I realize that it has been about a year since I've posted anything. It doesn't mean I've given up on my health - it just means that I'm lazy, not enough time, or whatever lame excuse I can come up with. My sweet daughter and my good friend Lorraine are both so good at posting, updating, and just overall blog creativity - it puts me to shame. However, I know both of them love me and will just wait patiently until I write again. Because so many interesting things happen in my life, I've contemplated changing my blog title to try and encompass more that health, but after consideration - it seems that EVERYTHING I do now at this stage of my life, eventually comes back to my health: physical, mental, social, economical, financial. So, I guess I'm keeping the name for now.
I just came back from a 12 day trip to Europe chaperoning 11 middle school age kids. I really have a lot to say about the trip - perhaps a book or several articles would be able to express my thoughts. Here are some sample titles of my soon-to-be best sellers: "I'm glad I dropped 20 pounds before my trip - should have been more" "What, are you nuts - you're not as young as you used to be!" "Travel Europe with your eyes glued to the ground" (in honor of the uneven streets) "I might look like I'm dying, but I'm not" "Heat and humidity CAN kill you" "You've GOT to be kidding me - another flight of stairs"
More titles: "What happened to the other half of the toilet seat" "I'd rather hold it in than try to get up from a squating position". Perhaps a "how to" book would be in order: "How to shave your legs without bending over" "How to shower in a 2' x 2' square stall and still come out clean."
My trip just proved to me that I'm not as young as I think I am. And you know what? That's ok by me - I've lived my life burning the candle at both ends and I've decided that I like sleeping, I like to be alert the next day - I enjoy watching the scenery as I look out the window and not have to stuggle to keep my eyes open. Besides, my bouncing back now days takes a little bit more time than it used to!
Well, hopefully I'll be able to post some more about my trip, my health, my diet and my body over the summer. I have lots more to say.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Bellybutton Gone?
I have been blessed with incredible health for the majority of my life. I've only had one broken bone. I can't remember ever having full- blown flu - I've never had a flu shot. Colds are few and far between; they are minimal and usually only last a few days. I've maybe missed three to four days of work due to "illness" over the last six years. Don't get me wrong, I get run down and I'll take a day or two off work to "recharge" my batteries - that usually does the trick. (My weight issues, however, are another story. I'm always constantly dealing with the "battle of the bulge.")
Having said all this, it seems as though once I turned 50 - I began to fall apart - at least as far as hernias go. I've learned over the years that there are all kinds of hernias - only because I think I'm experiencing most of them. This latest hernia operation is now my fourth one. And I still have to deal with the hernia in my diaphragm (the one in which my stomach, pancreas, and small intestine now reside) at a later date.
I made a lot of observations while in the hospital - one of which was: you want to get out as fast as you can. In order to do this, you have to pee on your own and you have to walk. Once you can do these two things, they'll let you go home. I have truly discovered that there is "no place like home" to recover. And that is what I've been doing over the last three weeks.
There has been nothing very dramatic about my recovery (thank goodness). Fortunately my sister, Maudie, is here from California helping me and keeping me company for an entire month. They sent me home with a "bag" that had to be measured and dumped two times a day (it was removed after seven days). I had to keep an ointment on my staples and stitches, which my sister did willingly. She actually counted 58 staples - who knows how many more were done internally! I might add that these are not your "stapler" sized staples - they looked like the heavy-duty staples you use to bind books!
The day she counted my staples, she made a comment about my belly button. She asked me where it was. I said, "Oh, it's there somewhere - I think I saw it the other day." As it turned out, my scheduled three-hour operation turned into a six and a half hour operation. This was due to the fact that the hernia was so big that the intestines that came through the hernia left such a huge "skin pouch" the doctor decided he couldn't leave all that skin dangling - so he removed all the excess skin, along with my belly button! (Essentially, I received a "tummy tuck" at the same time of my hernia repair!)
It appears that there is no real purpose in having a belly button, that is, unles I intend on being born again. Humm, something to think about.
Having said all this, it seems as though once I turned 50 - I began to fall apart - at least as far as hernias go. I've learned over the years that there are all kinds of hernias - only because I think I'm experiencing most of them. This latest hernia operation is now my fourth one. And I still have to deal with the hernia in my diaphragm (the one in which my stomach, pancreas, and small intestine now reside) at a later date.
I made a lot of observations while in the hospital - one of which was: you want to get out as fast as you can. In order to do this, you have to pee on your own and you have to walk. Once you can do these two things, they'll let you go home. I have truly discovered that there is "no place like home" to recover. And that is what I've been doing over the last three weeks.
