The stone of death!

Wow, I never thought I would be back to blogging. Yesterday I thought I was dying.....a very slow and painful death at that. Thank goodness for doctors and drugs is all I will say.

When Meredith was 4 months old, I took a very unexpected trip to the ER in the middle of the night with kidney stones. As I peeked into my baby's crib I was certain that it would be the last time I saw her. I truly thought I was dying. It felt like my insides were being ripped out of me. It is a pain I cannot even begin to describe. My mom came over to watch Meredith and Josh whisked me to the ER. I remember standing at my front door crying because the 5 minute drive from her house to mine felt like it was taking an eternity. The 1o minute drive to the ER was even longer.

Once we were there everyone knew what is was immediately, including my husband. I was just too delirious from the pain to hear any of them and was sure I was on my death bed. No one could live through this type of pain and tell about it, I was wrong....I have gotten to do it twice now. Yes, it was a very treatable diagnosis that I was going to survive.....it was kidney stones. The rumor is true they are that painful, more painful than childbirth. I think I told off everyone in the ER that night and used some of the foulest language of my life. Then I got the drugs and life was better.

Fast forward three years later, that same stone was still there, trying to make it's way out. I am pretty sure you know where it comes out, and yes it is very painful. The stone in the past three years has also grown and was quite large, I saw it with my own eyes. In fact, it was so large, there was no way I was going to pass it, so I had to have it surgically removed.

I woke up last Thursday pretty sure I had a bladder infection or urinary tract infection. After a urine analysis, an x-ray and a CT scan, it was official I still had kidney stones. I scheduled a minor surgical procedure to have it removed the following morning. Let's just say that procedure wasn't as minor as I originally bargained on. However the pain meds were so good, I truly have no idea what happened that morning or how I got home. What I do know is that the recovery was more involved than my c-sections. No, I am not kidding.

Yesterday I went back in to see my urologist to have the lovely stent removed. You really should see what it looks like.....check it out here. I know amazing....and disgusting....and yes that was in me. So anyway the stent was removed and I thought I was headed to recovery. Well any other patient would be, but not me. My kidney started to spasm, which was some of the worst pain I have ever felt. In fact it was the same pain or pretty close to the pain I felt almost 3 years ago. Again I thought I was dying.

I called my husband sobbing on the way home from gymnastics, then I called my mom to meet me and help clean my house and pick up me and the tikes. Yes, at the very same time a realtor called to ask if they could do a second showing in two hours. If I didn't have this kind of luck, I wouldn't have any!

So my mom and dad rushed over to take care of the house and pick up me and kids. I cried the whole ride to their house and then I cried some more. At that point Josh gave me some meds and eventually my pained decreased. He then headed back to work and I took a nap with the tikes. After my nap the pain was back and I then began vomiting, which is very common with kidney stones. So Josh picked me up and left the tikes with Mimi and Poppa.

Thankfully my urologist and best friend's husband made a house call on his way home and gave me some pain meds and nausea meds and almost instantly I felt better. After a full night of sleep I am back to normal.

For the record......I hate kidney stones. I wouldn't wish them on my worst enemy.

However I still have another, larger stone in my other kidney. For this stone I will schedule lipotripsy and try to avoid having to have it surgically removed. Wish me luck and say some prayers.