Ode to a Gallbladder

Well, as of yesterday morning, she left me. My gallbladder, that is. We had a close relationship for almost 57 years, practically inseparable, but she “done me wrong.” I loved her, though. She helped me to digest fried chicken, fried catfish, fried oysters and French fries. If you’re a praying person, pray that I will be able to live without her, and that the anesthesia and post-surgery pain medications make me forget she ever existed. The day prior to my surgery, I recorded this song as my way of saying goodbye to my gallbladder.

Now, you may be thinking…this is a blog by a person who has XLH, so how is gallbladder surgery related to the XLH theme of this blog? I guess it’s not exactly related. However, as a person who has for years tried to live on only over-the-counter pain medications rather than stronger prescription pain relievers, last night after the surgery and today, I’ve enjoyed the side effect of the Tramadol they prescribed for me, that side-effect of having very little back pain and knee pain. Nice!

Thanks all for your good thoughts and kind words for the post I wrote a couple days before my surgery. So far, so good, as I embark on a new gallbladder-less life.

Copyright 2017, S.G. Hunter and Banjogrrldiaries. All rights reserved.

Life’s an Adventure

I once read a comment in an online support group that just because you have a rare disease doesn’t mean you’ll not have other health challenges as well. I have certainly discovered the truth of that in the last year!

Last spring, I had several fibroid tumors removed and certainly won’t bore you with the details of that little adventure, and this week, I will be having my gallbladder removed, due to having several polyps in it, one of which is the maximum allowable size limit according to my surgeon. I asked my surgeon if my gallbladder weighs 10 pounds, because that’s about how much I’d like to lose, if at all possible. She was a serious sort and I’m not sure she realized I was making a joke. Nevertheless, as I gazed upon the life-size illustration of the human abdomen hanging on the examination room wall, I realized that the gallbladder is quite small and likely doesn’t weigh anything near 10 pounds. So, I’m out of luck on the easy way out of losing weight. Sigh.

With this upcoming surgery there is a list of medications, which included vitamin D and a few other pills, that I had to stop taking five days before the surgery. Since I am in the KRN-23 drug study and have to keep meticulous records on any medication I take or stop taking, this just adds to my “job” of record-keeping. It also adds to the job of record-keeping for the study coordinator and the home health nurse. Almost any medical event I have, even a headache, is considered an “adverse event.” So, I have to record a start date and a stop date for the pain medication I might take for that headache. Thank goodness for my google calendar that lets me highlight all my medical events in yellow so they’re easy to find when she or the home health nurse asks me if I’ve had any adverse events. If I had to keep this all written down on a piece of paper, I’d probably lose the paper by the time I had to report this to the nurse or study coordinator. So far, I haven’t lost the google calendar that’s on my phone, though. This week I will likely have several yellow medical events to report. I can’t remember why I designated the color “yellow” for all medical-related activities on my calendar. Maybe it’s because that’s the color of my cholesterol pill and the Vitamin D pills.

Anyway, I’ve had lots of encouragement from friends about the surgery and also advice on what I can eat afterwards or not eat and how routine and easy this surgery is, except for the gas which will eventually “work” its way out and I’ve heard great things about my doctor. I’m thankful to have friends with whom I can share this latest adventure. There’s nothing like a good group of friends to get you through stuff like this. I’m looking forward to having them come over afterwards for a visit and to share a bowl of jello with me, that I will serve in vintage Fire King glass bowls. Just because I’m having surgery doesn’t mean I will forget my classiness when it comes to being a hostess!

Have a good week!

“Still life with Box of Jello and Vintage Fire King bowls”

Copyright 2017, S.G. Hunter and Banjogrrldiaries. All Rights Reserved.