For the past 6 months or so I've been experiencing moderately to horribly painful abdominal pain. I had an ultrasound in October that showed gallstones but no infection, no thickening of the walls, no blockages, no reason to do anything now. So I kept taking handfuls of tylenol and ibuprofen, manipulating my diet and doing little more than eating, sleeping, and working. I finally gave up and saw my MD last Monday who referred me to a surgeon saying it may be time to take it out. My appointment was for yesterday.

Friday was my first off-orientation shift. All was going well, I didn't feel great and asked to go to an early lunch. Patient flow didn't cooperate and I finally went to dinner about 5pm (I'd been working since 10am). After a few bites of my salad the pain was too intense. I went back to the ER and asked my charge nurse if what she thought. Her suggestion, lay down. About 10 minutes later I was admitted to the ED for abdominal pain.

I was admitted to the hospital that night and scheduled to have my gallbladder removed on Saturday. The surgery was uneventful and I was planning on going home Sunday morning. Mom and Dad were planning on coming as soon as they could. My friend Michelle dropped by about 11pm on Saturday night and, after visiting for a bit, decided she'd stay with me. About 2am I started trying, unsuccessfully, to clear my throat. I couldn't cough, couldn't really talk. (I wish I had a recording as it was actually pretty funny sounding). It was really hard to get any air out. I called the nurse, who asked if I could wait until morning as my doctor wasn't on the unit. I told her that I couldn't breathe, it felt like my throat was closing and NO, I could not wait until morning. The resident was called, who called the senior resident, who didn't know what was going on. Respiratory came and gave me an epinephrine treatment, which helped some, and I rested until morning. Long story... ENT finally came and scoped my throat and found I had swelling just below the vocal cords. So I had 2 LARGE doses of prednisone and an extra night in the hospital.

Mom and Dad showed up Sunday night and I came home Monday. Since then I've just been resting. Each day is better than the last. My voice is still scratchy and comes and goes. My abs feel like I've done a few too many sit-ups. Otherwise, I'm doing well. I will not be able to go to Duck Beach this weekend (I can't be submerged yet) so I'm thinking of spending the rest of my recovery at home in CA. We'll see on Friday after my post-op appointment.

I appreciate all the calls, emails, and thoughts this week. It was a bit of adventure, but hey, this is me. I don't do anything the easy way.