It woke up!!!!!

Melissa is pooping!!!! She started this morning at breakfast. This is what they have been waiting for. She was scheduled to change her bag this morning but had a problem because it didn't stop. They got it done but then it started leaking. So she had to change the bag again. Oh well lots of practice before she goes home. She also had the wound drain taken out. She is experiencing some pain because of that. She still has the central line in but they want to leave that in case they need to do a blood draw.

And speaking of going home, the plan is for her to go home tomorrow. Not sure when she will check out.

Again

Melissa will be in the hospital another day or two. She is having a lot of pain. At least here they have meds they can give her.

She is also having some problems with acid reflux. That leaves her nauseous. She did vomit last night and then didn't eat. Part of the acid reflux comes from her bowel not working right yet. Dr. Gerhardt says he is starting to hear more bowel sounds.

She is dozing a lot but I figure that is good because it allows her body to heal. If you are around she does enjoy visits or calls. Just be prepared that she might doze off on you. It helps to distract her.

She will get through this with the Lord's help.

Here we go again

Melissa will spend another night in the hospital. Her blood count is gradually going up now. They are thinking that the 6-mp had suppressed her bone marrow which is why her counts dropped. She is still in a lot of pain. She doesn't feel like eating. We are pushing her to eat, drink and walk. She knows she has to go through the pain but it is very hard.

Please keep remembering her in your prayers.

They have finally given her something to take off the water weight. Hopefully that will help some. She says her legs feel lighter already.

June 27, 2010 5:06 PM

More time in the Hospital

Melissa will spend more time in the hospital. She received the blood yesterday and her count went up. This morning the count had dropped slightly. She is in a lot of pain today. She says she has cankles-where her calfs and ankles have swollen so much you can't tell the difference. She says one arm looks like a turkey leg. Her blood pressure is slightly elevated. We are really pushing her to walk and drink, hoping that will help.

I'll know she's on the mend when she is ready to take this task over.

There might be hope that Melissa will get to go home on Sunday. She received two units of blood and when they checked her counts an hour later they had gone up 3 points which is good. They will check them again tomorrow morning to see what they are doing. Her stoma is waking up and starting to work now. I also took her a heating pad. That is helping her back. She says she can feel the muscles starting to relax.

Again thank you for everything you have done-prayers, calls, visits, cards, and even more prayers.

Please pray also for Drew, Melissa's boyfriend. He has been sick and has not got to spend the time at the hospital he would have liked to.

Still in Hospital

Melissa is still in the hospital. She received 2 units of blood late this morning/early afternoon. She is starting to put out more urine-a good thing Then the blood count dropped. She is also getting some of her pain meds through the IV port. She is having back pain and I brought her heating pad from home for her. It seems to be helping.

She hopes to go home tomorrow, but if the blood issue isn't resolved she may have to see her hematologist. She never does things the easy way. They will draw blood shortly and see where she is.

Melissa will spend at least one more night in the hospital. She has to stay until her stoma becomes active. They want to make sure it is working right. They removed the IV line out of her left arm yesterday. She still has the central line in her neck but that will probably come out today or tomorrow. She also still has a wound drain in but she was told that she could go home with that if need be. They would teach her how to take care of it. She is only taking ibuprofen for pain.

She is still weak but today walked the hall with her dad without using the old lady walker as she calls it. Although she complains about the pain she is still glad she did the surgery.

Doing Better

Melissa is doing much better. She is walking and moving around slowly and carefully. She got to explore her belly this morning, seeing where the staples and band-aids are. She changed her bag, with help, for the first time. She is still having problems eating a lot but is keeping it down. It will just take time to stretch her tummy.

Thank you for the prayers, phone calls, cards, and visits.

Melissa Is Walking

Melissa got out of the stepdown unit this morning. Although she was weepy this morning when I got here she is feeling fiesty now. She is getting to choose her own meals as of supper tonight which will also make her happier since most of you know how picky she is. She had her first walk around the nurse's station after lunch today. She also has felt her first movement through the stoma during lunch. That is a good thing.

Mom still Updating

I am still updating because Melissa still feels weak. She is still in the Step down unit but will hopefully move tomorrow. They did not get her up to walk because she still has the catheter. She was not putting out enough urine. They have given her a diuretic and that seems to have done the trick. She did sit in the chair again and eat supper. She is only eating a few bites but the appetite should come back soon.

As I type this Melissa is sitting in a chair having some chicken noodle soup, although not as good as mom's. She is much more alert although does nap some. But who gets enough sleep in a hospital. They will have her walking this afternoon.

She has recieved 2 units of blood this morning. The doctor was not surprised that she needed the blood. After all she has been anemic for so long and she had major surgery.

She would enjoy visitors but no promises of how long she might stay awake. That will get better the longer she is out of surgery. She is also taking phone calls and will have her cell phone with her.

We left Melissa about 10 PM tonight. They are letting her have ice chips. She is in pain but pain meds are doing their thing until she moves. As she says pain meds are a wonderful thing. They did have her sit on the side of the bed and dangle her legs and she ended up standing to move up the bed to try and lay on her side to sleep a little. She is in the step down unit now but probably will move to a regular room tomorrow. Drew was there and was probably as good for her as the pain meds because he took her mind off of things.
Thanks for the many prayers that have been said. They were answered in what I think is a big way. I'll let her explain later.

