A Week in Review
Whew! We made it.
I'm kidding. I'm nowhere near finished everything that I need to accomplish this week, and I'm going to be working so much this weekend. But there's still something strangely satisfying about waking up and knowing that it's Friday (even though 'Friday' means ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to a family comprised of a nurse, a freelance writer, and a baby).
This week has been a whirlwind. I'm still needing to line up friends and family to cover the time that Geoff is working because I can't pick up Briony. I'm working like a fiend... LIKE A FIEND. And the state of my house is seriously started to stress me out. I guess that - before this week - I was too sick to care. Now that I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, it's really kind of getting to me. But I don't have enough energy to really tackle it in a significant way. So I just sit and feel frustrated about it. Awesome plan, I know ;)
Lots on my mind and on my heart right now... I haven't quite figured out how to put it all into words yet, but I'll share when it feels right. We're celebrating Easter early this year so that we can fit it in before my grandma starts chemo, which is bringing up all kinds of yucky buried stuff from exactly two Easters ago when we were just beginning my mom's cancer journey. I'm praying that I can hold it together this weekend. My head knows all that stuff about how Easter symbolizes new life and how chemo is the tool that was able to give life back to these women who are so important to me. But my heart just wants to sit and cry.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Family, Going Rogue, My Life
More Of The Same. SORRY.
I am so seriously considering a little blogcation just because I feel like - as a reader of a blog - I would be SO ANNOYED to keep coming back just to read a new post bitching about the blogger's life. I'm really not unhappy. We're just having a rough week. And I honestly wish that we had something better to report.
I had a rough night and woke up with more incision pain than I've felt in days. Not sure if it's a result of my check-up yesterday or the one time I caved in and picked up Briony yesterday or if the universe just really hates me that much, but it's super annoying. I also woke up with lots of arthritis and fibro symptoms for the first time since surgery. Awesome that it held off this long. Annoying that it had to happen at all. The drugs are generally working by now, and I'm sipping my TEA (sigh...) while trying to get some work done because I am so seriously and painfully behind in my freelance work. Oh, and I'm also scrambling to fire off some emails to friends who might be able to fill in as a Plan B for this weekend - Geoff is going back to work and my Plan A (heading out to my parents' place for a couple of days) is looking like a bust because my mom's been incredibly sick with strep throat. It's *almost* funny how life can be so unpredictable these days.
Today will hold a few random little rays of sunshine... My friend Melissa is dropping by this afternoon to bring us dinner. And then the client I turned down for a project this week emailed this morning to see if he and their creative director could drop by at the end of the day because they've apparently put together a little get well package for me. How incredibly sweet is that?!
So I'm working overtime to dwell on the positive (and now trying to figure out how to fit in a SHOWER because I was seriously not planning to see any clients today!). Statistically, it's all going to turn around soon... Right?
Labels: Arthritis/Fibromyalgia, Attack of the Gallbladder, Family, Going Rogue
A Kind Of Meandering Update (I blame the drugs)
My surgeon confirmed today that I'm not going to die in my sleep due to some horrible internal bleeding as a result of a botched surgery (don't laugh, I had a TERRIBLE dream the other night). The surgery went perfectly well and I'm healing perfectly normally, but she said that a very small percentage of her gallbladder patients have a strangely complicated and difficult recovery. I guess I'm just one of the lucky few. It was good to hear it from her, and she wants to see me again on Monday just to check on everything again - but I'm feeling much better about things.
And I'm feeling much better in general. I managed to shower, go to my appointment, go for a very short walk outside, and have Amber over for a quick cup of tea today. Oh, and I ate lunch AND dinner. This was all compliments of SAINT Katie (hehe) who introduced me to Ginger Gravol today. All the awesomeness of gravol + all the awesomeness of concentrated ginger - any hint of drowsiness. It has revolutionized my world.
Sadly, this was a VERY eventful day for me. It also happened to be the first day that I've gone outside in eight days. And the first time in that same time period that I wore a bra (I know you were DYING to know...).
Our walk was to Cornelia Bean to replenish my little tea collection to help get me through my 3+ weeks of no coffee still ahead. I grabbed some more of my favourite loose leaf English Breakfast and a super yummy tea called Madame Butterfly - a combination of green tea and peach. I had to physically stop myself from also grabbing a sexy new teapot they had there. Yes, a teapot. Little known fact, but I could quite easily - and happily - own hundreds of teapots if I had unlimited disposable income + unlimited storage space. I love them. I don't know why. But the point is that I didn't. I have, however, looked it up online and given it some additional thought... Hmmm... See, I don't have a teapot with *exactly* this combination of size + a loose leaf filter. SIGH. I'm trying very hard to justify how this will fit into the spot in our budget that is usually reserved for copious amounts of Starbucks double tall nonfat lattes.
