Category: Health

Awaiting My Marching Orders

franciscanmom8 Comments

A tale of woe, told in as many cliches as I can dredge up.

I’m in a bit of a holding pattern these days.  After nearly 2 years of post-hysterectomy complications, which have resulted in (in no particular order) regularly-scheduled pain and bleeding, visits to 2 different GYN-oncologists, 2 MRIs, 1 CAT scan, innumerable ultrasounds of the invasive variety, a few rather unpleasant tests at the urologist’s, 1 burst ovarian cyst resulting in 1 missed Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert, and 1 cyst drained “just in time” of 1/2 liter of fluid, my GYN has finally decided that it’s time to shut down the rest of the system.  The plan is to remove my ovaries to cut off the estrogen supply that’s feeding my endometriosis.

I have a cyst larger than my own fist in my left abdomen (they always show up on the left.)  It’s painful, and it takes up a good amount of space.  Hence the wearing of the sweat pants (or, as Little Brother insists on calling them, athletic pants) as much as possible unless I have to actually get out of the car, in which case I suffer through the wearing of the jeans.

Frankly, I’m going to be glad to get this over with.  Even though it means going to a hospital with “Cancer” in its name.  I have not been diagnosed with cancer, but my GYN says that this doctor is the best surgeon to deal with the type of problems I’m having.  I keep telling myself that when I freak out a little bit about the name of the hospital.  I keep telling my husband that when he freaks out about the name of the hospital.  And I hope that none of my kids check the caller ID on the phone, because the word “Cancer” comes up in the name when I get the robo-call to confirm my appointment.

On Tuesday afternoon I’ll see the surgeon and receive my marching orders.  Until then, I have no time frame, no plan.  Anyone who knows me knows how crazy that makes me.  I’m guessing that something is going to happen soon, because my GYN said that they’ll want to take care of that cyst before it explodes on its own.  It could be done separately, or together–whatever the specialist decides.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch (or more accurately, back at the split-level), I’ve got a part-time writing gig that would have to go on hiatus, I’ve got arrangements to make for leadership at Secular Franciscan meetings, I’ve got kids to drive around, I’ve got “work to be done–an estate to be run–a boy to raise.”  Other than laundry and cooking, the bare minimum is getting done around here because physical stuff like scrubbing, vacuuming, mopping and taking down curtains is painful.  If I feel good enough, I do it.  Otherwise, I let it go.  There’s been a good amount of letting it go lately.  There have been afternoon naps, probably because I’m a little too keyed up to sleep well at night.  There’s been a lot of comfort eating.

I don’t feel like baking cookies, I don’t want to start up another sourdough starter, and there’s no use making a meal plan for April when I don’t know what April’s going to bring or when it’s going to bring it.  Other than Instant Menopause–I know I’m going to get that after the surgery.  Won’t that be fun for everyone lucky enough to live with me?

Meanwhile, I wait, and I worry.  I go to the high-school musical to take my mind off things (50 kids tap-dancing on the biggest stage in the county will do that for you).  On Tuesday, I’ll drive to Philly and find out how things are going to go.  And then I’ll drive home in rush-hour traffic and get on with it.

Why I’m Thankful Today

franciscanmom5 Comments

Today didn’t start out so great, but I do have plenty to be thankful for. I wasn’t feeling well yesterday so most of the afternoon was spent on the couch with the heating pad. Fortunately I have a laptop so I was able to get my work done. Also fortunately, I have a husband who can turn a blind eye to a fair amount of clutter that happens when I don’t bother getting after the kids who’ve left a “Hansel and Gretl” trail of shoes, sandals, sweatshirts, novels, pretzel bags, jars of change, school projects and books for projects-in-progress all over the place. I also, fortunately, have a husband who is more than willing to take us to the Chinese buffet when I confess that I’m just not in the mood to cook any dinner.

So there were dishes to wash this morning before I could have coffee (I needed a clean coffee cup, after all). It’s never fun to wake up and find dishes in the sink. But Little Brother got fed, dressed, combed, and out the door with a minimum of drama. Middle Sister did not miss the bus or forget her lunch.

I missed daily Mass because I had a GYN appointment. Not my yearly (that’s coming up in 3 weeks) but a visit because I’ve been having problems. Again. Silly me for thinking that the hysterectomy would take care of all the problems.

The nurse weighed me before she took my blood pressure. BIG mistake.

The doctor kept me waiting for an hour. But then she kept other patients waiting while she listened to my concerns, asked detailed questions about my symptoms, checked on dates, reviewed past test results, and settled on a plan for where we go from here. I felt like I had been heard and that my concerns were respected.

So I left the doctor’s office two full hours after my appointment time. (Good thing I had my Kindle with me!) I was two blocks from the mall, and I decided to run in and check to see if the shoes I had seen on sale last time I was there were still available. Hey, a little retail therapy never hurts. Especially when shoes are involved. As luck would have it, the shoe rack at the Lands’ End Shop in Sears had ONE pair left of my “old faithful” sneakers–and they were in my size. Even better, they were on super clearance: $55 sneakers marked down to $6.99. AND they had ONE pair of a slightly dressier boat shoe left, again in my size, again marked down to $6.99 from $50.

I may have 3 medical appointments scheduled within the next 3 weeks, but at least my feet will look good when I get there.

I’ll Take My Chances

franciscanmom3 Comments

High-fructose corn syrup is no longer the latest scapegoat when it comes to American obesity. According to a study conducted at Northwestern University, Bible study can make you fat.

Researchers mention “the sedentary nature of prayer” as a possible culprit.

There’s always The Rosary Workout.

