Redplaid Time

Thursday, November 24, 2005

Yaaaaaaa! My blog is fixed! My hard-working, well-meaning husband redesigned it about a month ago. He wanted to surprise me by putting a picture of Audrey Hepburn on it. Unfortunately the picture he found was not Hepburn (Barry insists the site he got it from said it was her) and she was holding a cigarette. Not quite what I wanted. He just changed the picture and I love it.

Audrey Hepburn was not just a great actress who defined the style of her time she was a tireless humanitarian who devoted many years to working for Unicef, not just as a spokesman but literally working, mainly with children.

I have fully recovered from surgery. I have started taking hormone therapy. The hot flashes still persist but it hasn’t been a week yet. At my last visit I was told I have a “soft lower spine” and have been referred to another doctor for that. All of a sudden I am a middle-aged woman who’s had parts removed, taking pills everyday and seeing multiple doctors. I’m feeling old.

Labels: endometriomas, hormone therapy, post operation

posted by Kellie Huffman at 11/24/2005 10:19:00 p.m.
1 comments

Thursday, October 20, 2005

My Sticking Uterus

To anwser Yvonne's comment to my last post:

Apparently, before I had both ovaries ripped out, I had endometriosis.

“What is endometriosis?

The word "endometriosis" (say: "end-oh-me-tree-oh-sis") means a problem with the lining of the uterus. Endometrial tissue is usually only inside your uterus. However, if you have endometriosis, tissue from the lining of the uterus moves through the fallopian tubes and gets on your ovaries, in your pelvis, on your bladder or in other areas. When you have your period, this tissue swells and bleeds, just like the lining of your uterus. This is often painful, and scar tissue can form in your pelvic area.” (quoted from http://familydoctor.org/476.xml )

Eew! I wrote “apparently” because I did not know I had this condition, no one did, because I had no symptoms. The usual symptoms include, pain, pain, pain, during menstruation, intercourse, bowel movements (thank-you Jesus for no pain!) and difficulty getting pregnant (thank-you Jesus for my girls!). Ok, I had some pain with my period but nothing midol couldn’t handle.

Anyway, this uterine tissue makes your insides “sticky” (a real medical term used by my surgeon). My uterus is glued to my colon. More eew! I ask Mr. Surgeon if I would ever have to have my uterus removed. He did not foresee any reason for that but if I ever came to him and said I wanted it out (…time-out here: did he say I would ask for more surgery? Not gonna happen!) he would send me to Winnipeg where a team of surgeons would work on me. It would be a big deal. My main reason for asking was because I wanted him to say “no”. I never want to do this again!

Yvonne: I don’t know how many times I pushed that morphine button but I too would push it 3-4 times every time I woke up. I also thought I was sleeping for hours at a time but after waking up the 20th + time and it still was not morning I guessed I was dropping off for only a few minutes. I loved that button. I was in control. I got to recognize and love the little sound of the pump pushing out that 1mm of morphine. When my husband told me the next day that it only worked the first time I pushed it and only worked once every minute I learned to harness the power of the pump with the help of the desk clock I had Barry bring in. Cool stuff. I cried when they wanted to take it away but that’s another story for another day.

Labels: endometriomas, endometriosis, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 10/20/2005 08:16:00 a.m.
0 comments

Monday, October 17, 2005

Two Weeks

Yes, it has been two weeks since surgery and I haven't updated. There is a lot to tell but I'll just give you the basics tonight.

TWINS: I went in around 9:30 am. Despite external and internal ultrasound, x-rays and CAT scan Cysarow was not alone. The surgeon lifted out one chocolate cyst only to discover another attached to the other ovary. So a two-hour surgery to remove one cyst and ovary turned into double duty. Four hours later, after determining that my uterus was steadfastly glued to my colon, wasn't coming out and looked healthy enough and losing a lot of blood, I was finally sewn up and taken to recovery.

I remember nothing until I was taken to my room at 5:00 pm. I remember being lifted and moved to my bed and all I could say was "Pain, pain, pain!" I could hear people telling me I would be hooked up to a morphine pump that I could control myself but I just couldn't shut-up. I can't think off any other time I have been in more pain. But that only lasted a minute or two. They got that morphine pumpin' pretty quick. It worked immediately. My memory is foggy but I remember Barry and my mom being there. I remember Barry telling me about Cysarow's twin (which I named latter, posthumously, Cysalane) and that there was no cancer.

I remember having a basic, almost desperate need to hold Barry's hand. It was like I couldn't effectively communicate any other way. When his hand wasn’t available he offered his foot. I didn’t care. The foot worked just fine.