I think that's about all for today. I'm hoping to try to make it to my Moms Group tomorrow - depending on how I feel and thanks to my husband who's offered to play chauffeur because I am nowhere near ready for driving or transporting Briony yet. And then I have a heck of a lot of work to get done for my clients in the next couple of days (even with the 15 hour project I turned down today).
Oh yeah, and that super pesky job of resting and trying to get better ;)
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder
Some Cautious Optimism
I woke up this morning at around 05.30 with a disgusting rumbly feeling in my stomach. A quick glance at the clock confirmed that I was overdue for more meds (including anti-nausea meds) and I quickly squeezed my eyes back shut and tried to remember exactly where my just-in-case pail was located. But as I lay there, I realized that the rumble in my stomach felt DIFFERENT. I tried to place the exact feeling... And then it hit me. I WAS HUNGRY.
I'm still feeling pretty rough, but I choose to see this hungry feeling as a sign that I am going to live after all. I'm sipping some tea now, and considering some toast - but I've been too chicken to try so far. (Mmm... CHICKEN!)
I see my surgeon at noon today to figure out if I'm just having an especially rough recovery or if something has actually gone wrong. I'm not feeling great at all, but I've made enough progress overnight that I'm cautiously optimistic that this might just be a bad recovery. Saint Katie is coming to play with Briony for a while so that Geoff can take me to the appointment. That's the plan anyway. Apparently, Geoff's tiredness (after nine hours of sleep last night + a nap this morning) is currently trumping my four hour night + ABDOMINAL SURGERY. Sorry. Can you tell how ridiculously unimpressed I am right now? I'm taking care of B and trying to get some client work done right now, feeling like total shit. And it sounds like someone is having a pretty awesome nap in the next room. And it's a good thing. Because he's TIRED. And we all know how very rough that can be ;)
I'm hoping and praying that I'm right because I am *so* sick of being sick. I am constantly on the verge of a breakdown every time Briony wants me to pick her up or play on the floor with her. It is such a horrible feeling to not be taking care of your baby or your family (or ME, for that matter).
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder
Silver Lining
My silver lining in this whole gallbladder experience has been my surgeon. She is AMAZING. And it was nice to feel so extra-cared for again today when I called her receptionist to see if these new symptoms are something to really be worrying about or not. She spoke with my surgeon and called me back with the news that it sounds like it's *probably* not a big deal, but that they'd like me to come in tomorrow just to be absolutely sure. Then a couple of hours later, my surgeon called just to see how I was doing and reiterate that it's likely just an extra-tough recovery but that - regardless of how I'm feeling tomorrow - she'd like to see me just to be sure. And then she double-checked to make sure that I had her pager information and that I knew to call absolutely anytime if I started to feel any worse.
It's been such a tough week, but it makes all the difference to know that there are such wonderful people taking care of me.
Today's been a series of drug cycles. When everything's working, I have two 'good' hours where I can cuddle with Briony or talk to Geoff but I still feel pretty lousy and have no energy at all. The next two hours while the last round of drugs is wearing off and the news ones aren't quite working yet, I'm too sick to lift my head off the pillow. But with every cycle, I seem to be improving just a little bit. I'm on an upswing now and actually considering some tea and toast... CONSIDERING. We'll see.
The worst news of the day is that my surgeon recommends staying completely off coffee for another three weeks just to be safe. That is the craziest talk I've ever heard, but I'm sick enough to listen.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Starbucks
Frustrated
Consider yourself warned. You may continue reading at your own risk :)
Yesterday brought a HUGE setback in my recovery process, and I am pretty upset about it. I was finally starting to feel more like myself yesterday and actually craved coffee for the first time since surgery (if you know me at all, you know that is HUGE... I pretty much single-handedly keep the entire global Starbucks empire in business). I'm wondering now if that coffee was my undoing or if it was just a coincidence, because I started to feel really awful again last night - and I've been on the couch since 5 pm yesterday, totally sick and in pain again. Like in tears from the pain, curled up in a ball, and struggling to keep down the sip of ginger ale I needed to get some pain and anti-nausea meds into my system. I very nearly made a trip into emerg during the night, but I'm a little better today so I'm trying to just battle it out at home.
