{I really want to blog about our Californian vacation we just took, but I figured I should write about my surgery first....so the CA post will come soon!}
So yesterday I got the lump/tumor/thing taken out of my thigh. I had been nervous for this surgery for weeks! I was nervous for my procedure for numerous reasons:
1. I would be AWAKE
2. The biopsy results will tell us if the lump/thingie is anything serious
3. How much money the procedure will cost
4. The pain
A few years ago I started to get really squeamish when it comes to blood, shots, and all that fun stuff, so I was extra nervous for this lovely lump/thing removal. My family kept telling me to just stay calm and that everything would be okay. Yesterday morning I got up early to take a long hot shower to calm my nerves. Once Petey and I got to the hospital we had to wait....and wait...and wait. The waiting game makes me even more nervous! Once we were ready to go the Dr. brought over the needle to start numbing my leg. At that moment I closed my eyes as tight as I could and did not open them again until the surgery was over!! Petey even helped cover my eyes for a little bit because he knew what the consequences would be if I saw anything that was going on. The numbing shots hurt pretty bad (I'm pretty sure no one likes shots though...especially when you have to get 4!)
The Dr. then started the procedure which was uncomfortable and scary, but wasn't too bad. Once he started trying to remove the thingie I could feel a little pain, so he then gave me even more shots to make sure I was numb. I could feel the Dr. and his assistant pulling and putting pressure on my thigh. I was sooooo happy once the procedure was over!!! When the Dr. started to stitch me up he hit a nerve which hurt REALLY bad!! It sent a shock all the way down my leg, I wasn't prepared for that! Once the procedure was over I felt pretty good, but on the way out I saw some of the gauze that had blood on it and that's when I started to have a freak-out-attack. We went to the lobby to schedule a post-op appointment next week where the Dr. will just check that my incision is healing right. Once in the lobby my head started to spin, I was thinking about blood and envisioning what I had just gone through (even though I didn't even watch!). Petey was talking to the receptionist when I started to black out. I sat down and felt like I was going to throw up. I started to sweat and felt light headed (even blogging about this is making me feel a little sick haha). I focused on breathing for like 15 minutes and then felt okay enough to make it to the car. It probably took another 30-ish minutes for me to recover, but after that I was okay.
I was able to walk around without much pain for a few hours after the surgery....and then the numbing medication wore off. After the medication was out of my system I could barely walk/move my left leg without screaming. Poor Petey had to carry me around the house. My thigh doesn't even hurt that bad, it's just where the stitches are that hurts badly. Whenever my leg tightens up when I walk my stitches feel so tight that I want to cry (the pain was so bad this morning that I did cry haha). We called the Dr.'s office this morning and they were able to call in a pain medication for me since Advil wasn't cutting it! I've had stitches a million times, but never in my leg, so walking is kind of hard. The Dr. first told me that recovery wouldn't be that bad and that I could even work the day after....well I'm so glad my boss gave me today off to because there is NO WAY I would be able to work today! I have a 5 hour shift tomorrow and I'm worried I won't even be able to handle that! If I was able to sit at my job I would be fine....but I have to stand the entire time, so tomorrow might be interesting. The Dr. did tell me that the removal processes was harder than he thought it was going to be because the thingie was deeper than initially thought.
We will likely find out the biopsy results tomorrow or Monday. I'm feeling really optimistic that everything will be okay!! My family has been so amazing and supportive the past 6 weeks since this journey started. I love them so much!!!!! Petey has been so incredible the past few days and I love him more everyday! I will keep you all posted on the results! Wish me/us luck :)
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
The 'Thing'
I'm getting the 'Thing' in my leg removed in less than an hour and I'm freaking out!!! Wish me luck!
Monday, May 7, 2012
The Calm After The Storm
{Warning: picture overload}
In some good news:
Petey google-d the problem with our washer and he found out that the lid switch/sensor was likely broken. We took a chance and bought a new switch online hoping it would fix the problem. The part was only $30, so we were hoping it would work! The part took a few days to get here, and once it did I died of laughter watching Petey take our washer apart trying to fix it (love that boy!) But after about 30 minutes of messing with the washer it started to work!! We are very grateful that it only took $30 to fix it and that we didn't have to hunt for a new one!
Another good thing that happened in our lives was that we got my car fixed-ish! I google-d all the problems my car had been having and it turns out that the electrical problems my car was having are fairly common. We found out what part we needed (some sort of sensor) and it only cost $35! Petey and his brother Brian were able to fix my car!! We fixed it just in time too because I have to get it inspected this May. I'm thinking that it will actually pass inspection now! Although my car is weird and crazy, I have some fond memories in it! I'm going to run it until it dies!
In other news I went to the hospital last Monday to get an ultrasound done on the thing in my leg. I was a nervous wreck!! I'm so grateful that Petey has been so helpful and supportive through all of this. The ultrasound literally took 2 minutes. I'm not looking forward to finding out how much those 2 minutes of time are going to cost. Medical bills are RIDICULOUS! While we were there I asked the ultrasound tech what she thought the thing in my leg was. She told me that she's not a doctor and to not take her opinion as a diagnosis in any way, but she thought it was just a fatty lymphoma. I felt a lot better after that because a fatty lymphoma isn't anything to really worry about. The ultrasound tech told me that the pictures would be sent to the doctor that referred me and that she would be contacting me with further instruction.
