Aunt Kay picked me up at 9 AM today to take me to my endoscopy. (Thank you Aunt Kay for taking up half your day to hang out with me and of course for lunch!!!) Arrival time was set for 9:45 AM but the procedure didn't get started until noon. I was instructed not to eat or drink anything after midnight the night before, even though I begged that I have a condition where I don't retain water like the average bear, they still said, "Nothing after midnight". Anyone who knows me knows I can't handle going very long without something to drink. So, I actually drank a large glass of water at 1 AM because I knew my procedure was set late and oddly enough, they set the cut off time for food and drink to midnight no matter what time your procedure is scheduled. But on the way there a little after 9, I was so thirsty I got out a piece of gum. This held me over but I was told it would delay my procedure an hour and that I could have had clear liquids up to an hour or two before...I wish I would have known that earlier. Oh, well.
Why the endoscopy you ask? Good question. I have had a progressively worsening discomfort with my esophagus for 8 months now. It started as an evening heartburn type problem after dinner (which I never had problems with before except when I was very pregnant) and by March it was an all day discomfort after anything I ate or drank no matter how little. I feel like I have something stuck in my throat, most of the time and I have coughing fits after I eat. Eating and drinking less is the only thing that helps tame it but it hasn't gone away at all. My first neurologist said it made sense with the location of the lesions but all my doctor's agreed that I should get it looked at by a GI just to be sure we weren't over-looking a separate issue that needs different treatment.
When they rolled me back to the operating room at noon, I was able to have a quick conversation with Dr. Ruderman. He is a very nice doctor with good bedside manner. I could become a Doctor critic when all this is over. Maybe I'll start a reality show because the world needs another reality show. Anyway, I reminded him I was his rare histiocytosis patient and he remembered all about me. I commented that in our consultation, he had said it could all be stress related since I had been through a lot. He replied, "But you are a fighter and you are going to make it through this!" Then they put a pacifier like thing in my mouth for the camera, I felt my IV start to burn and realized I was about to go out. So, I put up 5 fingers and counted from 5 to 1 with my fingers. I guess I did that because I am used to doctors saying, "Count backwards from 10" and since I couldn't talk, I went for the sign language approach. He just smiled at me.
The next thing I knew it was 12:30 and I woke up next to Aunt Kay. Dr. Ruderman came in and said it all looked good. I have a herniated stomach but so does a third of the rest of the population. It feels good to finally have something everyone else has. OK, not really. He did the biopsies as planned but doesn't think they will come back with anything. His conclusion is that the problems I am having are from the lesions on my brain stem. This is what we suspected but now know that the Chemo will be the best chance I have at curing this. In the mean time he prescribed something to help with the discomfort. We dropped the prescription off on the way home and wouldn't you know it, my insurance company won't approve it without a doctor's authorization, which Walgreens faxed to Dr. Ruderman. I feel bad for the doctor's office that has to continually authorize the prescriptions they just wrote. Crazy!
I was able to enjoy the day resting as they instructed. I was very sleepy and napped for a few hours in the afternoon. I had already put dinner in the crock pot this morning so there wasn't anymore work to do. The kids entertained themselves and we shared our dinner with Grandma and Grandpa once David got home from work. Jimmie is still doing very well for just 2 weeks post op. We are blessed.
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