Tuesday, 12 March 2019

March 12, 2019 - Six Week Follow up appointment!

I had my six week follow-up today with Dr. Topping and these are the points we discussed:

-My body is being slow to accept the IUD and slow to recover from surgery.

-Dr. Topping suggested I use a period tracker app or keep track of bleeding and pain on calendar over the next couple of months to see how my body is adjusting.

-The endometriosis is cured for now...emphasis on 'for now.'

-Dr. Topping found deposits of endo along pelvic linings and in stomach and she got them out, but they are NOT cancerous! I worried about cancer because my dad, grandparents, and uncle on my dad's side died from it and loads of people on my mom's side of the family died from it.

-The goal now is to stop bleeding...

-Dr. Topping told me to give the Mirena time to work and wants to see me in a couple months to see how my body and the IUD are adjusting to each other. She also now thinks I have irritable bowel syndrome, but I already suspected that and am managing that with changes in my eating. I cannot eat anything with peanut butter or cinnamon anymore, especially, as it makes me vomit on the spot. 

-Dr. Topping will arrange the next appointment with her office for a couple months from now and if I'm still struggling, I'll probably get another medication along with keeping the IUD. The fact that the IUD is seemingly working is making me realize that the chances of having children naturally are LOW and that is something I have been working on accepting since this drama started.

-I can travel and I am looking forward to doing that!

-I CAN HAVE BATHS AGAIN! After the surgery, I was told I couldn't have baths for six weeks and I had my papa install a telephone shower in my apartment so I could shower more comfortably. I am so happy to be able to bathe again, though, as the baths are also a mental health buffer to decompress from daily stresses.


Thursday, 31 January 2019

January 29, 2019 - Surgery for Endometriosis

The day started off very, very early and I had to be at the hospital at 6:30 a.m., but I didn't actually get registered until closer to 7 a.m. Once I was registered, I went up to the Day Surgery unit and was eventually given my own little rest cubicle. I put on a gown, got into bed, and they had a HORRIBLE time starting an IV because my veins are trashy and eventually decided to let the anesthesiologist take care of it in pre-op. A nurse also got to shave parts where incisions would be made, which was on different parts of the stomach, and I got uneasy because I am not used to strangers touching me on the stomach or anything like that. I got sent off to pre-op very quickly (around 8:30 a.m.)and I was put on this skinny operating bed and the anesthesiologist did get an IV started! I don't remember much after that...

THIS...this is a photo of inside of me and a sample of what they took out!



It looks like a spider egg sac, doesn't it? These little buggers were why I was in so much pain all the time even doing simple things. I don't know how many of these things were removed, but there were four incisions when the surgery was over and I am now sporting an IUD to help me with issues. I don't know where the endo was, but I have it and this is confirmation that I was not faking it. I got nasty messages from people who thought I was faking it and this confirms that they are nothing but idiots! I hope these things don't grow back, as they look very frightening.

Anyway, the next thing I know, I'm in post-op and I choose to roll on to my side because it's more comfortable for me than laying flat. By the time they take me back to my cubicle, I need to use the bathroom and manage to do so without assistance. I was released in the early afternoon and went straight to bed because I was tired and just wanted to sleep.

Friday, 11 January 2019

January 10, 2019 - Health Update

Health update for all those who are interested: As far as I know now, I will be having surgery for endometriosis on January 29 and the plan is a D&C, excision, and scope of both pelvis and stomach, and insertion of IUD. If it's crappy in there, though, I may just tell them to remove what is bad and leave the rest.

Sunday, 30 December 2018

December 19, 2018

I got an appointment this close to Christmas because people are not supposed to bleed and hurt during pelvic ultrasounds...

Dr. Topping and I had a chat and she recommended going in, excising any endometriosis, doing a D&C, and putting in an IUD. She said if there is no endometrial tissue, the trouble is in the uterus and if that is the issue, they can have the dang thing and I told her that. Not sure when the surgery will be: they will phone me.