This whole gallbladder surgery thing is such an individual experience. I talked to a friend today who had exactly the same experience as I've had after her surgery two years ago - she ended up going back to her surgeon because she was convinced that something had gone wrong in surgery because she still felt so awful even after 2 or 3 weeks. But I've talked with other friends who did much, much better with it - one of them told me that she took a T3 as soon as she got home from the hospital on the day of her surgery and never took another painkiller after that.
I hate that I'm evidently in the category of people who really struggle through the recovery. I hate that I haven't been able to be a mom to Briony for an entire week now. I hate that I haven't been able to work - and I know that tomorrow is the day I need to do some work regardless of how I feel.
We really need to catch a break. SOON.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, One of Lindsay's Rants
Day Four
Day Four with no gallbladder. Day Four with no baby. What a strange, strange week.
I'm so surprised about how long it's taking for me to feel better, but Geoff is convinced that I'm healing very well and exactly as he'd been expecting (whatever that means). I'm still swallowing handfuls of painkillers and having random naps all day long. I think I look like a crazy old bag lady, shuffling around the house clutching a pillow to my stomach - for some reason, it makes me feel better to have that pressure. It's making Geoff laugh at me almost constantly, though... And any sudden movement hurts like heck - especially coughing or laughing. We tried to watch The Office last night and I screamed my way through most of it, clutching my stomach-pillow and yelling OW OW OW in an effort not to laugh. Which only made Geoff laugh harder because I'm like some psycho fake pregnant lady having contractions. Yeah, hilarious.
The only real action in my day today was that I finally managed to Google the number that's been faxing my phone (and therefore my ear) for the last two days. It was the Province of Manitoba's vehicle registration department. I called and asked them to stop, they apologized profusely, and my day has been SO much happier since then.
Briony is apparently doing much better today, so we're hoping that she'll be able to come home tomorrow. It is absolutely creepy how quiet it is at our house right now. Geoff and I are realizing more than ever that we had next to no time together just the two of us before she arrived - and it's incredibly strange now. Geoff was finally bored enough that he volunteered to go grocery shopping this afternoon :)
And with that, I think I'm ready for another nap.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Married Stuff
When It Rains
It was another rough evening and another rough night here. I am not recovering as quickly or as smoothly as I'd hoped, but I'm definitely making progress every day. Today's my first day without anti-nausea meds and so far so good (knock on wood). My shoulder is feeling much better today too (I know it's a normal reaction to the gasses they pump in for the surgery, but it was seriously feeling like I got shot). So it's my first day where I'm really just dealing with abdominal pain + a bit of a flare-up - it sounds sad, but that's making me pretty happy. I was also pretty excited about Briony coming home tonight. She's been staying with my parents since I had surgery on Tuesday and I MISS HER SO MUCH.
But I talked to my mom this morning, and my little princess woke up at their place this morning with the stomach flu. If you're not a mommy, I don't think it's possible to explain how much this is hurting me... I want her home with me (even though I fully acknowledge that I can't take care of her right now). And it kills me because I never would have asked my parents to deal with something like this. EVER. It's an impossible situation without any good solutions.
It's just a no good very bad day.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Briony, Family, Mommy Stuff
Not Quite Dead Yet
So I am now officially without a gallbladder.
So far, it's going okay - I think. I'm not really much of an expert on these things. Honestly, the first day was much more difficult than I had anticipated. Today is probably closer to what I was expecting. Hopefully tomorrow is even better, and I'll be back to normal soon. The one thing I hadn't really counted on was the extreme nausea. I was prepared for pain, but not for that level of queasiness and dizziness and general yuckiness. The drugs are helping - for sure - but it's frustrating to feel like this. I finally kept some food down today, and hopefully that will help to break the cycle of drugs and nausea on an empty stomach. Oh, and I hadn't counted on Geoff coming down the a sinus cold (which is apparently a much bigger deal than my recent abdominal surgery - boys! hehe).
I'm missing Briony like crazy, but I know that she's so much better off with my parents right now. Geoff brought her in to say goodbye at the hospital yesterday, and she was so upset and confused that she couldn't come to me... But I heard her on the phone today and it was very good for my heart.
A great big THANK YOU to everyone who's been praying for us, and to those of you who have helped to make sure that my family is well cared for and well fed. I can definitely feel all the support and it is so very appreciated :)
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder
Missin' My Baby
I cried big, silent alligator tears after I put Briony to bed tonight. I can't believe that I'm not going to see her again until Thursday night... I am *so* grateful that my parents will be providing her with a couple of fun days in the midst of all this chaos we've created in her little world. But my heart hurts knowing that I'll be away from her - and I sense it's worse because it's not for any happy reason. It hurts even more knowing that when she comes home again, I'll be sick and she won't understand. She's just at that really tough in-between age where she's totally aware that things are OFF but she's too little to even attempt to explain it.
