5 Years Ago Today...

Wow, so many mixed emotions today...
Five years ago today I was put into the hospital.
Something was wrong and we didn't know what it was.
I've never wrote down my experiences with my cancer battle,
and I figured this is a great opportunity since 5 years is a huge milestone.
So the next couple days of blogging for me will be therapeutic and emotional.
My life did a complete 180 starting on this day.
For the good and for the bad.

March 17, 2006

I had a doctor appointment with a general surgeon to take a look at removing a lump from my breast. I went to a gynecologist and she said that it wasn't a big deal but if I wanted to get it removed I could but didn't have to. I decided it bugged me so I might as well. I didn't want to go to the appointment alone so I asked my mom to come with me. The surgeon came in, did his normal check up, checked my lymph nodes, and asked me if I had been feeling ok. The past month or so I had been having a really hard breathing and sleeping ALOT! My general doctor diagnosed me with asthma and I was treating that. The surgeon was concerned because my lymph nodes where swollen and sat my mom and I down to talk to us. He wanted me to go to a Pulmonologist because of my shortness of breathe, etc. He had 3 ideas of what it could be: 1. Tuberculosis, 2. Lymphoma, 3. Something I can't remember now! He made an appointment for me to go straight to the pulmonologist and my mom and I headed over there. In the elevator I asked my mom what Lymphoma was. I knew I had heard about it before but couldn't remember what it was. She told me it was cancer and I burst into tears. About a month and a half earlier I had a dream I had cancer and it scared me to death. I told my mom and she told me not to worry and whatever it was I would get it straightened out. I've never prayed in my life to have Tuberculosis but I was doing it then! The pulmonologist did some tests and x-rays and discovered I had fluid in my chest around my lungs that was squeezing my lungs which was causing the shortness of breathe. He decided I needed to be admitted to the hospital and he needed to take the fluid out of my chest. I asked if I could have a couple hours to get things arranged with school at BYU and that I would check in at a certain time. My mom took me to BYU and I talked to one of my professors to tell him what was going on. We went to get some food at Kneaders before I was admitted, then back to the hospital I went. I had never stayed in the hospital before so this was all new to me. I was married at the time, called my husband to tell him what was going on, and my mom and I hung out in my hospital room until the doctor came in. The doctor used a very large and very long needle to take the fluid out. He stuck the needle into my back using an ultra sound and started to extract the fluid. Man was that painful. I also never wanted to eat Kneaders again after loosing my meal! He took out jars and jars of fluid. I couldn't believe it. I felt so crumby and just wanted to sleep. I had a surgery scheduled for a biopsy of the lump in my breast so I was also feeling anxious about that. Of course you can't go to the hospital to rest because they're waking you up so many times to draw blood, take vitals, etc. But they're just doing their job.

So that was my St. Patrick's Day five years ago.
Stayed tuned the next few days to read the rest of the story...