There has been nothing very dramatic about my recovery (thank goodness). Fortunately my sister, Maudie, is here from California helping me and keeping me company for an entire month. They sent me home with a "bag" that had to be measured and dumped two times a day (it was removed after seven days). I had to keep an ointment on my staples and stitches, which my sister did willingly. She actually counted 58 staples - who knows how many more were done internally! I might add that these are not your "stapler" sized staples - they looked like the heavy-duty staples you use to bind books!
The day she counted my staples, she made a comment about my belly button. She asked me where it was. I said, "Oh, it's there somewhere - I think I saw it the other day." As it turned out, my scheduled three-hour operation turned into a six and a half hour operation. This was due to the fact that the hernia was so big that the intestines that came through the hernia left such a huge "skin pouch" the doctor decided he couldn't leave all that skin dangling - so he removed all the excess skin, along with my belly button! (Essentially, I received a "tummy tuck" at the same time of my hernia repair!)
It appears that there is no real purpose in having a belly button, that is, unles I intend on being born again. Humm, something to think about.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Tomorrow's the Day
Before I picked my sister up at the airport on Friday, I had a visit with my surgeon so he could explain his new surgical plan for me. He explained that he gets together with a medical team of doctors to discuss different and unusual cases. They consult with each other to determine what the best approach would be for the patient. Well, my case was the topic of conversation at their last meeting. As a team, they decided that it would be best to just do the lower hernia repair and leave the diaphragmatic hernia (the one in which my stomach, pancreas, and small intestine is now residing) alone. It doesn't bother me and I have no symptoms - so they decided that the best course of action would be to leave it alone at this time. Wahoo! I'm all for that.
Well, surgery is tomorrow and I'm getting ready. I called the hospital and they said that they have WiFi in the patient's rooms - so I (or my sister) can keep folks updated on my progress. Life is good and all is well - school's over and my summer has begun.
Well, surgery is tomorrow and I'm getting ready. I called the hospital and they said that they have WiFi in the patient's rooms - so I (or my sister) can keep folks updated on my progress. Life is good and all is well - school's over and my summer has begun.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Yeee Hawwww
I had some pre op procedures done yesterday - one of which involved me swallowing a microscope so that my surgeon could take a look at my insides. All I can say is, just be glad you weren't there!
Anyhoos, before he got started my doctor said that he'd been thinking quit a bit about my surgery and was concerned that he didn't think that the organs that are in my lungs would fit back into my belly. I thought to myself, "great- what does THAT mean, he wants to cut one off? attach it to my hip? what the heck is he talking about?"
He went on to say that, because I don't have any symptoms and the hole in my diaphram doesn't bother me, he's just going to repair the lower hernia instead!! He thinks that by the time he puts everything back to where they belong, the stomach cavity will stretch enough to hold the organs that are now in my lungs (stomach, lower intestine, pancreas). IF he decides that it's in my best interest to fix the lung issue, he'll deal with it later (next summer?) Who knows. He'll tell me more next week.
Needless to say - I am ONE HAPPY CAMPER!! I now have my life back! I don't have to worry about not being able to return to school in Sept., I'm not worried about "croaking" (btw did you know that Costco sells coffins?), my sweet children don't have to be here - they can save their plane tickets for another time. I might even be able to drive to Idaho to see Brian & Lori (of course, their amazing spouses too!) - maybe if I'm recovering well enough, I can go to David Waterfall's wedding reception in Utah.
Ahhh, life is good. And I am TRULY blessed. Thank goodness for a doctor who does his homework!!
Anyhoos, before he got started my doctor said that he'd been thinking quit a bit about my surgery and was concerned that he didn't think that the organs that are in my lungs would fit back into my belly. I thought to myself, "great- what does THAT mean, he wants to cut one off? attach it to my hip? what the heck is he talking about?"
He went on to say that, because I don't have any symptoms and the hole in my diaphram doesn't bother me, he's just going to repair the lower hernia instead!! He thinks that by the time he puts everything back to where they belong, the stomach cavity will stretch enough to hold the organs that are now in my lungs (stomach, lower intestine, pancreas). IF he decides that it's in my best interest to fix the lung issue, he'll deal with it later (next summer?) Who knows. He'll tell me more next week.
Needless to say - I am ONE HAPPY CAMPER!! I now have my life back! I don't have to worry about not being able to return to school in Sept., I'm not worried about "croaking" (btw did you know that Costco sells coffins?), my sweet children don't have to be here - they can save their plane tickets for another time. I might even be able to drive to Idaho to see Brian & Lori (of course, their amazing spouses too!) - maybe if I'm recovering well enough, I can go to David Waterfall's wedding reception in Utah.
Ahhh, life is good. And I am TRULY blessed. Thank goodness for a doctor who does his homework!!
