It all began a year ago this month. I was 7 months pregnant with Makenna when the stone made its presence known. After calling my older brother at 2am to come and stay with my kids, Josh and I headed to the hospital. No amount of pain medication injected into my IV would take the pain away. My kidney was blocked and action needed to be taken. I was scheduled for emergency surgery to have a stint put in. Due to my pregnancy, they were unable to remove the stone, so the stint was there to prevent the kidney from becoming blocked again and to hopefully help the stone find its way out. I do not remember much about my stay at the hospital, but I do remember how my wonderful friends came through for us. There was a lot of shuffling, but my kids were well cared for thanks to Rich, Kym, Jana M., and Barbie. I love you guys!
The next 6 weeks could only be described as horrible...The levels of discomfort were indescribable. The stint caused a lot of pain. Let's put it this way...my urine looked like red koolaid for the entire 6 weeks. I also had the strongest urge to go to the bathroom ALL THE TIME. I was on pain medication 24/7. Not so great when you are the mother of 2 small children. Thankfully, my wonderful mother came to the rescue. She came down and stayed with me for a month. I am not sure if words could ever express my gratitude.
On January 25, 2008 my doctor induced labor and Makenna was brought into this world. Soon after delivery, the doctor did an x-ray on me and gleefully announced that the stone was gone.
But the journey did not stop there. 8 months later, the stone made its presence known again, only this time it was bigger and impassable. After another x-ray and CT scan, the doctor found that this stone was hiding (could not be seen on an x-ray, but could be seen on a CT scan). We were going to have to do surgery, but the type of surgery was dependent on whether we could see it on an x-ray. Finally after 2 more x-rays, the stone showed itself and surgery was scheduled. Did you know that you can meet your deductible with 2 x-rays? I had 5.
Last week I was put fast to sleep and the stone was blasted to smithereens. The best part is...no stint! I have decided that I would much rather have a stone than a stint...crazy huh! Once again my 3 children were well cared for thanks to Amy. The next day, while I was recovering, my other dear friend, Debbi, came over and made me lunch and dinner. You guys are wonderful!
This journey was not a fun one, but God has once more reminded me of how awesome my friends are. Thank you!
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