I'm not sure what they did last time I had surgery, but it obviously did not help.

Monday, 19 November 2018

November 19, 2018 - Pelvic ultrasound

I had a pelvic ultrasound at Radiology and Associates because my endometriosis has been causing me severe pelvic pain even though the Lupron has stopped the bleeding. I am so sore from my ultrasound. I barely had enough water and it hurt because I had to hold it during the ultrasound and there were parts of the ultrasound that hurt to the point where I thought I was being stabbed and the tech had to scan spots several times. The tech also scanned my kidneys several times.

November 7, 2018 - Appointment due to pain

Okay, health update...my uterus is fine, but they want to do another ultrasound in case another part of the system is not. I will also stay on the Lupron because it's working and I know what it means because it's working so well. However, God prompted me to stop feeling guilt over what that means.

October 25, 2018 - The painful abuse of the #MeToo Movement has resulted in chaos.

I'm really confused as to whether I want to support the #MeToo movement anymore or not because it's created a society where witch-hunts spring up at the first spark of an accusation. The movement used to represent courage and rising above pain, but it certainly doesn't represent that anymore. Some people see the legitimate stories and they want a piece of the action, so they make up a story and publicize it without evidence of any kind. Society reacts by immediately going after the accused without looking for evidence that might support the accusation. Even if there isn't physical evidence, there has to be some sort of evidence out there. Evidence can be found if one looks hard enough, but who actually does it?
The #MeToo movement has created chaos in society. Granted, there are those women who have legitimate accounts of being assaulted by men and who will be forever affected by that and the men in those cases should be held accountable. On the other hand, there are also women who are making a game out of the movement by false accusations against men of all ages simply because they want attention or they don't like a person enough to want to damage their reputation. Those who fabricate such stories out of spite are despicable people and should also be made to take responsibility for the damage their lies do and the hurt they caused.
Recently, a nine year old boy was accused of groping a woman in public and the woman clearly knew he hadn't done it, but she simply wanted the attention that came with pretending to be part of the movement. I don't appreciate women who lie about something like that just to get attention, especially when they are perfectly aware that their behavior is inappropriate and can emotionally damage those they accuse. The accused child has still not forgiven his accuser and I don't blame him if he hates her for the rest of his life because it could have turned out to be a very serious thing. Accusations can create fear and hysteria within communities simply because it's the common belief that everyone who makes an accusation like that is telling the truth. Once an accusation is made against someone, it is very difficult to stop the reactions and it is very hard to take back a lie.
Even more recently, the mayor of Grovetown, Georgia announced that he and law enforcement officials are planning to round up all of their community's sex offenders on Halloween and unlawfully detain them in the local fire hall under supervision during the hours of trick or treating. This is another seed of the #MeToo movement that was created by fear and a desire to destroy anyone on 'the list' regardless of why they are there and what they have done rehabilitation-wise after paying their debts. While some do terrible things and deserve to be on 'the list', others are on that list over perfectly innocent things that were blown out of proportion.
There are already perfectly sensible restrictions in place for people like that and this rounding them up is something I don't agree with. The mayor claims that this action is perfectly legal, but how is it perfectly legal to round people up and unlawfully detain them in an enclosed space while surrounded by police? That reminds me of some very dark days in history that have already been repeated by recent policies. What the Grovetown mayor seems to be doing is creating a portable internment camp for undesirables and also feeding into the witch-hunt spectacle and internment camps of any kind are disgusting! I thought society was beyond things like that.
I give kudos to those who have come forward with legitimate stories about how they were sexually victimized because it's not an easy thing to talk about. However, to those who are making things up to get attention or to spite those you don't like, please stop it because your words can create a lot of damage. If it didn't happen to you, don't say it did because then you will ignite a firestorm that will end up creating chaos and destroying innocent reputations. Think about what you say and do before you act simply because your words and actions can and will produce very real consequences.