Advent . . .

In the Presbyterian church, Advent is the season of watching and waiting, and I'm ahead of the game this year, because that is what I have been doing for the past weeks.

I'm happy to share with you that I did not have to have surgery after all.  The day before it was scheduled, I passed a fragment of the fragment!  This was good news indeed and it meant that the potassium citrate was doing its job in dissolving the stone.  The doctor postponed my surgery, and I saw him again a couple of weeks ago after another CT scan, which showed that the fragment was gone.  All the swelling was gone from my kidney and ureter.  There were a few tiny bits left but they were not enough to warrant surgery.

YAY!!!

I have another CT scan on Monday morning and that one will tell the tale, I believe.  If everything is gone, then I think I will finally be given the go-ahead to do my next 24-hour urine collection.  This is the test you need to learn what changes will need to be made.  That I've made two different types of stones now just complicates things in my mind.

There is additional reason for concern - there is another stone.  A 4mm one that is hanging out in my kidney at the moment.  It is my and the doctor's hope that it is also a uric acid stone.  If it is, the potassium citrate should be working on it, as well.  If it's not, well, it's going to have to be addressed at some point.  Cross your fingers.

The reason that I'm really wanted to do the 24-hour urine collection test is that I really need and want to be eating better and - at the moment - it feels like I don't know how to do that.  And because I feel so helpless, I'm not making very good choices all the time.  That it's the beginning of parties and holiday food isn't helping.

What is helping is that this past week I was finally able to go back to the health club to start working out with my trainer again, and this morning I was able to start back doing Tai Chi.  Yay!!!

So, I'm hanging in here  :-)  And I've been listening to Todd Rundgren a whole lot lately. 





Comments

Michelle said…
So glad you avoided another surgery; hope you can get answers on how to eat to keep your body from forming more stones! I think I would be motivated enough to do WHATEVER it took....
candy said…
Sorry this keeps happening. I hope you get some answers so you can feel normal again.
Ely said…
Yes, to the urine. ;0) I am sure you have never been more excited to do this test so that your path moving forward will be ultra clear. These days I have come to believe that there is a certain kind of freedom in having to NOT think about what one needs to do. Just lock in and follow- let someone else, or something else, do the heavy lifting. Fingers crossed THIS IS THE LAST TIME.
Anonymous said…
One of my favorite songs. I have it by Johnny Mathis. I'm so glad to hear that you're making improvements. I hope that improvement keeps on. And it's a real pain trying to eat properly. There are days when I don't know what to reach for. But I hope they give you guidance on that.

All the best to you, Annie! My thoughts and prayers are with you. Please say a prayer for me as I will be having a mastectomy in January. Cancer reared its ugly head a second time for me.
Janice H.
A :-) said…
Oh Janice - I’m really sorry to hear that you are looking at a mastectomy. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers for sure.
Anonymous said…
Thanks, Annie! We will pray for one another!
Janice H.

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