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Unexpected

I thought I would end up with the one big September post to sum up the month with my last blog update. However, I'm sneaking in this last one on the last day of September - an unexpected post for an unexpected situation this past week.

This time on Sunday a week ago, I was going to be getting ready to go to bed in a couple of hours, having had some back pain that day. But then I woke up around 1:00-2:00 AM having bad chest pain on top of the back pain, all night long. I just couldn't get comfortable and it hurt really badly.  

So, around 5:00 I finally woke Dana with my writhing in pain and trying to 'breathe' through being so uncomfortable. He took me into the ER around 6:30.

Thankfully they administered some pain meds via IV almost right away and what a God send that was! They did some lab work and an ultra sound to try and check my gallbladder, liver, etc. They narrowed down the issue to my gallbladder as they could see a couple of stones. I had no idea that chest pain was caused by gallbladder issues!


Dana had a presentation he was supposed to give on Tuesday to a class of NDSU students and he was planning on being off work for most of the week on a trip up north with his Dad, so he was trying to get some work done while we were figuring everything out.


After a few discussions with the surgical team, they ultimately decided to do surgery on Monday. I was so relieved as I didn't know how I was going to be able to manage the pain at home since it seemed to be different than a 'normal' gallbladder attack.

The surgeon tried to illustrate what was going on inside my stomach with this drawing. :-) That sideways light bulb thing was supposed to be my gallbladder and he was showing how a stone was blocking the duct.


Post-op! Everything went well and I just stayed one night at the fancy new Sanford hospital. My gallbladder was indeed inflamed and there was the large stone blocking the duct. So, the pain I was experiencing wasn't going to go away on its own.

The girls came to visit me and each brought me a rose.


Dana was able to still go on his trip and Holly came to take care of the girls and me. A huge thanks to her for all that she did this week!



And thank you to everyone who checked up on me, gave me gifts, food, cards, prayers and well wishes. It all sure helped me feel better!



Of course I would have to say the best card came from Brynnie. ;-)



I have felt better each day and am not getting so tired out now and not feeling as sore. They were able to do the procedure laparoscopically, but I hadn't realized that still meant four incisions! :-/ So, I can't pick up Clara or lift more than 15-20 lbs for 2-4 weeks now, but all this isn't news to anyone who has had their gallbladder removed. I was able to do some work from home last week, so I was able to keep up a bit with that and not have to take as much PTO.

We had a nice quiet day at home after church today. Clara and I tried to organize our craft room a bit and made some puppets out of this fun kit we had.


So, I'll head back to work tomorrow and see how that goes!

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