The next step . . .

The next step . . .


We will be seeing Dr. Kenneth Chavin @ MUSC in Charleston on Friday, November 21 at 8:45 am. This will be for a consultation. While there we will schedule surgery #2. The plan is for laproscopic liver surgery to remove the mass on my liver. There are still no results from the biopsy, but both Dr. Chavin and Dr. Srinivasan agree that no matter what the results are, the mass should be removed.


The more I process this, the more anxious I grow. But I know without a shadow of a doubt God is in control. Our prayer is that this mass is benign, that they will take it out, and God will have all the glory. We know that the results are in his hands, and I am struggling to remember this as I deal with the realities that this entails.

Surgeon

We got a phone call yesterday and now have an appointment with Dr. Srinivasan on Monday. This was a lot quicker then expected and we are glad to have one more thing fall into place with God's help. Dr. Srinivasan has a great reputation and is an expert in laproscopic procedures. There is still the chance of other tests being ordered. According to Dr. Mossburg, the only things I haven't been through at this point are an MRI and just regular Xrays. So, there is a very good chance that before Dr. Srinivasan makes a decision regarding surgery, he will send us for these tests. That's okay though-We want to go into this with the doctors being armed with as much information as possible, and if that means me going through more x-rays, etc., then we are willing to do it. If I had to pick a perfect surgery date it would be 11/21, because I would get 10 days in a row to reccupperate and only have to take 3 off and it would still be 6 days b/f Thanksgiving, so by then I should be feeling better. But, we all know picking the perfect date is impossible and that God already has all of that planned and in his control.

Sooooo, as we go Monday, I simply pray for grace in accepting what our Maker has paved the way for and remembering that through it all HE is in control.

Thursday Update

Uggh-I am so weary of the drive back and forth to the hospital and doctors office-This was our 4th appointment in about as many days.

Liver Scan-I was injected with a solution so that they would be able to get a good look at my liver and the mass. I had to wait 30 minutes for this to circulate through my system, before they could begin the scan. The scan itself took about an hour. I had to lay still for extended periods of time while the camera took slow images. Then they would move and do it from another angle. It was not painful, or scary, just draining. We will not have results for several days.

I have only been able to work 1 1/2 days this week (due to the tests and appointments) and that is frustrating and difficult for me. As of now, I will work tomorrow and get to be there all day, which will make it 2 1/2. I am still juggling 2 hats at work and so it makes it even more difficult to be out.

At this point I am emotionally drained. Zapped! I feel like I have been drug through the mud and back. Yick!

Next Step: I will call the GI doctor tomorrow and try to schedule an appointment for next week. My hope is Tuesday, since we will be off for election day. We hope that at this point they refer us to a surgeon for gallbladder and biopsy. The quicker we complete all these steps the better.

Side Note: Yesterday Dr. Mossburg asked me how I felt about all this and I told him that we just wanted to know what to do. That we were faithful in God's promises and know that he is in control of the situation. I was thankful for this opportunity to let him know where our trust lies!

Prayer: Continue to pray for us as we deal with the unknown, as we try to face this adversity looking to God for direction and Guidance.

Wednesday Update

We love Dr. Mossburg our new GI! He is personable, compassionate, and to the point. He was reassuring that in many cases this mass could benign. But he is not settling for assuming, which we appreciate greatly!

What we learned:

1. The mass is golf ball sized. (This freaked me out, I had pictured a marble)

2. A cyst/mass like this is particularly common in my age.

3. Due to my "youthful glow" as he put it, I am at much less risk.

4. Still no definitive cause

5. Still no reason for it being there

Our Next Steps:

1. Extensive Bloodwork: Completed today. This will test liver functions, enzymes, and markers that could possibly indicate cancer. (and Lots of other things I can't remember)

2.Nuclear Liver Scan: Thursday 10:00 am This will be yet another Xray type procedure, with contrast to give more views of the liver.

3. Gall-Bladder Decision: I am still having a great deal of pain/problems with my gallbladder. The only choice at this point is to wait or to schedule surgery.

4.MRI, more tests: The biggy for our doctor is that we do everything that is uninvasive first to learn as much as we can, then we move on from there.

5. Biopsy-This will be the last option for now, but if gallbladder removal is schedule, this will for sure happen and happen at the same time.

Prayers:

1-A clear view in the nuclear liver scan.

2-Calm nerves for me and for my DH as he waits and endures with me.

3-Quick answers confirming what they find

4-Patient and caring radiologists to complete and read the scans

5-That anything I swallow will stay down ( I think I have to drink the contrast this time)

Today, this is the verse I cling to:

It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great. You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn."Psalm 18:32-36

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."Deuteronomy 31:6

I praise the Lord for the doors he has opened over this last week. For the glory he has revealed and for the strength he has poured out over us. HE has gotten us through day to day and contiues to do so. There are so many things going on in our world, the future of our Nation hangs in the balance as this election draws near. Remember as you pray to pray for this Nation, for healing and for people to take action in electing a new leader. But let's not forget all we have to praise! I look around at the beauty of my surroundings, my amazing family, the children I am blessed to teach, the friends God sent me this summer, just everywhere I turn I see God's hand and reasons for Praise! We praise you Lord for your glory-for even the ability to call on your name and know that you will answer.

Prayers

WOW! How thankful I am for my brothers and sisters in Christ who are lifting us up in prayer through this struggle! I appreciate so much the hugs, love, and thoughts, but most of all your commitment to pray for us. I have said before how I feel God's hand in so many ways. This is a chance for me to share it and profess it! God is our everpresent help. He is right with us as we undertake this scary journey. He might not make it go away, but he's there to see us through it. I read The Shack this summer. And I keep thinking back to some of the encounters the main character had with Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit. I was reminded of so many profound things from this story. I think I just might read it again.

Again-for those of you that are praying thank you for taking your time to bring our petition before our most Holy God. I thank God for each of you!

Also, I would love to know that you are praying and keeping up with the blog here-I hope for it to be a witness of God's amazing power and presence in our lives! Please leave a comment and let us know that you've been here! You don't have to be a blogger to comment!

PS_I promise an afternoon update when we get back from the doctor!

Tuesday Update

Goodness! What a day! It amazes me how hard it is to get a doctors appointment and actually see a doctor. What a mess. My family doctor worked today on getting me an appointment with my GI-who I saw forever ago for IBS. He couldn't see me until NOVEMBER 10 and his PA couldn't see me until NOVEMBER 3. Needless to say this was not what I wanted to hear-waiting a week to even know the next step we will take. So, they are sending me to Dr. Mossburg tomorrow at 12:30.


This is such a praise! Not to have to spend any more time than necessary stewing over what will happen next. I have a peace about all this, but I don't like dwaddling through. I want to get on to the part where they figure out what is going on with my body and what they need to do to fix it!

I do have to say what an amazing support system I have! My husband has been super amazing. He has been there every step, holding my hand, holding me, and reminding me that we'll just take things a step at a time. Even when I felt like I should go alone tomorrow and him not have to miss work, he wants to be by my side, even just to hear what happens next. I praise God, to have such a supportive and loving husband. We have been through so much the last six years and he continues to be by my side plunging through it with me!

So-tomorrow at 12:30 I will be in Spartanburg (once again) and meet another new doctor. My prayer is that he will be knowledgable and compassionate about the situation and that whatever avenue he recommends will not be one that takes months to play out! Whatever is going on needs to be dealt with, or God would have never revealed it :) I just pray that through each step of the way God's light will shine through us!