Latter Barry told me I listened to Coronation Street and then put my glasses on and watched Corner Gas (one of my two favourite shows that I can’t miss). This I have no memory of, which really bothers me. I feel like I missed my fav show…..yet I didn’t. It was about Brett giving up coffee and Emma giving up knitting and crocheting to support him, a story line I would have really appreciated because I love knitting and crocheting and love that Emma is doing it in every show. I love that she is usually making some ghastly looking thing out of cheap acrylic. (Although, in tonight’s episode she was knitting something out of a cozy, nubby yarn in a neutral shade. I wonder if they are real projects that she is working on. She certainly is really doing it; she’s not faking it.) oh well.

That night I must have woke up every 10 minutes to push that morphine button pinned to my hospital smock. And every time I couldn’t help but be THRILLED that I didn’t have cancer. I guess I was more stressed out about that then I realized.

I will try and post more about my recovery and hospital experiences in the coming days. There is much to tell, some of which I wish I had known about before. I have a need to post as much about it as possible in hopes that I can help any of my sisters or friends that might need surgery in the future. (but I really hope not!)

Labels: corner gas, endometriomas, morphine, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 10/17/2005 09:43:00 p.m.
1 comments

Sunday, October 02, 2005

Surgery Eve

Yah, its pretty stinky up there right now. It is 4:55 and I have survived the first bout of fleet enema cleansing. In a few minutes I must take the second dose. I have had nothing but liquids today, clear liquids. Barry picked up a box of vegetable broth cubes at the health food store and I was pleasantly surprised at how good it was. Even though it took me about 20 minutes to strain it through a coffee filter to clean out the herby bits I am looking forward to doing it again latter. I have had tea with no milk (only barely tolerable, I managed to drink about a ¼ of it), blue PowerAde, granny smith apple juice (wonderful) and lots of water.
For an hour and a half after downing the first bottle of enema I was nauseous and had to lie down. After a couple of hours of toilet time I finally felt pretty normal. Now it is 5:00 and I must go and struggle to get the second bottle in my gullet.

Labels: endometriomas, fleet enema, ovarian cyst, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 10/02/2005 04:47:00 p.m.
0 comments

Friday, September 30, 2005

The Pre-Admit

8:00 am, at the hospital. Sporting my new short, short, surgery haircut (no bed head for me) I checked in to Admitting. Then down the hall to some other waiting room (can't remember what they call it). When called I was led into a small office where a nurse (at least she was dressed like one) ask me about my family’s medical history and mine. It seems I have given this information so many times over the past month and a half, to every doctor, doctor’s assistant, nurse, receptionist….Almost makes me want to start making stuff up just to make it different.

She asked about allergies, made notes about the food I can’t eat. Mainly MSG, which she mentioned the hospital doesn’t use. That’s a surprise. I’ll believe it when I see it. She was bummed out that I can’t eat Jello, that clear fluids, old hospital stand by. What will I eat? We talked for about 45 minutes. She gave me stuff to read about what to expect, told me what I can have the day before and to expect to be on the toilet all day with the two fleet enemas I have to take.

And this is the weekend my sister’s family is coming to visit and we are having Christmas/Thanksgiving dinner. It was to all happen on Sunday but my mom got everyone to change it to Saturday so I could enjoy it too. That will be nice. Well I have stuff to get done. Clock is ticking. 3 more days to rip-out time.

Labels: endometriomas, ovarian cyst, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 9/30/2005 12:01:00 p.m.
0 comments

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

OH NO! A COLD!

The day after the pre-op I wake up with a cold! Sore throat, bit of stuffiness, touch of fever. I thought the surgeon should know. I don’t know if it is a big deal or not. I’m a non-medical person. I don’t remember hearing from the surgeon, doctor or anyone what should happen if I get sick before surgery I just thought someone should know.

I call the surgeon’s office. After the 2 minutes or so of voice mail I get the receptionist who cuts me off in mid sentence to tell me I need to talk to the surgery schedule office and patches me through.

Talk to the scheduling office. The lady tells me that surgery will be canceled if I can’t get rid of it and to call my family doctor and tell him.

OK. Call the doctor’s office. Get the receptionist. She tells me I need to call the message desk and gives me the number.

All right. Call the message desk. Once that lady hears my reason for calling she talks in a grave tone as she tells me she will tell the doctor right away and get back to me. Great! Sounds like I got through to the right person to tell.

She calls me back. If I have a cold I must tell my surgeon since he is the one to make the decision to operate or not. I don’t think I’ll waste time telling you what I felt like saying to that. Rather I told her I had done that and was told to call my doctor. Well see how you feel in a couple of days and then call your surgeon back.
Thanks. I think I just wasted a good 30 minutes at least.