I found myself wishing - CRAZILY - that she'd wake up tonight, just once, so I could sneak in one more moment with her. And just a few minutes ago, she started to fuss a little bit. I went upstairs to check on her and replaced her pacifier. She snuggled up to her blanket, smiled at me, and then rolled over with the happiest baby sigh mumbling 'yeah yeah yeah'... I love her so much. Have I mentioned that her new words today were 'cheese' and 'awesome'? :)
It's equally strange and difficult that Geoff is working tonight. By the time he's leaving work tomorrow morning, I'll already be in the OR. Weird.
A million thanks to everyone who sent up prayers for me tonight. I'm feeling surprisingly calm about tomorrow (no alcohol required). I spent the evening with some of my girls watching the finale of The Bachelor and I'm pretty sure that had something to do with it... Thank God for friends.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Briony, Mommy Stuff
Slow, Deep Breaths
I'm a nervous patient at the best of times. My hospital charts would tell quite a story already - a story that involves lots of sedatives and one particular incident involving scissors and some other objects being thrown at a doctor (he totally deserved it).
I was doing a pretty good job at maintaining some semblance of zen right up until my pre-op appointment this morning when I met The World's Worst Anesthetist. He's not even the one assigned to my surgery in the morning, but I'm scared to death about what he wrote in my chart today. He basically lead me to believe that:
1. I won't be receiving my special request to have my IV started by my anesthetist instead of some random day surgery nurse (I have terrible veins and the last time I let just anyone try - while in labour with Briony - I ended up with blown veins in BOTH my arms). Not cool.
2. Because of some issues with my jaw (the same TMJ issues I've had for the last ten years and have never complicated anesthesia before), he thinks it might be safest to have me gag down a breathing tube while I'm awake rather than do it after I'm asleep. Are you freaking kidding me?! That sounds like the precise definition of my worst nightmare.
I ended up having a panic attack in his office, tears and hyperventilation and everything. I have since spoken with my surgeon's receptionist, who has assured me that my concerns have been heard and that we will talk about it tomorrow at the hospital and it will all be okay... But I've been on the verge of tears ever since. I already felt like this situation was quite outside of my control. Now it feels like it's gone absolutely wild, and I HATE THAT FEELING.
Have I mentioned that Geoff is getting sick? Of course.
Well, in about 15 hours or so, there will be nothing I can do about it anymore. I just need to survive those 15 hours. Now if you'll excuse me, there's a bottle of wine with my name on it.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder
T Minus 2 Sleeps
Surgery's happening EARLY Tuesday morning, and I should have spent all day today getting ready - cleaning the house, getting groceries, and a whole list of other responsible things. Instead, I spent the day with Geoff + Briony. We went for brunch and then headed out to the MTS Centre to watch the men's gold medal hockey game with a few thousand other Winnipeggers (and it got ROWDY in there!). Then we came home and put Briony to bed before crashing on the couch to watch the closing ceremonies.
What did I get done on my list today? NOTHING. And I'm perfectly happy to say that. My heart is all torn up thinking about the wife and mommy I'm NOT going to be this week. It meant the world to me that the three of us to just relax and hang out together today.
I think that the thing that worries me the most right now is that I don't know what to expect from my recovery - so it's hard to know exactly what to plan for. Especially because I woke up this morning in a full-on arthritic flare that I'm guessing surgery won't help. BLECH. But we'll figure it out. I'll learn to be flexible and give up some measure of control over my own life, I suppose (...grumble...). And if we handle this badly, at least Briony's young enough to forget ;)
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, My Life
Step Two
Okay, so Step One was being super excited that I'm finally getting this lousy gallbladder of mine exorcized from my body next week.
Step Two is apparently feelings of overwhelming pressure and trepidation. Because now all the logistics are starting to become an issue. For the record, having a toddler and being self-employed are both things that are not especially conducive to taking time off to have surgery. The timing is actually kind of amazing, though, for an unscheduled surgery and Geoff will be home to help for almost the whole time that I'll need him.
Almost.
Argh.
And this week is looking more and more like it's going to be a marathon as I try to get my clients and my family as ready as I can for me to be MIA for almost a week. Which would be overwhelming all on its own, but I've also spent the last two days in a battle against my body just willing it to cooperate and not succumb to this flare up that's simmering right beneath the surface. Because that would really make things interesting.
