a series of unfortunate and fortunate events. part one.

May 2, 2023 - Met with GI Specialist

Was advised to do a SIBO breath test and schedule endoscopy/colonoscopy.

June 27, 2023 - Positive SIBO breath test

As you can see it's been two months since my visit with the GI doctor. The breath test was on backorder and then it took a week or so to get the result. By this point I was certain I had SIBO based on the symptoms I was experiencing. My gut was essentially just uncomfortable all the time. I chose to go the herbal route as I wasn't seeing improvement with the antibiotic. It did help and a lot of the bloating and belching subsided. Thank goodness!

August 1, 2023

I mark this day because it was a big training day at work for the accountants and I assisted in planning the event. The highlight for me was watching the accountants run around the office for the scavenger hunt! And probably laughing with my work bestie as we put together the balloon arch (because why not add in the extra work of a balloon arch! lol)

Kerstyn and I out getting food for the training attendees.

Look at that magnificent balloon arch. It was worth all the sweat and swearing!

August 2, 2023

I was definitely feeling the post exhaustion from weeks of grinding at work and not fitting in as much rest as I needed. I could tell my body was feeling the impact. In the afternoon I had terrible stomach pains that just would not let up. Once I got home and people were settled I retreated to my bed for most of the evening to get through it. 

Exciting highlight! Otis started crawling!

August 4, 2023

Thankfully, it was a Friday so I only had a half day of work. I did okay in the morning but after I ate late morning I was in terrible pain again. It would start out as pain in one area, then eventually I'd feel sharp stabbing pains along my right side, then my left. It felt like my organs had been punched numerous times. The best way to describe it at times was like having a labor contraction where it would build up along my sides and back, but then it would just hold there. And it would stay for 4-6 hours on average. So I spent another afternoon in bed. I had tickets to go to the Flo Rida concert with my friends for this evening though, so I rallied of course. My rallying usually consists of just not eating anymore food or the tiniest amount. It's a tough balance as I also don't want to feel lightheaded and nauseous from not eating. Anyhow, I had fun and I'm glad I went. I even made it on stage with about 30 other females for 'Where Them Girls At'!

August 8, 2023

By this point I gave up on eating much of anything because no matter what I ate I had a flare up. And once it started I was basically out of commission. I was feeling nauseous all the time and sometimes didn't even want to drink water it was so bad. I reached out to my GI doctor to let him know what was happening. I had a colonscopy/endoscopy already scheduled for the following week. Lucky timing I suppose as I had scheduled it 3 months prior. I was just so confused as to why my freaking organs hurt so bad. He had me schedule a CT scan for Monday, Aug 14.

August 11, 2023 - Giving In

This was the day I gave in to my situation. I lasted a whole 45 minutes at work and just couldn't do it anymore.

August 12, 2023 - Trip to Urgent Care

I was feeling concerned about starting my cleanse for the colonoscopy with how I was feeling. At this point I was able to eat a little bit of chicken each day. I was losing about a pound a day. Since everything felt so inflamed I just wanted to make sure I was okay to proceed and there wasn't something seriously wrong, so I went into urgent care. They ran some blood tests. My CRP and eosinophils were high, but the doctor said all my levels were fine. But were they?! Anyhow, back home I went. I asked some people their thoughts on the situation and they thought maybe gallbladder. That seemed to track with how I was feeling, so I was glad I had the CT scan scheduled as well.

August 13, 2023

Started the scope cleanse. FUUUNNNN!!!

August 14, 2023 - Abdominal CT Scan w/Contrast

Had an Abdominal CT scan with Contrast. They didn't see anything with the gallbladder, but noted I could do an ultrasound if experiencing issues. Found some mild pelvic congestion (enlarged veins in pelvic area) and some pockets of diverticulosis (small pockets along the intestine - can be a bacteria breeding ground). But ultimately the doctor was like, your test looks fine. okay, cool.

I approve of the sash they've added to the paper gown! I just felt more sassy with it.