She came through surgery just fine. She may need a transfusion later but they will see after they get her rehydrated. She will only have a scar of about 3 inches. She is in rcovery now and will go to her room shortly. Thanks for all the prayers. They were answered.

Mom talking. Melissa went into surgery at 12:15. She was not feeling well. Dr wonders if it will need to be a 2 or 3 part surgery because she didn't even look like the same girl he had seen 12 days before. We pray for a two part but also want what is best for her.

Last post from me for a couple days

Yesterday I was able to make it to the church's block party and ate more then I have been. I even had a good night and was able to make it to church this morning! Unfortunately before church was over things turned bad. Today was been spent on the couch starving. I am so hungry right now.

Tomorrow I'll be getting up around 7:30 to drink a cup of juice because I can't have anything after 8am then I need to pack a bag still and do some dishes if I have time.

I am so ready to get this show on the road!

Mom will probably be posting the next couple of updates so look for something tomorrow evening once I am UC free :)

Monday can not get here any faster

Yesterday I met with the stoma therapist and got pre admitted. What is a stoma you might ask? Well that is what they call the opening that will be on my tummy where I will have the bag. She went over all the supplies I will need and how they work and gave me more information to ready through. She also went ahead and marked the spot where it will be so now I have a better idea of what clothes I will be able to wear. I also worked my last night at work last night and man was it difficult. I felt awful. I have been doing this thing where about 4 to 5 hours after I eat I usually throw up everything or I have extreme pain. I also usually develop a fever, back pain, and achy muscles (kind of like the flue). Luckily Katie helped me out a lot and we made it.

Today I ended up canceling my plans for tonight and stayed on my couch for most of the day. I did get out and do a few things but not much. I also found out what time my surgery is. I have to be there at 12:15 but she said that I was in the computer to actually go in at 1:50 but that could change. I'm not really looking forward to waiting around half the day. I am the kind of person who likes to get in and get it done before I have time to worry about it. We also found out that I would be in recovery for about 2 hours after and no one can see me until after that so don't plan to see me on Monday because it will probably be after 7 before even my parents can see me. If you want you can come up and see them though, they might like the distraction.

5 days to go..

Yes, I do in fact have a count down. My health is failing quickly and it is the only thing that is keeping me going. I am down to only eating about one meal a day because if I eat to much I pay for it. I've lost about 10 pounds in the last couple of weeks but don't worry, I'm not as low as I was last year...yet.

This week is going to be a busy one. I have to get my house cleaned, laundry done, and get stuff together for next week. I also have appointments at the hospital, Girl Scout Camp stuff to do, church block party to attend, and a dinner date in Columbia. And all this has to be done without killing myself...my house may just stay dirty:)

I want to thank people for all the support already. It is times like these when you really see how much you are cared about and it is really appreciated from both me and my parents.

Now it is off to bed for me!

Starting Off

I've decided to do this blog to keep everyone updated as I end this journey I started almost 12 years ago. I am finally ready to remove my colon completely and thus rid myself of ulcerative colitis forever! I decided this would be the best way to keep all the people who might care updated and save some cell phone minutes along the way. I will be posting when I can but I am going to give mom the password so she can post while I am still out of it so everyone knows how I came through. I'm a little more then excited, I think the nervousness might kick in about the day before the surgery.

Speaking of surgery I saw the surgeon today and the surgery is set for June 21st. Things sound like they are going to be a bit easier then expected so here is what I found out. I have an appointment set up for the Thursday before to talk to a lady that will teach me all about having a bag and also another appointment to be preadmitted so I don't have to do much the day of the surgery. Sunday I will have have to stop eating at noon and go to clear liquids and then stop even that at midnight. Monday the 21st they will knock me out (not sure what time) and they will make one three inch cut around my bellybutton and about three other small band aid size cuts to take out the colon. They will attach the end of the small intestine to my belly where I will have a bag for 6 to 10 weeks. The surgery should last about 3 to 3 and a half hours. They said that night I will be sitting up at bedside and the next day I will be up walking. I can return to normal food as soon as possible...like the next day (crazy I know). I should be out of the hospital within 5 days and will be able to stay on my own within 2-3 days. 6-10 weeks later I will go back in for a second surgery where they will close the hole for the bag, fold the end of the small intestine back on itself (will look like a J) to form a pouch and attach it so I can once again go to the bathroom like a normal person.

There are a few drawbacks. I will probably always have to go to the bathroom more then a normal person but it will be about half of what I am doing now. There is also a very real chance of infection in the pouch they create or something like the uc can come back in it. In cases like that they have to replace the bag. I could also have problems having kids later but there is some studies that are showing that that may not be the case especially in people who have never had any other surgeries before (that would be me) so I'm not going to worry about that, it is in God's hands anyway.

So, if you are the praying type start praying. If not, when this is all said and done with you can buy me some taco bell or something else I have never been able to eat...I have a lot of eating to catch up on! Oh and if you happen to know where I work you should come by in the next week and tip me well because I will be very poor soon and I only have a week left :)