Reflections

Hello friends and family,

   It's been a week since I've sad goodbye to 9 inches of my intestines! And I appear to be all the much better for it!! It's been great to be home these last few days. It's amazing how much you can appreciate the little things of your own space until you spend some time away. The feeling is similar to going on a week vacation , but when you come home to your own bed and sheets-- you feel so happy and content. All the traveling across the globe can't take away the happiness felt from placing your feet into the clean sheets you placed on the bed before you left. Any, I digress from the reason for this blog post.

I wanted to write to you all and tell you how grateful I am for all of you. I am thankful for your willing to read my story and therefore become part of my story. By reading, my sending your thoughts, prayers and good will my way, you impacted my illness and hospital stay. I truly believe that the surgery procedure went to well due to all of your good thought and prayers. Compared to my usual nervous self, I really was not an anxious person in the hospital. I wasn't worried and I slept really unusually well.

So, thank you for caring for me from afar. I so appreciate it.

The adventure( and healing) continues....

AT HOME!!! 

An overachiever's shortcoming (alternatively titled: All I want to do is fart!)

Bowel talking below (fair warning)....

As a fairly educated woman with many talents, there are many things I can do on little notice. I can quick clean the whole 1st level of my house within 20 minutes when company is coming over. I can do a head to toe assessment within 15 minutes and with some skill diagnose a pneumonia, allergies or a host of other medical ailments. I can look at lab panels and interpret them. I can paint a mean picture. I can write a mean thank-you note. I can craft with the best of them--turning coffee bags into roses, old jeans into a purse.  I've got all kinds of skills..... and none of them are helping me right now.

I am at what you call a plateau. I have recovered nicely from surgery. I am now, joyfully tolerating a regular diet with no nausea and no increased pain. I can walk around, get out of bed, and bend at my waist with very minimal pain medicine. All are pre-requisets for discharge to home. But the last to do: is still waiting to be done.

We need to know my bowls are working. There are two signs of working bowels: passing gas and having a bowel movement. Now, I am not a girl who enjoys talking about such things. But now, everyone knows this is the last box to check before I go home, everyone I see is asking about my bowels. Everyone. My parents, my in-laws, my doctors, my nurses.... I even got a phone call from my brother -in-law, who lives out of state, who called in a cheerleader style for my bowls to get going..... "Go F-A-R-T-S!".

I can report from the home front, that this morning I did fart twice. But, nothing great to report otherwise. And I so want to be home. I have had great nurses and aides, but I want to sleep in my own bed, be in my own house, have my own space that is shared with my own choosen and loved roommate. But I can't go anywhere till I have a BM. I plead, give me a multiple choice test on anything.... I bet I can get a 70% on most subjects..... I'd bet my walking papers on that. Give me a random test on a novel I read as a 7th grader. If I get a 70%, then let me be discharge. Make me teach a lecture to nursing students, and then give me my papers as rewards..... let me show you my talents in order to earn my escape from 6 west.

I hate this waiting game. For something, I only have minimal control. After all of this, and my ability to make decisions to have surgery and have part of my colon /small intestine removed--you've think my bowels are afraid of me. You'd think that they'd understand who is in charge here and get with the program. But, they will do what they want.

So, prayers for  patient for me, and for peristalsis for my bowels. I so would appreciate it.

On my feet again

Hello my friends and family!

My belly currently, you can only see two of the incisions, the third is much lower.... not a bad looking abdomen

 Sorry, for the blog silence, but I needed a little more time to regain muscle strength in order to sit up and type a blog entry. Well, as today is Saturday, I believe it is time to celebrate that currently there is no evidence of Crohn's in my body! The stricture is removed! Like the boy said, on his previous update, the surgery went well. My wonderful surgeon was able to perform the surgery laproscopically and he was able to remove the stricture. Upon opening me up, they found a little bit more of the small intestine was involved and a small fistula in the colon. He cut until there was healthy tissue and sewed up the fistula. For those of you wondering, I now have 3 small incisions. Here's a picture of them from today.

After surgery, my pain was quite intense. My saving grace came in the form of IV pain medicine and an abdominal binder. I was remarking last night, that this abdominal pain has changed my tune on a few things. I used to not really like injections, but compared to my belly pain, the heparin shots q 8 hours are nothing. But as the day went on yesterday, my pain was less and less....and now I am on oral pain pills. I also went for 3 small walks yesterday and got my catheter removed (rejoice).