I rush out the door to get some work hours in and when I come back for lunch there is a message for me. It is the receptionist from the hospital admitting office wanting to schedule my pre-admission appointment (that’s when they will take my blood and make me pee in a cup). Hmm, she is saying this is the second message she has left and is wondering if she has the right number. So I listen to all the messages left on the machine and sure enough there is another message, left before, but in the first message she doesn’t say why she is calling, she just leaves her name and phone number. I guess I could have heard it before and ignored it because I don’t know her. Or maybe DH, Barry heard it and forgot to tell me.

So I call back. She is thrilled to hear from me, knows I have a cold and that it isn’t like me to not call back. Who has she been talking to? It is nice to talk to someone who is all pleasantness and smiles. The appointment is made for Friday morning. Then, out of the blue, she asks if I have been rushing around trying to get things done before the surgery. I must answer yes. “Well”, she says, “now it is time to relax and get rid of that cold. You’ve been planning for this surgery. You don’t want to miss it. I sound just like my mother.” She sounds like my mother too. OK, I’ll try.

Sleep. That is what I need. I have got to get to bed at a decent time tonight. But right now, I gotta get back out there and make more money.

Labels: endometriomas, ovarian cyst, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 9/27/2005 01:08:00 p.m.
0 comments

Monday, September 26, 2005

The Pre-Op

So I had my pre-operation physical today. No biggie. Listen to my heart, check my reflexes, look in my mouth, ears, eyes. poke my tummy - Done.
"What! That's it? No taking my blood? No peeing in a cup?"
He told me that the papers I got in the mail about the surgery will tell me what kind of blood tests need to be done and I can do that any time. Now where did I put those.....

Labels: endometriomas, ovarian cyst, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 9/26/2005 01:19:00 p.m.
0 comments

Thursday, September 22, 2005

CT Scan - What a Trip!

First you can't eat or drink anything three hours before so if your appointment is at 9:30am you don't get any breakfast. Then you have to show up an hour early to drink two large glasses of water with a bit of something in it that makes your bowels glow. It’s just like tap water with a little extra tinny or chemical taste. The last few gulps are difficult to get down because you are sick of it and hungry for just about anything else.

Your glad the washroom is close by because you have to use it several times before you are called in 15 minutes late. During all this waiting time you are almost driven mad because some poor patient's IV is beeping in the hall. You look at all the nurse/doctor looking people walking by and wonder, “Can't someone check on that?”, “Is that lady ok?”, “I guess it must be ok since everyone is ignoring it except for me and the woman sitting beside me with her book turned over on her lap and complaining to me she can’t read with that thing going off like that.”

You start to think you should visit the washroom again when a nurse summons you into a large room where you are asked to lay down on a stretcher while she inserts an IV needle. She explains the IV is for an injection that will be given to you during the scan. She goes on to say the drug will give you a “warm” feeling through your arms and make it’s way down to your “bottom”. This injection will make you taste and smell “something” and make you think you wet the bed.

You want to say you really do have to go to the bathroom but that would be awkward now that you are there with a needle in your arm, which, by the way, is driving you nuts; it hurts and is itchy. You manage to fight the urge to pull it out and scratch when the nurse leaves the room by singing a silly Sunday school song you can’t remember most of the words to.

Finally she comes back and leads you to the next room. Sitting in the center of the room is a large, upright, square donut looking all sleek and modern. Sticking out of the hole is a bed. Yes, that is where you go; you will soon be put in that donut hole. Once you are lying down the nurse asks you to unbutton your jeans and pull them down. Hmmm. That will be difficult with a needle stuck in elbow pit. You try doing it with one hand and end up letting the nurse do it. After helping you lift your arms above your head she leaves.

You’re alone in the room with the big donut. The donut moves. It is coming up your body. Closer and closer to your face. It stops just at your chin. The inside rim of the donut hole is clear and you can see the innards spinning around it. It is mesmerizing. It slows down so you try to distinguish what is in there. Stop! Don’t do that! It’ll make you dizzy and you feel weird enough.

Then it speaks to you. Telling you to hold your breath and then to breathe. The nurse’s voice comes out of ……. I’m not sure where and tells you she is starting the IV now. Sure enough you feel a warm, tingling feeling move through your arms, your shoulders, you taste and smell “something” er… not yummy. The feeling, which is quite over whelming, moves down to … there and you are sure you peed! It is bizarre!

Then it is over. The feeling goes quickly away. The nurse comes back. While she removes the IV the nurse mentions that your blatter is quite full. Good! Its' still there. After putting pressure on your needle wound for the longest minute she finally lets you go.

So I’m just one more step closer to surgery. On Monday I go for a pre-op physical with my regular GP. In the mean time just trying to get everything done before the 3rd. Tomorrow I will be staying home. My nephew is coming over for the day. This will give me a chance to do some unpacking and act like the stay-at-home mom I really am.

Labels: CT scan, endometriomas, ovarian cyst, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 9/22/2005 11:16:00 p.m.
2 comments

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Finally! A Surgery Date!

