Not again!

Ugh! The last few years I have been cursed with kidney stones. I actually have not had one for quite a while (I think it's been about 15 months) so I guess I just had it in my mind that I was done with them. Well, until Thursday.

** Warning** This is a long post about my painful experience. You might find it boring, but I feel like I need to record it. So, feel free to quit reading.

On Thurs., we had a 2 hour hike and I did it, but the whole time my back/hip was hurting and I was feeling weak. As we got to the top of the hill one of the other girls asked me if I was ok. She said my face looked really white. I told her I was fine. I came home and did a zone and got Katie ready to go to visit her cousin in CO (thanks Jamie- I hope she's being good for you!). My back was hurting but I just thought it was from working out. I put some oil on it and left to take Katie to get new shoes and then go to the airport. While we were at Payless I started having a TON of pain and started getting clammy and feverish. By the time we checked out I was positive I had a kidney stone and was trying to figure out what to do. I tried and tried to call Doug but couldn't get hold of him. I knew where he was working so I went to his work site. Unfortunately, it was a big building and I couldn't find him. I finally was in a panic. I was in incredible pain, couldn't find Doug and had 3 kids with me, one needed to get to the airport. I called Doug's mom and tried to explain where I was. She was so kind and came right down. Meantime, I finally started asking around and got someone to go find Doug for me. Finally, it was figured out that Carol would take Katie to the airport, I would take the kids and go home, and Doug would finish up his work and then come home. I probably was in no condition to drive but I knew I had to get home to get some pain meds. The pain that comes with kidney stones is unbelievable. It is uncontrollable, all over pain. My extremeties, including my face all start tingling and go numb. I was trying to get home as fast as I could. Luckily, Bevan and Maddie had fallen asleep in the back so they weren't made nervous by me being out of control. Unfortunately when I was almost through town (I had started out about 1/2 hour away from home) traffic was WAY backed up because of a train. I thought I would die! I flipped around and finally got moving towards home again. I didn't know what I was going to do when I got home. I had 2 sleeping kids and I knew I could barely get myself in the house let alone the kids. So, I called one of my neighbors/friends (she was the lucky one whose phone number I remembered). She was so kind and agreed to meet me at my house. She helped me and the kids get into the house and then agreed to stay until Doug got home so I could take a bath. (BTW, if you ever have a kidney stone know that a warm bath is one of the best things you can do.) Luckily, her husband is also an ER Dr. and since we are temporarily uninsured I was trying to avoid going to the hospital. She called him and he gave us instructions (like take Advil with the pain pill). He was so kind he called later after he got off work to walk me through it a little more. Anyway, finally the meds and bath kicked in and I had some relief. Then on Friday morning I passed the stone. Unfortunately the pain continues for some time after.

Then yesterday I wasn't able to go to the bathroom all day. Finally about 3:00 I called Dave (the Dr.) and told him what was happening. He said the only thing I could do is get a cath. Ugh! I hate those. Plus I was trying to avoid the hospital. I tried and tried to wait it out, but by 6:00 (and 12 hours of not "eliminating") I ended up going in. Dave was so kind and helped us out a ton. Unfortunately, I've got a cath in still and will until Monday. It's better than the alternative I guess.

Once again, through this little trial my life has been so blessed by those people around me. I don't know what I would do without my family and friends.