I know that we'll figure it all out... It's just feeling like a chess game right now. AND I MAJORED IN ENGLISH.
So I'm going to take this non-mathematical brain to bed and worry about it again tomorrow.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder
A Big Day
Two rather significant things happened in my life today...
1. My surgeon had a cancellation and I'm getting my gallbladder out on Tuesday, March 2. YAY YAY YAY!!! I'm so excited, I'm using multiple exclamation points (and THAT is EXCITED). I'm still wrapping my head around exactly what that will mean in terms of child care, work, and my family - but we'll figure it out. If I need anything at all, you can rest assured that you'll be hearing from me... I'm a girl who's capable of asking for help when I need it. And I think we might need it next month. I know it's a fairly insignificant surgery as far as surgeries go, but I won't be allowed to lift Briony for two weeks minimum and I *always* have a fibromyalgia flare post-surgery.
2. Briony cried when I left her at Moms Group this morning for the first time EVER. It broke my heart when the grandmas in charge of childcare kicked me out of the room and assured me she'd be fine. But she was fine. And two hours later when I came back for her, she was happily reading books with one of them, cuddled up in a rocking chair. And then this conversation happened:
Grandma #1:
"She sure likes books, doesn't she?"
Lindsay:
"Yup."
Grandma #1:
"I don't think I've ever met a baby who loves books as much as she does. You must read to her a lot."
Lindsay:
"I guess so... But she'll go find books on her own, and usually likes to look at them more than she likes to play with her toys. I guess it explains why she's talking but not walking."
Grandma #1:
(looking at me strangely)
"But she walks..."
Lindsay:
"Oh yeah, well, holding on to stuff."
Grandma #1:
(still confused)
"But I saw her walk today. She was standing up at that chair over there and took two or three steps over to the table with the toys."
Lindsay:
(stunned silence)
Grandma #1:
(quickly figuring out what's going on)
"Um, maybe I'm mixing her up with another kid... Let me double check."
(calls over to another grandma)
"Did you see any of these babies walk today?"
Grandma #2:
"Yes. Briony walked two or three steps in between that chair over there and the table with the toys."
Lindsay:
"Totally on her own?"
Grandmas #1 and #2:
"Totally on her own."
Grandma #1:
(looking at me wide-eyed)
"Oh no! I shouldn't have said anything!"
Lindsay:
(laughing it off and speaking casually)
"Well, if I didn't see it, then it didn't happen."
And then I cried all the way home. Because even though I WORK FROM HOME, I missed Briony's first steps. It's going to sound strange, but I knew that I would. I knew from the time she was born that I was going to miss them. But I hoped in my heart that the person who got to witness them - Geoff or Katie or my parents or whoever - was someone who knew what they were seeing... And that's why I cried enough that I should have bought shares in Kleenex.
(Of course, she hasn't walked at all this afternoon... And I'm watching her LIKE A HAWK, hehe.)
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Briony, Milestones
Oh, The Humanity
What was that I was saying about insomnia? Pay no attention to the time at the bottom of this post. Clearly, we are still dealing with side effects from The Pills. I'm working on it.
Anyway. This week, it's been all about my body - which does not work the way it's supposed to EVER, but has been a special kind of annoying to me lately.
The gallbladder drama continues... This week has been worse again, and I thought about it a little more than usual today because I know someone who's getting hers out tomorrow morning and I'd be lying if I didn't confess that I am green with envy. Is that weird? I'm completely jealous that she's getting her guts pulled out of an incision in her abdomen tomorrow morning. I realized this week that it's been nearly eight months since my first major attack. EIGHT MONTHS. Eight months where my best case scenario is constant discomfort and my worst case scenario is really, really nasty. I continue to hope that Canada will someday adopt a policy of semi-privatized healthcare because - seriously - I would LOVE to write someone a cheque to just get this done already. If that bill gets pushed through in the next decade, I'm sure I'll still be waiting for surgery.
