Jul 24, 2011  •  In Aerin, Personal, Pregnancy

Surgery

I am currently writing this on my phone while lying in bed at the hospital.

Early yesterday morning I woke up to excruciating abdominal pain, similar to the severe round ligament pain I had experienced during my pregnancy with Claire. With this pregnancy being so similar to the last, I had believed myself to have been lucky to have been spared such dramatic afflictions, but I was wrong.

When the pain level reached that of labor pains, J called his brother to come watch Claire so that we could head to the hospital. Being 25 weeks pregnant, I was admitted to Labor & Delivery right away. The pain continued to grow worse, but BebeDeux seemed to be in good condition.

Soon, the pain became almost unbearable. I could not walk or talk, only rock back and forth with tears streaming down my face. I began to vomit and shake uncontrollably. My OB prescribed me some morphine, but that would only provide me about an hour of relief and then the vicious cycle would begin all over again.

It was the worst physical pain of my life.

This was not round ligament pain, like last time. Neither was I in premature labor (and with labor pains, I would at least get some relief between contractions while this pain was continuous).

The doctors were perplexed. All my bloodwork, abdominal ultrasounds, and other pregnancy-safe tests came back normal. But after about the 9th hour of this agony, they decided that an MRI was needed. There were some risks to the baby, sure, but they just could not figure out what was wrong with me.

I fervently prayed that the MRI would show what the other tests did not, and it did…

Accute appendicitis.

I needed surgery asap, before my appendix burst.

My OB, surgeon, and anestheseologist all assured me that the procedure would be safe for BebeDeux. And that the small risks involved with the surgery were nothing compared to the risks I would be taking by not getting my appendix removed and quite possibly have it burst.

A couple of hours later, I gave J a kiss and told him I loved him while getting wheeled into the OR. And an hour after that, I woke up to my surgeon informing me that the surgery was a success, and that my inflamed appendix was now no more.

So here I am now, back in the maternity ward, recovering from surgery while they monitor BebeDeux. She seems to be handling it a lot better than her mama, and I am forever grateful for that.

Depending on my progress, I may be discharged as early as today. Be that as it may, I can’t help but be worried about the upcoming week or two as I continue to recover and have little Claire to take care of…J will most likely need to work from home many days, and/or our nanny will need to come in for extra hours.

Please keep our family in your prayers as we recover from yesterday’s surgery. I hope that you’re all having better weekends than me. 🙂

You may also like:

50 Responses to “Surgery”

  1. Palila says:

    Having had appendicitis myself, one of the benefits of having had it is nice that you don’t ever have to worry about it coming back. And, though it felt like I’d been hit by a truck at first, I was quickly up and about, feeling much, much better in a few days. Same story with my dad, who had it last year.

    Hope your recovery is speedy! (And glad it was discovered before bursting.)

  2. Sahir says:

    Ouch. Good luck / take care…
    My opinion of medicine in the west is not particularly high. 15 Years ago, my father needed a ct scan to have his malaria diagnosed, and you required an MRI to have your appendix diagnosed. Any qualified GP should have been able to diagnose these just from symptoms without the need for expensive scans… Where is medicine going?

    • Actually, they suspected appendicitis from the beginning but had ruled it out because I did not have a fever or an elevated white blood cell count. At this point they would’ve used a CAT scan to confirm, but couldn’t because I’m pregnant. An MRI is safer for pregnant women, but it took longer for approval since it’s such an expensive test.

  3. Wow, you must have been terrified! I’m glad your surgery went well. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

  4. Erin says:

    Wow, how scary! So sorry to hear that you have to deal with all this. I hope your recovery continues to go smoothly.

  5. Pablo Lara H says:

    What can I say? Scary experience. I wish you good luck and stay strong!

  6. busylizzy says:

    Oh my! You scared me. I wish you all the best, a speedy recovery, an easy birth (when the TIME is RIGHT) and also all the best for CLaire and J. You deserve it girl!

  7. Annie says:

    We were so worried and glad that you got surgery to feel better! Hang in there and have a speedy recovery. We’re also here to help so don’t worry ok?

  8. Jody says:

    My thoughts and prayers are with you! Hope you have a speedy recovery.

  9. kelsey says:

    Oh no Jenny! I’m thinking of you and your family.

  10. Kit says:

    I hope you have a speedy recovery! I am in disbelief how you have to deal with so much during your pregnancy’s. So i am also going to pray that from here on out you have a marvelously smooth and (if possible) enjoyable pregnancy!

  11. Meghan says:

    Oh my gracious, I’m so glad you’re okay!!

  12. Kathryn says:

    How scary that must’ve been to not know what was wrong – I’m so glad they figured things out and that you’re now recovering.

  13. Oh, honey. I’m so glad that you and BebeDeux are OK! I will be sending up prayers for you and your family. Take it easy and don’t be tempted to push yourself these next few days! Your body needs rest!!!!

  14. janieishme says:

    My own father had a brief scare with appendicitis (but they luckily caught it in time) so I’m no stranger to the fear behind it. I am so, so glad that you and baby are doing all right. Best wishes for a speedy recovery! Take this time to rest up fully!

  15. Carly says:

    Oh my goodness, so scary! Sending you healing thoughts, Jenny. You are amazingly brave. xo

  16. Susan says:

    I’m so sorry to hear that, but thank God you received the surgery in time. Sorry you had to experience such pain. 🙁
    Praying for you and the baby.. I hope you feel better!

  17. Oh Jenny, that’s terrible! I’m so sorry. I will definitely be praying for you and your dear family. In some ways, it’s GOOD it hurt so much so you would go to the doctor and get diagnosed before it burst… but I’m sure that doesn’t take away the frustration, pain, or medical bills. I hope you’re able to relax and heal up fast!

  18. Bonnie Joy says:

    Ouch! Praying that you recover quickly.

  19. Laura says:

    Oh no! Having your appendix go crazy is no fun. I know. I had to have mine taken out. So did my husband, he was actually on a cruise when his started acting up and had a crazy situation to get him back to mainland to get it taken care of.

    I can only imagine how stressful this is when you are pregnant. I hope you start feeling better soon. And make sure no one makes you laugh for awhile cause that won’t be funny at all!

  20. Oh my! I’m glad they acted before it burst. Keeping you in my thoughts for a speedy recovery.

  21. MrsW says:

    Oh my gosh! Praise the Lord that they found it before things got really bad! I’m praying for you guys right now.

  22. Amanda says:

    I’m so glad you and the baby are both okay! Feel better soon!

  23. Angela says:

    Oh my gosh!! Thank goodness you and Baby Deux are ok!!

  24. Helene says:

    it’s good to hear that you and bebedeux are fine! wish you a speedy recovery in no time!

  25. Stephanie says:

    So glad they were able to operate safely and take you out of pain and your baby out of danger! I’ll definitely be praying for ease and peace in the coming days for you. 🙂

  26. Rachael says:

    How scary! I’m so glad you’re okay!

  27. Amanda says:

    Yikes. What a weekend you had! I’m so glad that all went well during the surgery and that you and baby are doing fine. Please keep us updated on your recovery.

  28. Wendy says:

    Feel better!

  29. Eek565 says:

    Yikes! I’ll be praying!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *