It's Been a While...

Wow...It's been about 3 weeks since I posted to this blog and it's about time for an update. Don't you think?!

Let me say...Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and all that jazz.

Nate's been studying like mad for his Chief's Exam, which is tomorrow. I think he'll do great! Wish him luck, okay?

I've been staying busy working on crafts and making jewelry - my latest hobbies. I've also had a few doctor appointments and have been stressing over my latest surgery's incision; it's still not 100% healed.

I've been battling the pain of EDS since I've been so much more active than usual. Thankfully I have a great doctor who is continuing to titrate my interthecal pump up to a level that will control the pain.

To be honest, that about covers it. I'll try to do a better job of posting updates much more often - at least once a week, but we'll see. :-D

General Update

I must say once again that it is so nice to have Nathan home again. I know he really enjoyed his time in Louisiana and it was only two weeks, but it felt much longer and I missed him terribly!

Papa left on Saturday morning; it was sad for him to leave. Nate and I really enjoyed his company and all of his help while he was here. He even rearranged our living room for us saving me and especially Nathan, a ton of work! If you read this, thank you Papa!

My incision (from my surgery to tie down my pump) is healing much slower than I'd hoped and is still incredibly painful. I'll call the surgeon's office tomorrow to make a follow-up appointment and to ask about the slow healing and severe pain. To add to the annoyance, I have a rash that covers my entire belly! Part of it is from the adhesive from the tape holding down the bandage and the rest is from the binder I have to wear until Christmas Eve. My belly is covered in red, itchy bumps - SO annoying!

I also have to contact my primary doctor tomorrow because I've managed to sprain my right ankle and injure my left ankle too. Both feet are so swollen they feel like giant bruises if I walk or simply touch them.

When I get answers from my doctors, I'll be sure to post another update.

The Surgery Went Great!

The surgery couldn't have gone any smoother! It started and ended right on time and we left the hospital by 1:30PM! Last night was good because the numbing shots were still working, but due to the sodium IV they gave me my feet were more swollen than ever before and very painful.

This morning when I woke up the swelling in my feet had gone away but the incision hurt really bad because the area had started to swell just as the doctor expected. I took the anti-inflammatory that they prescribed and within an hour the pain was gone! YAY!

Although I'm feeling better than expected, I'm still going to take it easy today. I have a whole list of things I can work on while sitting down and relaxing.

Papa's Here & My Surgery is on it's Way

My Papa arrived in Maryland on Friday, December 5th - YAY!! I love it when he visits us. I'm so grateful that he is here. He's always such a big help to me and our household. Nathan and I appreciate Papa's help everytime he visits; he really is a godsend.

As I said before, Nathan is out of town until the 16th and my surgery is tomorrow. In the morning Papa will take me to the hospital at 8AM and I'll go into surgery at 10AM. The procedure itself should only take 30-60 minutes; after that I'll recover for a short time and then go home by that afternoon.

I will try to update this blog as soon as possible post-surgery. Considering I have to wear the binder for two weeks, I'm not sure how soon I'll be able to post again. Then again, it is a very basic surgery and the recovery time isn't expected to be that long.

Surgery Confirmed

My surgery was confirmed today for December 10th at 10AM. I'm supposed to arrive about an hour early and the surgery itself will only take an hour. I'm not sure about the recovery time, but I'll be able to come home that day.

Papa will be arriving on the 6th or 7th which is perfect! We'll be able to spend a couple days together before the surgery which will be really, really nice. He'll be staying until Nathan gets back on the 16th and maybe a few days longer...if we can convince him, that is!

Cards out the wah-zoo! I just sent out eight sympathy cards for the immediate family members of those that passed away last week. Now I'm working on my Christmas cards, which is a major undertaking. We have so many family members and friends on our card list that this will be a project that'll keep me busy until my surgery! To those that read this: If I have your mailing address, you'll probably get a card...LATE! hehehe

Surgery Delay

My surgery has been delayed from the 1st of December to the 10th due to insurance problems. That's okay though it works out better for most involved. Had the surgery remained on the 1st everyone would be rushing for various reasons. This way Papa has more time to get here and can drive at a safer, more leisurely pace. Nathan will be in Louisiana during the surgery, but will return a mere 6 days later and my father will be with me that whole time.

I'm still in disbelief about my recent losses, but I'm sure that's expected at this point. Psychologists say that each time you lose a friend or family member, it becomes more and more difficult for one to handle. It brings up all the old emotions of those you lost previously, so even though two people passed away this past week, I could be experiencing the emotions of the loss of five people instead. I hope that made sense.

Other than that, I'm doing okay. Not necessarily great, but okay.

Surgery...Again!

Yes, another surgery. My pump that is implanted in my abdomen, delivering Dilaudid directly into my spine, has started to move. The sutures that attach the pump to the lining of my muscle have loosened, which is what is allowing the pump to move out of place. It's literally jutting out of my side by about 1"-2" and comes to a rounded point - very painful.

On December 1st the surgeon and his team will go in and reattach the pump to the lining with more stitches through the same incision as the last surgery. It will take about an hour and will be done under local anesthesia so I can go home that day.

It's a good thing I'll be able to go home that day because Nathan leaves the next day, December 2nd, for two weeks to visit his family and friends in Louisiana. He returns on the 16th.

This past Tuesday we had our first flurries of snow and today we received some more snow. We may get enough tonight to actually leave a coat on the ground till morning.

That's it for now. I'll keep this updated as my surgery approaches and afterwards as well.