August 15, 2023 - Endoscopy/Colonoscopy

Highlights: Took three tries to get my IV in. Ahh... brought me back to my pregnancy days. At one point I thought I might pass out and started crying. But I could sense the nurse felt terrible and was wonderful in helping me get through it. They called in someone else to get the port in. They made Ben stay in the waiting room, I was definitely wishing he had been next to me. The anesthesiologist dude came in to go over things and noted some health things and he said "anorexia" in his list. And I was like, WHOAH! What did you just say? So he showed me on the piece of paper. I was like, HECK NO! I said I was struggling to eat because it made me so sick. That is NOT an eating disorder. Please, take that off of there! He apologized profusely and got that removed. We can pretend I was aggressive in my demands, but let's be real, I was not. Though I did question it and he removed it from the list. Phew! 

The scopes went well, apparently. I don't remember any of it. Let me tell you, it's weird waking up and knowing something happened to you and you have absolutely no recollection of it. Ben was highly amused with me coming off the anesthesia. As soon as I woke up I started rambling and filled him in on all the things. On the way home I was able to eat some gf pretzels and felt like I was on top of the world crushing it at life! After my nap that afternoon I attempted an Italian Ice cup. It's just a frozen liquid juice. But let me tell you, my body thought it was poison. Within an hour I was in the fetal position on the floor crying in misery. Ben was deeply concerned. Should we go to the ER? Should I ride it out? I decided to just stay home because the thought of trying to go anywhere sounded awful. At this point I wasn't so sure that labor and delivery was the most painful thing I'd been through.

My look here is spectacular, especially the socks with sandals. I was still very out of it, but I made it to the car in one piece ;)

August 16, 2023 - Emergency Room Visits

I went to the ER, twice, on this day. They did an ultrasound of my gallbladder, ran labs, and did an EKG. The gallbladder was slightly distended but nothing crazy. They drugged me and I got some more prescription meds to add to my drawer. When I went to urgent care the previous week I got two different prescriptions because he told me I just had muscle pain. mmmhmm. sure I did. One was a muscle relaxer and the other to help with cramping. When I asked the pharmacy about the drugs, she said wellll... that cramping one (yes, she used the actual drug name that I can't pronounce or remember) isn't always tolerated very well. But some people do well with it. RED FLAG. Did not try that med at all. Too risky. Anyhow, it was an adventurous day. Doing a HIDA scan was the next logical step as it would test the function of my gallbladder. SuperBen made calls to find a place that could get me in for one ASAP. Not all places have these fancy machines. 

Getting an EKG done

I'm just really glowing here!

August 18-20, 2023 - Suker Family Camping Weekend

Many moons prior to this we planned a camping trip with Ben's family in Sleepy Eye. We had booked a camper cabin since Otis would be with us. Just kidding, we would have gotten a camper cabin even if Otis wasn't with us. I was tired of living in my miserable bubble, so I pulled myself together and went Friday night. I didn't last long before I went to bed for the night. The next day the forecast was HOT. It turns out the change of scenery did not make me feel better, so I went back to Mankato. After a long nap, I curled up on the couch, watched a movie, and read a bit. Sunday I made it back to Sleepy Eye, because I promised my kids I would and it was Lucy's birthday party. Seeing as it was her first birthday without her mom, I especially didn't want to miss it. I managed a few hours in one piece and thoroughly enjoyed seeing her so happy! 

Annie planned a magnificent relay race. Lucy just had an egg break on her here!

She is just a gem!

August 21, 2023 - HIDA Scan

Ben took me to New Ulm Medical Center to do a HIDA scan. This scan is used to diagnose problems of the liver, gallbladder, and bile ducts. It tracks the flow of bile from your liver to your small intestine using a radioactive tracer chemical that's injected into you and a camera evaluates it. We really this would be our answer, but the scan came back normal. I can't even adequately describe the defeat I felt. Now what?

