Hello November

Hello November

Well, so much for all my plans and good intentions.  Life has a way of getting your attention rather dramatically.  I turned 70 this month and I was really dreading the experience.  In my head 70 was old and I am way too young to be old.

We made plans to leave Friday, Nov.1st to go back to Virginia and visit friends and Bridge Christian Church. We stayed with Ralph and Karen Thomas and it was so much fun just to be together again. We went back to visit Equipping the Saints, the Farmers'Market in Dayton, and went to Church Sunday Morning.  On my birthday list were buy jerky for the boys, eat Brunswick stew, and look for targets of opportunity that I might want to be a birthday gift from Mr. Wonderful.  He surprises me by buying what I want when I pick it out and give it  to him and say, "This is what I want for my birthday."  It is a foolproof system and always ends with both of us satisfied.  Did I mention, I really do not like surprises?  If it is something good I want to savor it before it happens, if not I don't want to think about it.


Sunday morning I woke up with sharp abdominal pains on my left side that never got better.  By early afternoon we decided to cut our visit short and head back to Tennessee.  I was diagnosed with diverticulitis with a CT scan and a urinary tract infection sent home on two very strong antibiotics and was told to follow up with my own doctor.  The antibiotics killed the bacteria in my colon but also killed all the good bacteria and flora in my stomach. 

The CT scan revealed that I had a cyst on my left kidney so we had an ultra-sound done.  The ultrasound revealed a mass instead of a cyst so I was sent to a nephrologist.  After exploring all our options we have decided to take a "wait and see" approach.  I will have another CT scan in 6 months to see if the mass has grown in size and what our options are.  They look at all masses as cancerous but the location of mine would be almost impossible to do a needle biopsy. 

 Worst case scenario is that I lose my left kidney.  The best case scenario is that God would decide to heal me.  Either way, I am at peace knowing that you can live with one working kidney.  I never thought that having diverticulitis would be a blessing in disguise. 

Charlie"s wellness physical revealed blood in his urine so he is also seeing a urologist.  Several scans and a cystoscope are scheduled to see if the blood is coming from the bladder, prostate, or kidneys.  Charlie normally gets sympathy pains for me whenever I am experiencing physical symptoms.  Several people have mentioned that maybe we are taking this "togetherness thing" a little too far.

Did I mention that I got a yeast infection from the antibiotics?  I haven't had a yeast infection in 30 years.  I took an over the counter medication that I have taken before but woke up two hours later in a burning pain in my nether regions. 

 I look at the back of the box to see if there were any warnings or contraindications but found none.  I finally read the 4-page insert in the box and discovered on the last page that people on Coumadin should not take Monistat as it could cause vaginal bleeding and bruising.

  Now you tell me!! Charlie and I both take Coumadin for atrial fibrillation.  We also do a blood stick weekly to check if we are at a therapeutic level.  The normal range is 2 to 3...my level was 6.3.  I panicked and had Charlie take me to the emergency room to get a vitamin K shot.  The doctor told me the level could be as high as 16 but did give me Vitamin K.  She also took me off the antibiotic as my counts were good.

I went home embarrassed but feeling better.  It took almost 2 weeks eating yogurt, probiotics, and soft foods before my stomach started feeling better.  It took another week before my bowels returned to normal.  I am beginning to think "normal " is just a setting on a dryer.  Is this going to be my new 70 years old normal?

So my month has started out with a bang...How's yours going.