Tonight's picture was taken in April of 2004. Mattie was two years old and that weekend we took him to the National Zoo. Mattie liked the zoo, mainly because it had two of his favorite things..... being outside and surrounded by animals. Mattie had a natural interest in animals and it was fun to see the zoo through his eyes.
Quote of the day: Pain is such an uncomfortable feeling that even a tiny amount of it is enough to ruin every enjoyment. ~ Will Rogers
Today was a nightmare of a day. The pain I experienced was over the top! Not necessarily from the surgery or the stent inside of me, but from the side effects from having anesthesia, being on pain meds, and a whole bunch of other medications. Kidney stones not only impact the bladder, but also the bowels.
I was so bloated and in pain, I literally felt like I was going to burst. All of this triggered nausea and a headache. My doctor recommended walking and he felt that would help move things along. I tried walking all over our home for three hours. The only thing that succeeded in doing was stressing me out and at times I was keeling over in pain. Peter has been dealing with me and my symptoms for over a month now. I would have to say that being in chronic pain can be exhausting and debilitating. Not to mention depressing because you figure..... will I ever feel better? Be better? Not have pain?
Peter and I have a lot of experience with constipation, given our cancer care with Mattie. Many of Mattie's drugs produced constipation, which seemed even harder to manage in a child. We learned many tricks to deal with this painful nightmare. One of which was the daily usage of Karo syrup or when in a real crisis, the need for suppositories. I always say that Mattie was my best teacher, and even today, we need exactly what to do for me, given our experiences with Mattie.
It was my first day outside walking with Sunny and Peter. Having fresh air helped greatly and though it was cold out, it was nice to have a change of venue. My kidney pain is much more manageable today and I am learning to live with the stent. However, I am quite happy it is coming out on Monday. Needless to say, I feel like I have a great doctor who not only is competent but is compassionate enough to make personal phone calls. He called me at 7pm on Friday evening, before going home. This wasn't the first call I received from him either. To me this is noteworthy, since most doctors are hesitant to extend themselves for their patients. But my doctor clearly understands pain and what it can do to patients. On Thursday, post surgery, as I was in the recovery area and totally out of it, I remember saying to my doctor.... you are the best! Which in essence I think he is because he empowered me to make my own decision about surgery, but counseled me wisely.
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