So, all in all, things are going well. Now we are just waiting for my belly to regain strength and movement. As soon as I pass gas, we can try to eat a regular diet. 24 hours on a regular diet--and I'm cut lose from the hospital. Without a full diet, it's amazing how wonderful small things can taste. I seriously had the best strawberry jello yesterday! 

That's it from here. Here's another picture of me..... in a dad designed hospital gown...sitting pretty. 

Thanks for checking in!

Surgery Complete! - Post Surgical update #1

From "the boy"...

A quick note to friends and family that my beautiful wife (she will be henceforth referred to as "small one") is doing well...

Small one has emerged successfully from her surgical procedure!  We met with the surgeon (who we like so very much) and he assured us things went well.  Turns out small one's tiger belly was pretty angry so he was glad that we all made the decision to do surgery.  No ostomy bag necessary (Ashley will be thrilled!!!!) and no complications.  Small one remains in the PACU (Post-Anasthesia Care Unit...or Recovery room) for the moment so we have not seen her yet.

So far my favorite things from the day...

1. Seeing my wife in pre-op area after taking her pre-surgical "happy pill" (sooooo much more relaxed)

2. My wife glaring at me after I offered her (in an attempt to be funny) a sip of my water on the way to the hospital

3. 3-4 hours of daytime judge talk shows in the waiting area coming to an end . . . only to be replaced by local news (which is like trading penile cancer for rectal cancer)

4. The wide-eyed nurse in pre-op who told me "boy, your wife talks a lot when she gets nervous!"

5. Hearing the news that the love of my life is recovering well after surgery with no complications

More updates to follow


...the boy

Who is carrying your mat?

Mark 2: 1 -12: A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. ² They gathered in such large numbersthat there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. ³ Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man,carried by four of them. ⁴ Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. ⁵ When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

⁶ Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, ⁷ “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

⁸ Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? ⁹ Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? ¹⁰ But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.”So he said to the man, ¹¹ “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” ¹² He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

~~~---~~~----~~~----~~~----~~~----~~~----~~~----~~~----~~~----~~~--

As a part of our sermon today, this passage was discussed. We were discussing the power of belief in God's kingdom coming. This belief isn't just thinking and completing hypotheses and philosophical theorems. This belief is not only taking God at his word and trusting His promises, but also entering into communion with His spirit and His people. At the end of our time together, our pastor asked Whose mat are you holding? Whose mat are you carrying to bring closer to healing to Jesus? And who is carrying your mat during tough times? 

The closer that Thursday gets, the more both relieved and anxious I am getting. And after today, and this sermon I am taking pause to look at the many blessings I have around me. So, thank you to the many people, who know who they are , who are carrying the corners of my mat. I am so thankful for the many people who are praying for me, who have asked and listened to my worries / concerns and to those who have showed me such kindness. 

I do so appreciate it. Even with distances, I've had so many family members and dear friends who have let me know that they are walking with me during this time. I so appreciate it because on good days it makes me grateful for our friendship and on bad days I can be a little bit stronger because I know I am not alone in this. 

And, a very special shout out to my dear husband who I know if he could single handedly carry my mat himself he would. He has been wonderful to  support me, listen to my worries and let me be sad when I need to. 

It's a date

Hello friends and family. Today, I got the call.... we've got a date: 

January 17, 2012. 

I will be at the hospital in the morning, and around noon I'll be entering the OR for my surgery. 

I really thought I was starting to be okay with the reality of being a patient and having surgery. But this afternoon has been a rough one. For the last week or so I've been telling the boy that this surgery is going to be okay once it's all over. I've been kind of wishing that I could fast forward through all of this. He keeps telling me.... "I know, but before it can be over...it has to start." 

And now, we know when the start is going to be. And that just happens to be in 8 days. 8 days from now, I'll be in one of my homemade hospital gowns (made by my awesome Dad) and the surgery will be done. When I think about it that way, I feel relieved. Relieved that the scariest part of this immediate journey will be over. Then, it will just be an uphill journey to getting back to being Ashley 2.0 ( newer, stronger, lighter due to less small intestine and healthier). 

So, the can be my own personal new year celebration... 17 days late. prayers and good thoughts highly appreciated.