Fibromyalgia. Arthritis. Chronic Fatigue. Blah, blah, blah... It's all kind of status quo around here. Which is maybe notable because by now - this close to the holidays - I should be starting my annual Christmas Flare. I'm working *so* hard to avoid it this year (just ask all my friends who have been permitted to socialize with me only after sitting through and then agreeing to my strict guidelines and delineation of personal healthy boundaries). Wish me luck! Them too, probably. Assuming they still want to be friends with me :)
I'll bet you thought that this entire post will be about things you already knew (and have heard me bitch about a hundred million times before). Ah, dear readers, don't be too quick to jump to conclusions. Never underestimate the evil powers of my body. Because this week - quite unexpectedly - I seem to have royally effed up my wrist. How? I'm glad you asked. And I can see why you might be wondering, given my propensity for extreme sports and drunken brawling (and combinations thereof). But the truth is that I have absolutely no idea what happened. It started hurting on Tuesday afternoon, and by today it was nasty enough that I actually went into public wearing a nasty ugly brace because it felt SO MUCH BETTER. I'm guessing that my chances of seeing my doctor in the next week are approximately equal to the chances of that lonely old Jehovah's Witness couple forgetting to make their monthly visit to us in January (THANKS AGAIN, GEOFF). So either my prayers for a Christmas miracle will come true and I'll be healed *or* I'm going to have to be on my toes throughout this festive season to ensure said fugly wrist brace will not be visible in any photos. Which should be super-easy seeing my sister is a photographer and my sister-in-law is in university studying photography.
Oh, don't worry. I totally have Real Problems. It's just sometimes easier to dwell on the ones like ugly wrist brace photos.
Labels: Arthritis/Fibromyalgia, Attack of the Gallbladder, Bitching About Nothing, WRISTSTRONG
Unrelated
We're in the market for a new stroller for Briony. We're in love with the one we already have, but would like a second option - something smaller and more compact for running into the mall, travelling, etc. I think we found it today, at the grand opening of the new Lux for Sprouts location... I'm super excited. It's a sexy little stroller. Don't underestimate the importance of pretty baby stuff. I'm not very cool anymore, it's all I've got :)
Why did God give us gallbladders? Seriously. They barely serve a purpose and mine is THE THORN IN MY FLESH right now. I'm still waiting for a surgery date, and now it's sounding like it will be in the new year. In the meantime, I feel like utter crap every time I eat something. Dinner tonight - for the third night in a row - is looking like crackers. YUM. And even those will make me want to hurl. If I wanted to deal with this nonsense, I'd just get pregnant again.
Briony's been a maniac on her little toy cell phone this week. NOTE: I'm totally against toy cell phones for babies, but she got it as a gift (argh). She'll make it ring and then open it, say 'HI!' and then jabber away for the longest time. She drags it around with her everywhere. Those are some seriously long conversations. And every once in a while, the phone is apparently for me. She'll answer it, say a few words, and then hand it over so that I can talk on it. It's the weirdest thing I've ever seen, but incredibly cute. Once morning a few weeks ago, she was lounging in bed beside me and talking on her cell phone with one hand while drinking her bottle with the other. I looked over at Geoff like CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS KID when he gently pointed out that I was in bed beside her drinking Starbucks while checking email on my Blackberry. Okay. Point taken.
I'm totally wrapping some presents tonight. I saw at least ten snowflakes today, so it's time.
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Briony, Great Baby Stuff, Nothing Important
Eureka
DO NOT ask me why it took so long to figure out... But I have finally identified the source of my hellish pain and sickness this week. Or rather, the SOURCES. It's now completely obvious to me that I've had a reaction to my vaccine *and* a gallbladder flare-up this week. Which really explains everything.
I feel better now, psychologically. But I still feel icky. I am, however, still totally excited for Briony's birthday party tomorrow. And what's not to be excited about? We're having a cupcake party :)
Labels: Arthritis/Fibromyalgia, Attack of the Gallbladder, Briony
The Results Are In
Yeah, so it's definitely gallstones. And the official medical recommendation is that I have surgery to have my gallbladder removed. I very much want to feel better, but I very much do not want to have someone cut my abdomen open and remove some of my guts. It's not like I haven't had surgery before, I just don't count it among my favourite things to do (and it kind of scares me a little bit).
So I'm meeting with my naturopath next week for a second opinion. And then I'm meeting with the surgeon the week after for a third opinion. And by then, with my own research added in, I think that I'll have enough information to be able to make a good decision.
In the meantime... It's life as usual here. Geoff and Briony are both napping - Geoff in preparation for another night shift, and Briony in preparation for another night of teething. That darn fourth tooth keeps popping in and out and torturing my baby girl, poor thing. She's being such a good sport, all things considered. I just wish that I could fix it for her.
It strikes me now that my mom probably feels very much the same way, sitting at home and getting my phone calls about gallbladder issues :)
Labels: Attack of the Gallbladder, Briony, Family