Parents, pray that your kids don’t pay attention to the “news.” This story is all over the place today. If they see it, they’ll have more ammo in the “But church is so boooooooooooring” battle. Now they’ll tell you that it’ll make them fat.

I’ll take that risk. And I think my kids will be better for it.

It Still Ain’t Over

franciscanmom9 Comments

Since I’m still experiencing a fair amount of discomfort after Saturday’s horrible backache worked its way to diffuse lower abdominal pain and hung around all of Sunday and today, I went to the doctor today. After waiting 45 minutes to be seen (good thing I had a Kindle to keep myself entertained!) the doctor ordered blood work and a stat CAT scan.

That will be tomorrow’s fun (the CAT scan.) Got the blood drawn right then and there. I had an abdominal ultrasound a month ago, following up on this summer’s procedure, but I’d never heard the results from the gynecologist (even after I called last week to ask about them). My internist thinks that this very well could be related, and went after those ultrasound results herself. Then she called me at home to tell me she’d gotten them and that, yes, the cyst is back and almost as big as it was late last spring. I’ll know more after the CAT scan, I’m guessing.

Meanwhile, my mother is armchair-quarterbacking the doctor who did not remove my ovaries when I had the hysterectomy in January–even though she (a hysterectomy patient herself) knows exactly why they don’t routinely do that. I should be working right now, but I’m not in the mood. At the moment, I’m thinking that Haagen-Dasz is a better idea.

Welcome to my pity party. In the scheme of things, I’m lucky that this is all the problems I am having. But I’m asking for your prayers anyway!

It Ain’t Over

franciscanmom11 Comments

…till it’s over.

This morning I’m heading to the hospital for an outpatient procedure to drain a large cyst that has developed on (or near) my left ovary. Apparently it’s the size of a softball.

The doctor hopes that one it’s drained it will be done and I won’t have to worry about it anymore. There will be ultrasound followups periodically, and if the cyst returns I will have to have it surgically removed.

This all should be easy, but prayers will be appreciated!

UPDATE: Thank you! 1/2 liter of fluid (that’s a water bottle, folks) has been removed. I can no longer feel a lump in my abdomen. I’m sleepy, but definitely happy to be home and grateful for the prayers and my comfy couch.

That’s a Relief

franciscanmom8 Comments

I went for that followup mammogram this morning and the radiologist gave me the results right then and there. I’m fine. Everything is normal. Come back next year for my regularly-scheduled scan.

So it’s all back to what passes for normal around here–shuttling kids around, avoiding dust bunnies, trying to clean off my desk, and ordering a pizza for dinner tonight because the kitchen-sink drain is pouring water into the cabinet below.

Fortunately, we keep our “recycle bucket” there, so the only thing that got wet was a bunch of empty cans. Now there’s an empty bucket there. But hey, it’s an excuse not to cook (or clean up) when I’m feeling lazy. Yes, I have called for a plumber.

Spiritual Exercise

franciscanmom5 Comments

All that recuperating I’ve been doing this year hasn’t been so great for my waistline. So with the beautiful weather today, I knew that I had to just get out and get walking.

Walking by itself, though, is pretty boring. Unfortunately, there’s no one around to be my walking buddy, so I decided that this would be a good opportunity for me to get caught up on the podcasts I keep downloading but don’t always get a chance to listen to. So I grabbed a string bag to hold my cell phone, ID, house key and iPod, as well as a bottle of water, and I cued up a two-week-old edition of Among Women, since I’ve gotten a little behind in listening lately.

Boy, did I luck out. Pat Gohn began the podcast with a discussion about St. Bernadette–how appropriate that I’m listening to her story in May, the month of Mary! And then I got to hear an interview with Laraine Bennett, whose books on temperament are both fascinating and useful. In fact, I want to dive back into them, because I think that a little refresher course will help me understand my kids better. A little awareness of temperament is a really good thing in family relationships.

So now, I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s walk! I wonder what I’ll get to hear next.

Sarah’s on the same page as me–last week she had a guest blogger, the author of The Rosary Workout. Sounds intriguing–especially in May!

I Have to Think of These Things Now

franciscanmom2 Comments

Two of my kids have “well-child visits” scheduled with their doctor this afternoon. Middle Sister’s visit will include the doctor’s signing of athletic participation forms for the spring track season. Since she has already received medical forms for high-school sports, I called the school nurse to ask if the doctor could fill those out today as well.

My sister said that the sports physical for next year has to be after July 1, but our school nurse said that today’s physical will take her right through the end of next school year (that’s right, including spring sports in 2011!)

That’s great news as far as I’m concerned, not only because I save the fee our doctor charges for filling out these forms outside of an appointment, but because, well, I’m just not certain that at this time next year, health care will be as accessible as it is today.

Middle Sister glanced at the newspaper headlines today and asked me what the health-care reform bill meant. I explained a little bit about what rationed care means. I told her that if someone got sick, the decision about whether that person should receive certain treatments, medications, or surgeries would become less and less the decision of that person’s doctor and more and more the decision of the health-care system (ultimately, the U.S. government.) I gave the example of a woman we know who recently passed away after her third bout of cancer in ten years–all after the age of 75. Would she have received chemo that second and third time around?

She thought about that for a minute and decided that it’s in her best interests to stay healthy.

I have friends in Canada who can’t call their primary-care doctor or child’s pediatrician and get a “sick visit” on the same day. And I am grateful to live here in the U.S. where I can schedule a same-day “sick visit” if one is needed. Access to health care is not something I take for granted. And now that the government is going to be in charge of it, I’m not sure it’s even something I can count on.

Bumper sticker pictured above available at zazzle.com.