The Walnut Acre Daily - Catching Up After Appendicitis

Looking back I see it's been about a week and a half since I've posted here. In my last post I mentioned not sleeping well the night before. That would have been Sunday night. Monday evening I started having some abdominal pain that was pretty sharp. I tried to just work through it, getting the kids to bed and doing some schoolwork with Austin and Amanda. Tuesday morning I felt a little better, enough better to force my way through most of the morning work. I ate lunch and that seemed to make the pain much worse. After resting on the couch a few minutes I managed to get Lauren to preschool and came home and pretty much collapsed on the couch. Austin and Amanda got the little ones down for naps and I supervised from the couch. All afternoon I just felt worse, finally throwing up, which brought no relief. When Doug came home a little after 3:00 I told him something is really wrong. He wanted me to call the ambulance and be taken in because I would be taken straight to a room instead of waiting in the waiting room. But I didn't want to, and said I'd just wait until the last of the daycare kids left and have him drive me. We found places for our kids to go and by about 5:30 we were at the ER. It wasn't long until I wished I had let the ambulance take me in. We sat in the waiting room for nearly five hours before we were called back. The pain was horrible. I tried to lean on Doug but leaning sideways just made it hurt worse. The waiting room was so cold I was shivering which was making the pain worse as well. When I was finally called back it was to a cot in the hallway, but the nurse brought me a warm blanket and I almost thought I was in heaven. I could lay back and relax and I was warm!

I was given some pain medication and sent for a CT scan. That's when we realized I had appendicitis! As soon as I heard that I knew  surgery was in my future. My worst fear when I think of having surgery is that I'm going to come out of anesthesia sick and hysterical. I guess watching Michael come out of anesthesia that way and also hearing others while I was with Michael made me a little fearful. The surgeon decided that, unless there were complications, he would do a laparoscopic appendectomy.   I went in for surgery around 1:30AM on Wednesday and woke up in a room around 7:00AM that morning. Doug said I came out of anesthesia like a lamb and that about 4:30 I told him to go home and get some sleep. I don't remember that but I'm glad he listened because by that point he had been up for over 24 hours and at the hospital with me for almost 12 of those hours. 

When I woke up at 7:00 I was in pain but was able to get up and move around a little. I was told I needed to sit up awhile and that made the pain a lot worse. I was so glad to get back in bed! The plan was for me to go home later in the day but the nurses were having trouble getting in touch with the surgeon to have him come in and release me. I honestly wouldn't have cared if they had just let me stay in the hospital another night. But around 5:30 I was finally released and heading home. 

Thursday and Friday are kind of a blur for me. Doug took the rest of the week off from work to be home and take care of things. Austin and Amanda were very helpful. Some of the parents of the daycare kids were able to make other arrangements for the week and the ones that couldn't were here with Doug, Austin and Amanda. 

Saturday I was more alert and moving around more. By Sunday morning I was feeling much better and able to go to church. 

Austin and Amanda were planning to go on vacation with my parents but after I got sick Amanda said she wasn't going anywhere, she was going to stay home and take care of her Mommy. Doug went back to work Monday morning and Amanda has done an awesome job helping me keep things going here. For the first few days she did all the lifting of babies in out of high chairs and beds, as well as changing diapers. Each day has been a little better and today has been great. No Ibuprofen and I was able to keep going all day. 

I am amazed and grateful for how fast I am feeling better. I have felt all the prayers and support and appreciated the food brought in and enjoyed the flowers I was given. And I have a new appreciation for the blessing of feeling strong and healthy.