Petey and I decided to go to dinner that night to relax a little bit. While at dinner I got a call from my doctor. She told me that the thing in my leg has a blood supply to it (NOT GOOD) and that she wanted me to see a General Surgeon asap to get his/her opinion. She also told me that the General Surgeon would likely want to get a biopsy of the thing. Once I hung up with her I started to freak out. Seriously it was an epic freak out. I automatically assumed the worst and just cried and cried. I felt bad because it was finals week and Petey really needed to study, but he comforted me throughout the night. I guess I'm more important :) That night we looked up surgeons in Cache Valley and I called and got a appointment with Dr. Anderson. After a few days I started to worry less about the thing, and I started to feel more calm.
My appointment with Dr. Anderson was this afternoon. I was once again very nervous. The Dr. was running about 30 minutes late so Petey and I had to wait and let our nerves increase even more. Once the doctor saw me he felt the thing, looked at the ultrasound pictures of the thing, and told me that he thinks it is a benign tumor (which is the NOT serious kind!!). He also told us that there is a very rare from of cancer that the thing could be, but he told me he believes that my chances of having that are less than 1%! Just to be safe though I'm going in on May 30th to get the thing removed. Once it's removed they will likely biopsy it just to confirm what it is. Dr. Anderson strongly believes that it isn't anything that serious. We asked him about the worst case scenario and he told us even if it is cancer that it should be fairly easy to treat and get rid of. Since that appointment I've felt 5,000 times better! He told Petey and I to not worry and to enjoy our upcoming vacation. I'm grateful that the removal procedure that I will have on May 30th isn't that serious. Dr. Anderson will perform it in one of his regular patient rooms, I will have a shot of local anesthetic, and it should only take about 20 minutes. He said my thigh will be a little sore for a few days but it shouldn't keep me from working or walking around.
Petey and I are worried about how we are going to pay for all of these upcoming expenses, but I know that everything will work out. May will just be a hard month. Not only do we have our 9 day trip to California, we have to register my car (which probably needs 1-2 new tires), renew and pay or car insurance, pay off these wonderful medical bills, we just got iphones that will cost us around $90 a month, and our rent is going up. Also Petey got into a minor car accident on Saturday (I'll post more details below) so we'll have to pay for the damages. Petey also got a ticket because of the accident :(
This past weekend was a memorable one! Although I graduated from Utah State back in December, it didn't feel official until this past Saturday. Saturday, May 5th was the Utah State University Commencement!! Wearing my cap and gown finally made me feel like I was really done, and that I had really made it! One of my best friends Bailey McMurdie also graduated on Saturday along with my sister-in-law Jennie! It was so fun to get pictures with all of them! The graduates meet at Old Main at 8:30am on Saturday to get ready to march to The Specturm (where commencement was held). After Petey dropped me off I got a phone call from him telling me that he had been in a fender bender. I'm so grateful that neither him or the woman he hit were hurt! Petey is lucky too because he hadn't been wearing his seat belt! He hurt his knee and hit his chin on the dashboard, but I'm so glad that it wasn't more serious than that! His Ford Escort suffered the most from the impact. One of his headlights is shattered, his fender has a crack/few pieces broken, and his hood is pretty dented/smushed. He ordered a new headlight on line so we're hoping him and his brother will be able to fix that on their own. Getting the hood of his car fixed isn't necessary, but Petey and his brother are going to try and work on that too. We were both obviously frustrated with the situation, but I'm glad no one was hurt and that his car is still able to run. The only thing that happened to the jeep Petey hit was that the tire cover on her spare tire ripped...that was it! Petey told her that he didn't want to have to go through the insurance company (because our rates would raise), and for her to pick out a new tire cover and we will pay her for it. *That wasn't really how I thought the start of my graduation day would go haha*
My friend Bailey and I are in the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences together so we were able to sit by each other during the big ceremony. Here are some pictures from that morning:
The 2012 Graduates marching to The Spectrum
I'm in there somewhere!
For the big commencement ceremony (which involved every college) there were some great speakers! 4 amazing individuals received Honorary Degrees, and the main speaker was a former Navy Seal. I was quite impressed with how interesting this ceremony was!
Bailey and I during the big ceremony!
Self-pic :)
The University President, Stan Albrecht
giving his speech.
After the big ceremony all the graduates were able to go outside and take pictures with their friends and family. I only had about 10 minutes before I had to be in line for my individual college ceremony.
The hubs and I
My wonderful parents! I love them!!
The blue ropes are for graduating
Cum Laude :)
Jennie graduated in Exercise Science and I graduated
in Sociology! Tanner wasn't able to come because
it was his Senior Prom!
We did it!
My lovely ladies!!
The College of HASS' ceremony was also interesting! The valedictorian even rapped about her experience at USU to the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme song!
Blurry :(
Almost time for my name to be called!
Perfect photo op + stupid camera = failure
At dinner after my ceremony :)
I'm happy that I was able to walk for graduation! I'm nervous for what the future holds for me, but I know everything will work out! I'm not looking forward for to paying back my student loans though (booooo)!
IN SOME OTHER GREAT & FANTASTIC & EXCITING NEWS.......
WE LEAVE FOR DISNEYLAND ON SUNDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 6 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!! I'M SO FREAKING EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHH!!!! !!!!!!! !!! !
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