Trials make us stronger!!

Warning this is a long and boring post!  Read at your own risk!  After  months of dealing with HMO insurance and going through the hoops of first going to a Primary Care Doctor, then waiting for an appointment with a specialist only to be referred to a sub specialist and then having a few appointments with that sub specialist,  I was finally able to schedule my surgery to remove my kidney stone or should I say kidney boulder.  My surgery was May 3rd at the University of California Irvine Hospital and it was performed by Dr. Liss. I luckily didn't get any more kidney infections between January and May.  I stayed pretty healthy during that time.  I had to be at the hospital at 5:00 a.m on May 3rd.  I was the first surgery of the day.  I told the doctor and the Anaesthetist that I got motion sickness and that the anaesthesia would make me sick.  They didn't believe and didn't give me any anti nausea medicine.  The surgery ended up being more complicated than planned and the doctor wasn't able to get all of the kidney stone.  He got most of it except for 2 tiny pieces.  They had to put a tube into my kidney so that they could go in and break up the kidney stone and then vacuum it out.  There was a lot of bleeding.  They were lucky to get as much of the kidney stone that they did.  That first 24 hours after surgery was not fun.  I was really sick from anesthesia and was in a lot of pain from the surgery.  My kidney didn't like having a big whole poked into it.  My incision on my back actually didn't hurt that much.  The pain meds only made me more nauseas.  Once I got through the first 24 hours I was feeling pretty good.  The pain was significantly better and the nausea was gone.  I only had to stay in the hospital for 3 days and was ready to get out of that hospital bed.  I had to go home with a catheter and had it for a week.  That was one of the longest weeks of my life.

Some of our dear friends watched Talia and Tucker while I was in the hospital and we had several meals brought over, rides for my kids, blessings, beautiful flowers and cards,  and visits and calls from friends during the first week after surgery.  I have the best friends and most thoughtful ward.  I was well taken care of.  My mother in law came for a week and helped out and then my mom came the next week.  My mom came the week after because my sister and her friend were coming to visit so she could help me get ready.  Thank you  to everyone who helped me and my family during my surgery and recovery.  It is so comforting a trial in my life but it helped me grow stronger and become a better person.  This made me more grateful for the health and strength I usually enjoy.  I take so many things for granted and am grateful experiences like these that make you realized how truly blessed you are.