August 22, 2023 - Call with Dr. Randy (Functional Medicine Doctor)

Randy assured me that even though there aren't visible stones and the scan was normal, my gallbladder could still be giving me issues. He revised my supplements a bit and gave me instructions to try a gallbladder flush. I left the call feeling more hopeful, so that was a win.

August 23, 2023 - Thermography Scan

After the HIDA scan came back normal I decided to do a thermography scan. My mom had sent me information on this many moons ago, but I never did get around to doing it. I figured now was as good of time as any. It's a test that uses an infrared camera to detect heat patterns and blood flow in body tissues, highlighting areas of inflammation. It's most commonly used to help detect breast cancer early on. This is not a diagnostic test, but a tool in helping know where to look. After she took the images she did show me them and talked about patterns they look for. The whole thing was very fascinating. I also felt very validated seeing all that inflammation show up. The final report would be sent to me in a week or two.

August 24-26, 2023

Mostly surviving. Still having episodes each day after eating with my bouts of calm being more targeted areas of pain. Think 'being punched in the kidneys and feeling bruised' type pain. I honestly don't know what I did all of these days. I remember I didn't feel up to reading very much. I watched a few movies. But mostly I laid in bed with a heating pad curled up on side.

August 27, 2023 - Trip to Duluth

Today we made our trek to Duluth. It was also the first day I was able to eat a little bit without having a full on attack afterwards! It felt like a huge victory. I felt uncomfortable on the drive but it was soooo much more manageable. We even stopped on the way up to visit with some friends and go out on their pontoon for a bit. 

They were just too cute all sleeping together in the car!

August 28, 2023

It felt so nice to wake up at the Duluth house. I truly love just sitting out on the deck in the morning and just staring out at Lake Superior. It's so calming. I mean there were three kids around too. But we stole some peaceful moments. The kids are true beach bums! They could play out there for hours and hours. We discovered that Otis fit right in and was incredibly happy crawling around in the sand. I was a bit nauseous and not hungry most of the day. But I also wasn't completely miserable. By this point I had a serious regimen I was doing. Castor oil pack, Bemer mat, red light therapy, take all my supplements, and a hot bath. I did most of this twice a day at least. It definitely took time, but it seemed to be helping. Ben's parents joined us at the house on this day. After supper we walked to Park Point. I hadn't done that much exercise in weeks. And I somehow managed to eat some dairy-free ice cream and not die. Overall it was a good day compared to the weeks before.

Supper out on the deck

August 29, 2023

Ben, his parents, and all three kids took a trip up the North Shore and stopped at a few places. This allowed me a day to recoup and just feel responsible for myself. I definitely felt the repercussions of taking a long walk the day before. I was so wiped out. I spent most of the day just relaxing. I was hoping I'd feel up to do something at some point, but I did not. The weather ended up being not as nice on this day, which in a way was nice so I didn't feel like I was missing out.

August 31-Sept 3

Our friends, The Jones', came to the Duluth house for a visit. Ben also captured Lalayna's senior photos on the beach. It was so nice having them there. Christianne and I made the trip to Glensheen Mansion for a tour. I was honestly shocked I was able to get there and do the tour.

Violet felt left out as she is usually the model in the family! So we got her in a few shots.

September 1, 2023 - Virtual visit with Dr. Cruz (EDS doctor)

I filled Dr. Cruz in on the events of the past weeks. She said that what I was experiencing could have to do with a vascular compression and recommended I call Mayo to get a consult. We also discussed doing a baseline MRI for aneurysms since my dad had them. After the visit I called Mayo right away before I procrastinated on it. After awhile you get tired of dealing with medical coordinating. The summary was that I needed to send my CT scan over and a surgeon would review it and then give me a call. I then called the clinic to get my scan sent over and messaged my PCP to get an MRI ordered and decided I should probably ask to get my prolactin checked. I have an appointment coming up in a few weeks with her and thought I should just do that lab beforehand since my boobs are still leaking (I didn't breastfeed and Otis is now 9 months).

Continue to Pt Two if you'd like to endure more daily thoughts...