The Healing That Has Begun

Wow... can it really have been 3 months since my last post?!?!  Well, I guess that is what happens when you become ill.  Since if you are reading this I assume you probably have read my previous posts on health issues and weight loss failures, so I thought I should update you on what has been happening.  

Since I last posted I ended up with some severe health issues.  To truly understand this post, it may be helpful to read previous posts - "We have answers!!," "What a Whirlwind!" and "The Long Road to Recovery."

So, like I said, I ended up with sever health issues - worse than in "The Long Road to Recovery."  Severe as in bedridden since late October until the beginning of January.  Obviously my gall bladder surgery did not help.   In fact, it made me worse.  To try to figure things out, the doctor decided to send me to a gastroenterologist, who decided to do a colonoscopy.  My abdominal pains became even worse.  So now I was in bed 20 hours a day - with a heating pad on my abdomen, and my joints and muscles were aching and I was having two or three or more migraines a week.  Since the surgeon saw endometriosis when she took out my gall bladder, my gynecologist finally agreed that I could not continue on like this, that it was related to endometriosis, and we scheduled surgery to clean up my endometriosis on my birthday.  Before then, though, I had another place to go... a place two of my doctors wanted to to keep my appointment to find out everything going on.

A place where I finally found answers!  Yep, I headed to the Mayo Clinic.  I did not know there were three Mayo Clinics, and I went to the one in Jacksonville, Florida (it was only an eight hour drive).  I want you all to know the doctors there were WONDERFUL.  Even the ones who did not give me any useful information - because my problems did not pertain to their specialty - were very thorough and kind.  For the ones who DID see issues, they recommended a non-medicinal approach to my issues.

Here is what we found.  Did I need gall bladder surgery?  Probably, but no one really knows for certain since it's already incinerated, but what we do know is that surgery aggravated my endometriosis.  Did I need a colonoscopy?  Well, they would have done that, too, at the Mayo Clinic, but we know that aggravated my endometriosis even more.  A LOT of my problems was because of this chronic battle with endometriosis.  SO, you would think they'd want me to have surgery to clean it up, right?  Well, like me, you'd be wrong.  The doctors at the Mayo Clinic save surgery for the last option.  They want me off all hormones to kill off the endometriosis.  They said my abdominal pain would be better within 3-6 months.  Six more months of this?!?!  Are they crazy???  No, they are not.  They simply understand that surgery is hard on the body, causes more scar tissue, and if you can heal without medicines or surgery - even though it will take longer - your body will be better off.

So now what about all my joint pain, body aches, forgetfulness, headaches, and fatigue?  Well, my mother knew the answer to this and diagnosed me over the phone, but of course I wanted a DOCTOR to tell me.  I have fibromyalgia.  Yep, that syndrome that I used to think was imaginary until some close friends of mine got it.  Seriously, I used to think fibromyalgia was all in the head.  Now I can tell you for certain, it is REAL.  It is painful, tiring, and frustrating - and yes, it is in the head... just not the way I thought ten years ago.  The doctor explained to me that when someone experiences a traumatic injury or a chronic illness that can cause chemical changes in your brain and changes the way the brain interprets the signals the messages it receives from your nerves.  So what would feel like someone lightly touching you is extremely painful during a fibromyalgia flare up.  What sounds to you like children quietly playing sounds like a herd of warrior yelling their battle cry (and causing more migraines).  What would normally be a mild abdominal discomfort turns into a gut wrenching feels like you are going to die stabbing pain.  Fibromyalgia is one of many syndromes doctors are now grouping as Central Sensitization Syndrome.  Basically, we are built with a filter in our brain to filter out noise, mild pain, and other sensory inputs.  People with CSS do not have this filter turned on, which results in being overly sensitive, causing almost constant pain, increased levels of pain, and becoming very fatigued, losing memory, and having a lower level of cognitive skills (forgetting words, becoming slightly confused, etc.).

Most people I know who have fibromyalgia are on medication.  However, as I mentioned, that is not the way Mayo rolls.  They will be mailing me documents detailing their recommendations, which my local physician will go over with me.  These will include very light exercise - not to get tired, because becoming tired causes a set back of 2-3 days or up to a week - exercise like walking 15 minutes twice a day, bicycling, and  Tai Chi.  The recommendations also include physical and occupational therapies and possibly even massage therapy.  And I can already tell you - hot aromatherapy baths are the greatest and relieving aches and pains and calming stressors.

But what I really want to tell you came between my Mayo appointments.  I had a lot of people praying for me.  I was praying that the abdominal pain would go away - that the endometriosis would stop flaring up - because I knew that I could handle everything else, or at least handle it better - if I was not dealing with the constant pain from endometriosis. 

And do you know what?   God has been so good to us!  After being in bed for the better part of four months, the last three weeks I've had more energy and have been mostly free of the endometriosis pain. This relief has come before I was able to get off the hormones feeding the endometriosis, before beginning physical therapy for the endometriosis, and before beginning pain management.  I believe this clearly points to my relief being directly from God - another instance of Him showing my family that He is mightier than our physicians and He has the power to heal.  Praise to Jehovah Rapha!

If you suffer from any illness, disease, syndrome, or pain - please seek help.  Don't stop at the first doctor that doesn't help you - keep pushing for answers.  But do not neglect to ask your Heavenly Father for help!  He is here and He wants to help YOU!  He was, is, and always will be the Great Physician, and our Lord who Heals.  

I will continue to cry out to my God, trusting that He will continue to heal me and to do a great work in me!