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Words of Wisdom and Other Observations
*When your daughter/son is showing you their ranking at their grade level and she's 159th out of 165 students - don't say quizzically "humm, you're not 165th?". You're trying to be funny, but she knows you're comparing her to her older sibling [who ranked 165th when in that grade]. You might not notice the defeated look in her eyes - but I do.
*When your [insert age] year old says proudly that he wants to be a professional [insert word] player when he grows up - don't interrupt his dream by saying - "yeah, and how do you think you're going to make a living while pursuing this wild dream?" or "yeah, you and a million other kids!"
Do this enough times and your child will never think he can do anything. He'll never measure up or be 'good enough' in your eyes. How sad. And here, you thought you were trying to "help" him by giving him a dose of reality - a look at the real world. All you've done is given a shrink another customer!
*When your [insert age] year old says proudly that he wants to be a professional [insert word] player when he grows up - don't interrupt his dream by saying - "yeah, and how do you think you're going to make a living while pursuing this wild dream?" or "yeah, you and a million other kids!"
Do this enough times and your child will never think he can do anything. He'll never measure up or be 'good enough' in your eyes. How sad. And here, you thought you were trying to "help" him by giving him a dose of reality - a look at the real world. All you've done is given a shrink another customer!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
"Talking About 'IT' Takes The Power Away" quote from my sister
I just got off Skyping with my kids. How fun that was! Brian was farting in the background and Mariah kept jumping off the couch, running to the window gasping for air. Lori and Scott just kept making faces and holding their noses. I needed to talk to them about the potential "end of my life" stuff. It was quite a comical experience. Humor has helped me through my life and now it will help me deal with the possible end of my life.
These past nine days since the visit with my surgeon has forced me to deal with all sorts of possible scenarios: 1) I'll recover fine and be back at work in Sept., 2)I'll die; 3) I'll be disabled and unable to work again, 4) My recovery will take longer than the summer. The emotions and how I need to handle each situation is quite an interesting process.
Why I'm Putting My Blog Link on Facebook
It's interesting that at different times in our lives, perception changes and we glean different meaning from the same things. When I started this blog about a year and a half ago, it was because I wanted to have a platform for fellow PRISM members to have a place to go to share ideas and to be able to support one another. It was a place for me to yack.
Since then I've discovered many things: One, only my friend Lorraine, really showed any interest in following my quest for getting healthy - and that was (and still is) OK. Actually, that's not true - many people are VERY concerned about my health, Lorraine is just a bit more "blog" savvy and willing to figure out how to access my blog. Two, I'm not very good at updating my blog - which drove Lorraine crazy. Three, I still don't know if I'm willing to blog on a consistent basis. Four, I'm still interested in "getting healthy" - and I am, thankfully. My progress has been slow and steady - and that's OK. Perhaps a bit slower than my doctors would prefer.
Another discovery I've made is, I figure if I don't write chronologically and in a timely manner, I should just not do it at all - so I don't - and then I get frustrated thinking I've got to "back fill" past information before I can address CURRENT news. (Wow, this is sounding random) Anyhoos - I'm going to write again, primarily because of my up and coming operation. I feel a need to keep people informed as to what is happening with me and my reaction to all of it - but I don't really want to publish it on Facebook for people who don't really care, would have to read.
So, in a nutshell, this is what's happening: If you want to keep informed about my current health crises and you're interested in my thoughts about how I feel about things - connect to my Facebook page and click on my blog link. Whew, this was certainly long winded, random, and kind of crazy sounding. (It sounds as though I just described myself!)
Since then I've discovered many things: One, only my friend Lorraine, really showed any interest in following my quest for getting healthy - and that was (and still is) OK. Actually, that's not true - many people are VERY concerned about my health, Lorraine is just a bit more "blog" savvy and willing to figure out how to access my blog. Two, I'm not very good at updating my blog - which drove Lorraine crazy. Three, I still don't know if I'm willing to blog on a consistent basis. Four, I'm still interested in "getting healthy" - and I am, thankfully. My progress has been slow and steady - and that's OK. Perhaps a bit slower than my doctors would prefer.
Another discovery I've made is, I figure if I don't write chronologically and in a timely manner, I should just not do it at all - so I don't - and then I get frustrated thinking I've got to "back fill" past information before I can address CURRENT news. (Wow, this is sounding random) Anyhoos - I'm going to write again, primarily because of my up and coming operation. I feel a need to keep people informed as to what is happening with me and my reaction to all of it - but I don't really want to publish it on Facebook for people who don't really care, would have to read.
So, in a nutshell, this is what's happening: If you want to keep informed about my current health crises and you're interested in my thoughts about how I feel about things - connect to my Facebook page and click on my blog link. Whew, this was certainly long winded, random, and kind of crazy sounding. (It sounds as though I just described myself!)
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