribable. It was radiating over to the right side, through to my back, into both shoulders with a fury, and into my neck. I thought I was dying! I even threw up from the pain. I took some Gas-X trying to hold off on going to the ER ("here comes Tara again") and wait to see my primary MD that morning. But it was relentless and got to the point where I could not take a decent breath in without me practically screaming in pain. We called my brother-in-law who was close by to come stay at the house in case the baby woke up and went to the ER.
16 mg of Morphine, 2 mg of Dilaudid, 30 mg of Toradol, 8 mg of Zofran, and 25 mg of Phenergan later... and an x-ray of my chest, abdomen, ultrasound of the gallbladder, and a CT of the abdomen later... and they still did not know what was wrong! They mentioned my usual culprit - endometriosis/ovarian cyst - but pretty much ruled it out since this was so different than that pain. They had it down to my gallbladder (even though studies were negative), gastritis, or a gastric ulcer. After all that, I guess I had earned an admission to the hospital for further workup. I got lots of IV fluids and IV antibiotics. My HR was high - 120's to 130 for over 24 hours - possibly due to a mixture of pain and dehydration.
An upper endoscopy was done - I wasn't very happy about the MD that had to do it but nonetheless he did a great job and took good care of me - they found mild gastritis but also found some gastric erosions (precursors to an ulcer) related to my insane amount of NSAIDs that I take daily for my endometriosis/cyst pain. But still, they were not convinced that that was the cause of my pain.
2 nights in the hospital was enough for me to begin begging to go home. I was no longer running fevers, and could manage to walk to the bathroom on my own without almost passing out. That was enough for me to feel comfortable coming home. So I asked. Thankfully, the MD on the hospitalist rounds that day knows me through the office (it's good to work for EMA sometimes haha) and was agreeable. So last night I slept in my own bed - slept ALL NIGHT long! Woke up feeling so refreshed - although still in pain. The pain seems to have settled into my right upper quadrant and side, which is still suspicious for gallbladder. I have a HIDAscan scheduled for today on an outpatient basis. They tell me it takes 2 hours!! Oh lawd! I'll be bored or hurting or both for sure.
The other possible (and probable) cause of this is adhesions. My last surgery revealed severe scar tissue and adhesions on my sigmoid colon, liver, and diaphragm. They were left in place due to the delicate and high risk nature of removing them. They are pretty sure that the adhesions have begun to pull on my diaphragm and begun to aggravate the nerves there, which is why it hurts to take a deep breath and basically hurts to move. They have highly suggested that I move up the date of my hysterectomy so the surgeon can perform a lysis of adhesions too. I already have an appointment (made by Dr. Walmer last week) with a Dr. Sobolewski at Duke to discuss possible laparoscopic hysterectomy - not sure if he can take down the adhesions laparoscopically - that would be so ideal! The recovery time is much shorter for laparoscopic removal versus the larger laparotomy incision.
So, in conclusion, please be in prayer for the HIDAscan today, for the radiologists' interpretation of the information they see, for us to be in God's will for the right kind of surgery, and for no further DRAMA with my health! Seriously! I am ready to be well, to begin running again, and to live a semi-normal life.
I turn 30 years old tomorrow and I don't want to feel 40 when I turn 30. Pray for an easy transition into my 30's. The days leading up to it have been challenging. I have already been dreading my 30th birthday for several years, so for this to happen just reiterates that I am getting old and makes me feel a little bit down. Thanks for your prayers, I really appreciate each one of you and our friendship that we have.
So here's to turning 30 and simply feeling 30! :)
16 mg of Morphine, 2 mg of Dilaudid, 30 mg of Toradol, 8 mg of Zofran, and 25 mg of Phenergan later... and an x-ray of my chest, abdomen, ultrasound of the gallbladder, and a CT of the abdomen later... and they still did not know what was wrong! They mentioned my usual culprit - endometriosis/ovarian cyst - but pretty much ruled it out since this was so different than that pain. They had it down to my gallbladder (even though studies were negative), gastritis, or a gastric ulcer. After all that, I guess I had earned an admission to the hospital for further workup. I got lots of IV fluids and IV antibiotics. My HR was high - 120's to 130 for over 24 hours - possibly due to a mixture of pain and dehydration.
An upper endoscopy was done - I wasn't very happy about the MD that had to do it but nonetheless he did a great job and took good care of me - they found mild gastritis but also found some gastric erosions (precursors to an ulcer) related to my insane amount of NSAIDs that I take daily for my endometriosis/cyst pain. But still, they were not convinced that that was the cause of my pain.
2 nights in the hospital was enough for me to begin begging to go home. I was no longer running fevers, and could manage to walk to the bathroom on my own without almost passing out. That was enough for me to feel comfortable coming home. So I asked. Thankfully, the MD on the hospitalist rounds that day knows me through the office (it's good to work for EMA sometimes haha) and was agreeable. So last night I slept in my own bed - slept ALL NIGHT long! Woke up feeling so refreshed - although still in pain. The pain seems to have settled into my right upper quadrant and side, which is still suspicious for gallbladder. I have a HIDAscan scheduled for today on an outpatient basis. They tell me it takes 2 hours!! Oh lawd! I'll be bored or hurting or both for sure.
The other possible (and probable) cause of this is adhesions. My last surgery revealed severe scar tissue and adhesions on my sigmoid colon, liver, and diaphragm. They were left in place due to the delicate and high risk nature of removing them. They are pretty sure that the adhesions have begun to pull on my diaphragm and begun to aggravate the nerves there, which is why it hurts to take a deep breath and basically hurts to move. They have highly suggested that I move up the date of my hysterectomy so the surgeon can perform a lysis of adhesions too. I already have an appointment (made by Dr. Walmer last week) with a Dr. Sobolewski at Duke to discuss possible laparoscopic hysterectomy - not sure if he can take down the adhesions laparoscopically - that would be so ideal! The recovery time is much shorter for laparoscopic removal versus the larger laparotomy incision.
So, in conclusion, please be in prayer for the HIDAscan today, for the radiologists' interpretation of the information they see, for us to be in God's will for the right kind of surgery, and for no further DRAMA with my health! Seriously! I am ready to be well, to begin running again, and to live a semi-normal life.
I turn 30 years old tomorrow and I don't want to feel 40 when I turn 30. Pray for an easy transition into my 30's. The days leading up to it have been challenging. I have already been dreading my 30th birthday for several years, so for this to happen just reiterates that I am getting old and makes me feel a little bit down. Thanks for your prayers, I really appreciate each one of you and our friendship that we have.
So here's to turning 30 and simply feeling 30! :)
Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions even though I know you must be miserable! I pray that the Lord takes all your pain away and lets you get back to enjoying your wonderful life and family. I know God has a reason for this (to use you as a witness to others, to show your wonderful faith, etc.), but you should not have to be in pain. I am praying for the surgical issues to be resolved and that you are in the best medical hands! God bless you all! Oh and you should be proud to be 30 with such a blessed life! :-)
ReplyDeleteHere's to turning 30 and feeling 20, but having the sensible knowledge of a 30-year-old! Hah!
ReplyDeleteI hate to hear about all of this for you. I know you have been through so much lately, I am so sad to know this has been added to your plate. But I pray through each test your testimony shines brighter. I pray for the physicians who will be working with you now and in the future, knowing all their knowledge is a gift from above! So you are in good hands, no matter what! Love to you and your family.