October 3rd! Yikes! I was really hoping it would be later in the month. That is only 2 weeks away. I won't be able to finish my job, which runs until the end of October. I need to arrange for teachers for Children's Church for at least 6 weeks. About a month ago I started sorting out all the stuff we have for Children's Church and deciding how to store it. I still haven't finished that and the one classroom has piles of stuff all over the place. It doesn't look like we will have Pioneer Clubs until after Christmas since I still don't have the number of teachers I need. Even if I got them tomorrow I don't feel I would have enough time to prepare them and start the program. I've already decided that I won't be doing a Christmas program. I have to finish unpacking (from moving), need to arrange the basement and fix up my room. And, somewhere in all of that, put in as many working hours as possible. Two weeks.

Giving up my Children's Church class will be the hardest. I love doing it and the curriculum is so much fun. I do have a couple of teachers willing to do it. I need to get together with them and discuss it. I will miss the kids.

But I will be spending lots of time with my girls. I am really looking forward to that. Reading stories, drawing pictures, doing schoolwork surfing the net, watching TV, all together.

Labels: children's ministry, endometriomas, ovarian surgery

posted by Kellie Huffman at 9/20/2005 08:59:00 p.m.
1 comments

Wednesday, September 07, 2005

Chocolate Cyst-MMM Chocolate

Actually it is yukky, not yummy. That is the kind of cyst my surgeon now says I have. Apparently the dermoid cyst conclusion was made by another doctor who looked at the ultrasound. When my surgeon looked at it he didn't see that and the x-ray confirmed it. So endometriomas is a blood filled cyst that looks like chocolate when they cut it open. It usually causes a lot of pain during periods but I haven't had that. My surgery will be in October. I will have a definite date within the week. The surgeon will make a vertical cut (a large one) take out the cyst and, most likely, the ovary it is connected to. Another doctor will look at it and decide in about 5-10 minutes if it contains cancer cells. If it does (not very likely) he will give me a complete hysterectomy. If it doesn't (much more likely) he will sew me up. It will be difficult and painful and time consuming and annoying and interfere with my life! I gotta go to work and get in as many hours as I can.

I am currently working as an enumerator for Statistics Canada which means I get to walk the streets and check addresses. I also get to see what people do with their gardens and yards, meet many different people, see communities and streets I didn't even know existed. I am finding it fascinating! It is also good exercise. I am going into this surgery in good shape. The job runs until the end of October but this surgery will interfere with that. Once I go under the knife my job will be over. So here I go to make money!

Labels: endometriomas, ovarian cyst

posted by Kellie Huffman at 9/07/2005 01:30:00 p.m.
2 comments

Thursday, September 01, 2005

Death to Cysarow

Labels: endometriomas, ovarian cyst

posted by Kellie Huffman at 9/01/2005 10:54:00 p.m.
1 comments

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

Tomorrow, the Surgeon

Tomorrow is the first meeting with the Surgeon. I'm anxious but relieved that it is finally here, that things are being done, believing that this is the beginning of the end of my journey, believing that this thing will be taken out and that will be the end of it. It is hard to feel sorry for myself this morning while watching the news. Hurricane Katrina. 50+ dead. 1,000's homeless. Houses, apartments, businesses flattened. I sit in my home and thank Jesus I am here, on this journey he has sent me on. I pray for those on a much different and tragic road.

Labels: endometriomas, ovarian cyst

posted by Kellie Huffman at 8/30/2005 08:17:00 a.m.
1 comments

Monday, August 22, 2005

Redplaid Time means.....

time for me. Time for me to recount and rehash what's going on with me. I am at a time in my life where everything seems to revolve around what I am doing for others. Not that I resent that, I have created most of the business around me. I am doing many things that I love. But, I have neglected myself, ignored what I need. And what do I need? Depends on the day. Today I need a call from my surgeon. I discovered a large lump in my abdomen, went to the doctor who scheduled an ultrasound the next day, called me into his office the following day to give me the results and referred me to a surgeon to have it removed. In a matter of 3 days MY perspective changed, my stress level sky-rocketed and for the first time in - I don't know how long - I felt out of control of my life. (I called the surgeon's office to find out that he will be looking at his referrals today and should hear from him by tomorrow. Just knowing that helped tremendously.)

So I wait for the phone to ring. In the mean time I see this as an opportunity to do some things I should have been doing all along. My God has been calling me to him, for me to spend some personal time with him but I have found other things needed to be done. Now I find myself running to him, jumping in his lap, curling up and trembling, hardly able to find the words to speak, except to admit I can do nothing about this one. My need for him has become desperate and I must not waste this opportunity. Time for some worship.

Labels: endometriomas, ovarian cyst

posted by Kellie Huffman at 8/22/2005 01:50:00 p.m.
1 comments