Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Down but not Out


13 days after surgery, and a week after coming home from hospital. I've been meaning to make a new blog post but I just couldn't sit long enough. My first day home I actually sat for over an hour before the computor. Bad idea. Ouch, ouch, ouch.

Ours is an upstairs, downstairs house and with my room upstairs, I was stuck here for 6 days because traipsing up and down steps, I was told, is strictly a no-no too soon after ovarian surgery. It jars the incisions inside, so the nurses said. As of last evening though, I've been slowly inching myself downstairs and upstairs, and feel terrific. Maybe the kitchen is the most home-like place in the house, I don't know, but I feel like I'm really, really home there.

I make a really bad nurse and an equally bad patient. I quickly get tired of everything. Reading, watching TV or stuff on a laptop in bed, even sleeping too much makes my butt ache. My hormones too got into the act, going into overdrive for a few days. Sigh.

When I first went to the doctor, it was because...hang on, STATUTORY WARNING: if there are any guys reading this who can't handle women's stuff, close the page right here! My period went on too long. Not a heavy, gushing one but endless spotting. By day 7, I knew I had to see a gynae but with a cold and its accompanying aches, I made it to him only on day 11. And when he said I had to take a pelvic ultrasound test, I was pretty sure all my vitals would come out normal, normal, normal and he'd sit me down and say, "Ah madam, welcome to your menopause!" Instead, the tests said I had a clearly defined ovarian cyst, sized 6 to 5 cms, and the doc said all cysts above 5 cms were better off surgically removed. And that was it.

I have a good friend who'd just a couple of weeks earlier had the same kind of surgery but her biopsy result suggested cancer and her gynae sent her rushing off to Mumbai. I was terrified that would happen to me too and despite the doctor's assurance that mine didn't look malignant, I had a few rough moments. But thank the Lord, all I did have was a harmless cyst. Meanwhile, my friend had her first dose of chemotherapy last week. Please pray for her.


28 comments:

  1. Hi! Calliopia :-) it's good to see u back after a successful surgery. Heard about it and I was told that everything was under control.I'm very sorry for your friend, but we never know the plans God has laid out for her....hers might be even better than ours:)
    Take xtra good care of yourself.It won't be long =)

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  3. Zoram, thank you! I'm glad to be back alive and kicking too. You might remember my friend - she was and still is a sunday school teacher too, name's Parteii. Yes, that's a good thought, that God may have better plans for her.

    picturesquer, it's not a Holi coloured dress, just a pink casual lounge suit with a few flowers. If you show it to anybody, you're dead, and you know why!

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  4. So sorry you had to go through all that. But thank God it's not worse. Wishing you a speedy and full recovery, with all your physical and mental energy back in full power.

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  5. Glad to know the surgery went off successfully and you're back home. Wish you a speedy and full recovery and more great posts. Didn't comment on your last post but did say a prayer for you

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  6. mesjay, my physical and mental powers are daily getting back to normal. I am so so thankful for all this and for all the good friends who have sent up a little prayer for me.

    That goes for you too, Plats. And I definitely promise to come up with more posts soon, God willing.

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  7. Wish you a speedy and complete recovery!

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  8. Good to hear you're back! And I'm glad to know your operation went well. Wish you a speedy recovery, little miss.

    Cheers.

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  9. I dam tha chho zel maw.Lo dam tha zel teh khai..ka thil lo thawn kha hmu ta em?

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  10. Thanks Lochan, will do. Hope the pickle's not burning you too badly ;)

    Thank you, joonbirdy. Keep the lovely pics coming and I'll get well in no time at all!

    pu epis, ka hmu a ka lawm lutuk. A hmuhnawm reuh khawp mai. Nang nge nge, i fel thin :)

    As I live and breathe, it's the tinkertoon man! How's married life comin' along? And thanks, I'm already tons better after hearing from all you good folks.

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  11. feels good to see you back, to see you blogging.. I wish u a speedy recovery and hope you keep the upstairs-downstairs routine slightly restricted for some more time at least.. praying for ur friend.. and yes, back home, kitchen was my favourite place too..

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  12. Hi Gauri, thank you. Yeah I'm trying to keep the up-down thing to a minimum. You must be a good cook if the kitchen's your fav place. Me I'm an indifferent cook (and my sister's even worse!) and I think I like our kitchen because we'd upgraded it last year or sth!

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  13. Hope you are much better now. Kimi had the same deal a year ago but has recovered well; slowly but surely. I'm sure you'll be up and about soon, but don't push it...our prayers as you recoup.

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  14. Get well soon u J. Don't stress yourself too much.

    And I have been visiting your friend frequently. She's out of surgery last friday and I plan to visit her again today or tomorrow. Amazing conversational partner she is.

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  15. Thanks, Philo, I'm recovering slowly but surely too. And all your prayers help a great deal.

    Thank you too, illu, but I think you have the wrong person in mind. My friend arrived in Cal a week last Sunday, was stranded there for several days due to the constant cancellation of flights to Aizawl and finally arrived home via Silchar Saturday morning. Hope your friend's doing well though.

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  16. Hi J, I didn't know you had surgery! Hope you're much better now and thank God it was a harmless cyst.
    I had an emergency CS too in feb, was hospitalised for a month, and got out a week back. I had to be up by 2nd post op day to breast feed baby etc, but thankfully I don't seem to have surgery related probs. Just filling u in, too lazy to blog about it:) Hope you get well soon too, and you probably shouldnt worry abt being active, as long as you're not lifting heavy objects. Take care :)

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  17. Hey dear diary, thanks, and congrats, you're now a mother! I'm so sorry to hear about the rather complicated way you got there though. So that's why your blog's gone all quiet again. Is the little one m or f? Hope you don't have anything like postpartum blues and all that. Thanks for the advice and you take care too :)

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  18. I lo dam lo ni maw. Im pretty sure you were secretly glad to know it was just a cyst and not the onset of menopause :P

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  19. Dam lo e. I dunno about that. I read up the symptoms of menopause on the internet and went yes, I have this and this and this. Now I'm sad because I don't know if I can trust info on the net anymore :(

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  20. Lo dam zel rawh.. HJ in i hospital awm min hrilh.. a hranpa in ka rawn chu-e-kha-e ta lo..

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  21. Nia, HJi chuan min ron phone vang² alom, fel hnup² tak a ni. Ka tha zel e, 100% ve leh tep toh.

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  22. oh ok. She said she knows you so I just assumed it was her you were talking about. Her name is Mazami from Chanmari and committee member of CYMA. She's a lecturer at Zirtiri college and she just got her right breast removed due to cancer. She is doing well now and I visited her again yday after the Mizo Church service. She's still waiting to know if Chemo will be required or not.

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  23. Omigosh yes Mazami. I heard she'd been diagnosed with breast ca. and sent off to Mumbai but I'd completely forgotten about her. Please give her my warmest regards. Yes, she's one amazingly happy camper, talks nineteen to the dozen all the time. She used to have very curly hair which she has professionally straightened out but after a couple of months, her roots grow out all wriggly again. Tease her about that hehehe

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  24. Her results came out today:
    Chemo is necessary! :-(

    Here's her number if you want to talk to her: +919436140767 Already got her permission to post her number here :)

    Take care.

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  25. Thanks, will message her asap seeing it's a roaming #.

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