Kelly came home March 2nd, the day after our 4th Anniversary (yay us!). He was home for one full week before we took off on our long-planned getaway to the mountains of Georgia. My dear friend Kathryn Wood (we call each other kindred spirits) offered to take Daphne for two nights. She is about my mom's age and has no grandchildren yet. She has a lovely 3 acre home with chickens, gardens, and lots of opportunities for a toddler to get into mischief. Not to mention she has 4 VERY friendly cats that Daphne just loves following around. She and her husband are great people. I teach violin lessons to her and she kind of filled that void of not living near my mom. Each violin lesson is usually accompanied with me asking questions about my garden or food storage and she likes to bring Daphne food from her garden.
ANYWAY. We had a pretty good time in Northern GA. The "mountains" are more like hills, but it was nice being among hills. I researched cabins and found an amazing deal on a huge cabin right on the Chattahoochee. We loved it so much we want to go back with another family. Kelly wasn't thrilled spending one of his few weekends home away from Daphne again, but he ended up having a great time. It was a told-you-so moment. :) Ha ha. I was still a little sick, but nearing the end of all that at 14 weeks.
We returned home Sunday night. After getting Daphne to bed my increasing nausea turned into severe pain over the next 4-5 hours. At about midnight I finally decided to go to the ER since I was worried about the baby. Kelly and our EQ president gave me a blessing. His wife stayed the night at our home with Daphne and Kelly and I went to the ER. Every speed bump or turn or brake hurt so badly.
The ER is a funny place. There are some interesting people there. Kelly liked telling me about it while I was hunched over in pain. Kelly is a people watcher and so I am glad he had to help pass the time. Its unfortunate that the ER is full of people with problems that a Family doctor could solve. But because they're likely uninsured, they have to go to the ER.
I think because I am pregnant they didn't make us wait long, maybe 30 minutes. The pain that was all over my abdomen was starting to gather in one area, right over my appendix. This actually helped me feel a little bit better. I was beginning to think it was stupid we came. But, the pain worsened again. They found out my white blood count was very high. Because they couldn't do an xray, I had several ultrasounds done to see if it was my appendix. We waited a lot. They weren't sure what to do with me because I was pregnant and they just weren't sure! Plus, my OB is in Macon, 30 minute drive from where we were, and it was the middle of the night so they had to wait for approval. I found myself getting very hungry. I hadn't had that kind of appetite in a long time. It was strange to be so hungry when you're appendix is near bursting. Kelly joked every time he walked me to the bathroom. He said I looked like an old man hunched over. Laughing of course hurt. I wonder if my returned appetite had to to with being so hydrated? While nauseated, I couldn't drink water. It made me throw up and left a nasty taste in my mouth. I was dehydrated for so long. At the hospital, they pumped lots of fluid in me-I felt great.
In our room, I was finally able to dose off. Poor Kelly had to sleep in a chair. Around 6am Kelly left to relieve Mary and to take care of Daphne for a little bit. He took her to our friend Lori's house after a few hours, where Daphne played with her friend Ava and napped.
While he was gone I FINALLY met with the OB doctor at this hospital, not mine. He told me the risks and possibilities of what it could be instead of the appendix. He said despite all this he would recommend the surgery from an OB point of view. I was grateful for his honesty because I was very nervous about surgery.
Around 11am they wheeled me into the surgical unit. Kelly had returned. I was feeling pain, but felt ok while laying down. Because of this I truly wondered if it wasn't my appendix. I wondered if I shouldn't take the risk of anesthesia while being pregnant. Kelly felt the same way. We asked the surgeon if he regularly did appendectomies on pregnant women. He replied yes, that he had done a couple in the last year...that didn't sound like too many to us. They left us alone for a bit. Kelly and I said a prayer together. At this point I was very nervous. I was surprised how nervous I was, especially since I'd worked in a hospital around surgical patients. I was mostly worried for our little baby. After our prayer I said my own, asking Heavenly Father to help me feel peace if this was the right thing to do. Kelly then helped me to the bathroom. I remember feeling so much pain getting up and walking that I knew I had to go through with the surgery. I felt peace after this realization. It was that simple. God calmed my fears.
So, I was wheeled into the room and they immediately gave me some drugs. I remember feeling like I couldn't keep my eyes open. And then I couldn't breathe. I told them so and they gave me oxygen. That is all I remember. I was woken up less than an hour later and they were checking my vitals and checking for the baby's heartbeat. Because I carry my babies so low, it took about 5 minutes to find a heartbeat...kind of nerve wracking. But, there it was! About 120 vs. the usual 150 because of the anesthesia.
Some thoughts about recovery:
- Anesthesia is very powerful. I couldn't keep my eyes open the rest of the day. For the next week I felt very slow in my brain. I couldn't read very well. It also curbed any appetite I had. Along with the pain meds.
- I couldn't take pain medications after a couple days. They made me throw up so badly. I think my surgery set me back because I continued to have nausea with some vomiting into my 17-18 week.
- We had a great big hospital room all to ourselves. Kelly and I hadn't had much time together because of his job, so sitting together in the hospital room was bonding time. I felt like I really got close to him during these next two weeks. Its probably because I couldn't do anything but lay there most of the time.
- I had so much help from my mom. She flew out last minute and rescued me from a messy house and unhappy and confused toddler. All the while, my mom had a horrible sinus infection. Daphne wanted me to hold her so badly. She didn't understand. We finally found away for us to bond. By putting a pillow over my incision, she could sit next to me and I could read her books on the bed. My mom made great meals and helped me eat better.
- My ward family and friends both at church and outside of church were amazing. They watched Daphne while I was in the hospital and when Kelly couldn't. They took turns taking in meals. And they brought me care packages. The Bishop and Relief Society president visited me in the hospital.
- I felt so blessed during all of this.
- I got to watch both seasons of Downton Abbey while recovering. :)
Kelly was informed he would be leaving March 25th to Qatar. I had my surgery March 12th. He worked hard to get ready since he'd taken off time to help me. By the time he left, I was feeling pretty good. We parted with a mutual feeling of "lets just get this over with." Before he left, he took me and Daphne to Callaway Gardens, a place in Georgia I had been wanting to see for so long. We also managed to see the Hunger Games.
Enjoy the pictures.
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| Tallulah Falls in Northern GA |
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| We drove up Toccoa...we weren't the only nerds there. |
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| I messed up the panorama shot, but gives you an idea of the beauty |
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| I didn't want my pic taken at this moment |
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| BEAUTIFUL hydrangeas from Janelle. My favorite perennial. They lasted for weeks. |
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| One week after surgery. 15 weeks |
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| Kelly finished this in early March. Still needs painting. Daphne LOVES it. Called the Mother's helper. |
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| My first day alone after surgery. I'm laying on couch and she's playing "tea party?" |
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| Callaway Gardens |
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| 16 weeks. |
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| My two favorite people. |
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| Bye, dear hubbs! |
