Meet the Surgeon Day

See that tiny little organ lying beneath the liver?

Well, that little organ has been causing me so much pain and it's been ruled as cholelithiasis. In other words, Gallstones. (google gallstones and you can see how nasty it is, poor me).

My doctor suggested i meet with a surgeon to see about getting it removed as a means of a cure. Someone can have gallstones and not know it, but once symptoms arise and it turns to cholycystitis then it's bad news. The pain is not fun and it wakes me up in the middle of the night with a pain that i describe as : Someone pushing down on my URQ with both hands all the way through to my back.

Anyways, today i met my surgeon. I kept imagining him to look like this:

A sweet nerdy man who would make awkward jokes about something geeky that would go totally over my head. Then i imagined my surgeon to look like this:

awww yeeah!! McSteamy...who wouldn't want a studly surgeon like him? holler!!


Unfortunately for me, my surgeon was no mcsteamy, nor was he some nerdy looking awkward man.

I am blessed to have a tall older man who is so smart and made me feel very comfortable about my procedure. He knew exactly how to explain the surgery to me and did a good job in explaining all the pathophysiology behind my disorder. I have a really amazing surgeon, awarded as one of the top general surgeons in Arizona 2011. He was funny and I feel confident placing myself in his hands for the operation.


"I'm surprised that for all the junk i eat, I'm not morbidly obese"

that was what i always would say whenever i found myself eating fast food at 1am with a big fat cup of Dr.Pepper. Well self, i might not be morbidly obese but my habits earned me a spot in the Operating Room on July 12th. Prayers are appreciated.

Fear and Faith cannot exist in the same room, therefore i am letting go of my fears and putting my full faith in my Heavenly Father that everything will turn out well and that I will recover without complications. Gallbladder, buh bye!!

iStudy

Year Round Nursing School



It's awesome. While everyone's working and enjoying vacations...im working AND in school.

I had a huge midterm today. It's worth 30% of our final grade,and let me remind you...anything below a 77% is failing and an A is anything above a 94%. No pressure though ;)


Anyways, I sat down to finally study last night around 10 pm. Yes, i procrastinated because i HAD to watch my favorite show, SYTYCD!

It took me forever to figure out my perfect study habit and I found this to be my study area last night:

Aww yeeah,...gimme my music on blast, my notes, scratch paper and my book. I AM GOOD TO GO.


As i started to go over material and memorize in detail some of the pathology behind specific diseases, i started to see a trend in my notes.


I have a 3 hour lecture for pathophysiology and in the first 2 hours of class, my notes look like this:

Pretty organized, somewhat decent handwriting and eligible.


However, in the last hour of class from 10-11am...I begin to get hungry and antsy from sitting for 2 hours. I begin to day dream and my eye lids feel heavy. This is the point of my attention spand in which i begin to fantasize about a spicy boy sweeping me off my feet and having the courage to step up to the plate. hehe. By the time i snap back into reality, i look down at my notebook and find my notes to look a lot like this:

BAHAHA...awesome.


I got a 42/50 on my 30% weighted midterm. I'm awesome.

My first ultrasound

So long story short, I have digestive disorders but lots of time ill wake up at night with intense pain in my upper right quadrant. Went to the doctor and the doctor said, no more monkeys jumping on the bed! ...haha just kidding.

He ordered me a complete abdomen ultrasound.


Results?

I, Darlene Ines, am the sad owner of gallstones.
Yep, gallstones. Thankfully, it's not lodged in a bile duct so no surgery. But every once in a while i get really bad pain from it so it suggests that it does at one point interfere with my ducts. bleh.

Oh, that's not all.

I, Darlene Ines, am also the sad owner of kidney stones.
REALLY? ...wow. I suck. I'm terrified for when the time comes to pass them cause according to my patients and other Nurses, it's "like giving birth to a stone". And with my ZERO PAIN TOLERANCE, i can't imagine how ill be.


Treatment? No more soda. foreals this time. I have to break up with Dr.Pepper and Pepsi. I dont know that ill be able to. Im on day 2 without soda and already popped advil for my headache. No more fast food. I dont think i can break up with IN N' OUT. The thought itself makes me sick. No more chicken nuggets? WHYYYY PORQUE!!

this sucks.

Advice to you: If you have a DR.Pepper for breakfast, kfc for lunch and in n' out for dinner...you're heading down my path and i say STOP. eat better or you'll be the sad owner of stones in your body.

one love :)