oof...
I hate contributing to the overall levels of angst present in LJ and blogs in general. When I do so, it's usually because it's been boiling in my system long enough that I have to vent or go postal.*
So for the past couple weeks, I haven't posted. apollyonus went in for the MRI on the 14th and to the chiropractor on the 15th for the results. Those results? He's got a protruding disk that's pressing on the nerves which go out to his right shoulder. Translation? He's in agony. Pretty constantly. 1st step to getting back to normal is physical therapy, which he's being doing for the last couple weeks, without much change. 2nd step is injection of cortizone. Apparently, we'll find out today if he's going to get that started on Monday.
If all that fails, he might have to have surgery to correct the problem. As you can imagine, he's not thrilled about the idea of someone operating on his spine. UPDATE: He got an oral anti-inflammatory that has a 70% success rate. Cross your fingers...
The same day he got the MRI, I went back in to the OB/GYN for my 3 month follow-up to the surgery. He had told me earlier that things were healing up really well and he was very happy with how things were going. The exam this time seemed to show that the last few fibroids that were left in (due to their precarious positions attached to one of the major blood vessels in the area) have been adopting the resources their ousted pals left behind and have grow rather large in the last few months.
He wants me to come back in to the office for an ultrasound in October to see how bad the situation has become. At that point, we'll find out if I go back into surgery and whether that surgery will be to remove just the fibroids or the uterus they're attached to, as well.
I spent the first week after that in shock, crying randomly. Damn it, I've finally found the guy I want to build a family and a life with, and this...this...doctor tells me that my chances of doing that naturally are increasingly slim?!?! apollyonus, by the way, has been an absolute rock through all of this. He put his pain aside to hold me through mine. He was so very worth waiting for...
This past week, I've been looking into alternatives. There are some hormonal treatments and a much less invasive surgery which, although it's only been done for about 6 years, has good anecdotal chances of fertility afterwards. Several of the more published researchers are doctors who operate in hospitals in Chicagoland. So even though my doctor didn't seem to have too much to say about it, I could get a second opinion from someone who has a lot more experience with the procedure.
On the work front, apollyonus got a call yesterday for an interview on Monday. It would be for a company that develops those automated phone systems that sound like you're talking to...well, maybe not a person, but a conversational machine, at least. He'd get to do Linux administration. The schedule would still suck (6pm-6am), but not as much, since it would only be 4 days a week (Sunday night-Thursday morning). He could be seen in public again! And it's in Deerfield, which would be a much shorter commute than he has now.
My boss rocks. Somehow I have endeared myself to those in positions above me on the corporate ladder and they're starting to put me on some really high-profile projects. Flattering, to be sure. Now I have to figure out how to have effective meetings in a minimum of time; I hate the damn things, but I'm apparently getting to be what they call "upwardly mobile".
Eh, whatever. At least there's job security in a job I actively like.
For those of you who have the desire to keep track of where I am at any given time; I'm going to be in Arizona (Chandler, specifically - the greater Phoenix area) the week of September 10th. Other than that, I'm here at home until the end of September.
*By the way, I am of the opinion that if we could harness the energy of angst, we could stop using fossil fuels altogether. Think about it - you wouldn't even have to have internet access; teenagers have been filled with unfocused rage and depression throughout history. Entire sections of bookstores are devoted to thwarting and/or diverting those feelings either from within or without (parental advice). Not that there aren't more than enough people who not only invite drama, but thrive on it well past their 20s, 30s, hell, even into their nursing home days.
All we need to do is find a converter...
So for the past couple weeks, I haven't posted. apollyonus went in for the MRI on the 14th and to the chiropractor on the 15th for the results. Those results? He's got a protruding disk that's pressing on the nerves which go out to his right shoulder. Translation? He's in agony. Pretty constantly. 1st step to getting back to normal is physical therapy, which he's being doing for the last couple weeks, without much change. 2nd step is injection of cortizone. Apparently, we'll find out today if he's going to get that started on Monday.
If all that fails, he might have to have surgery to correct the problem. As you can imagine, he's not thrilled about the idea of someone operating on his spine. UPDATE: He got an oral anti-inflammatory that has a 70% success rate. Cross your fingers...
The same day he got the MRI, I went back in to the OB/GYN for my 3 month follow-up to the surgery. He had told me earlier that things were healing up really well and he was very happy with how things were going. The exam this time seemed to show that the last few fibroids that were left in (due to their precarious positions attached to one of the major blood vessels in the area) have been adopting the resources their ousted pals left behind and have grow rather large in the last few months.
He wants me to come back in to the office for an ultrasound in October to see how bad the situation has become. At that point, we'll find out if I go back into surgery and whether that surgery will be to remove just the fibroids or the uterus they're attached to, as well.
I spent the first week after that in shock, crying randomly. Damn it, I've finally found the guy I want to build a family and a life with, and this...this...doctor tells me that my chances of doing that naturally are increasingly slim?!?! apollyonus, by the way, has been an absolute rock through all of this. He put his pain aside to hold me through mine. He was so very worth waiting for...
This past week, I've been looking into alternatives. There are some hormonal treatments and a much less invasive surgery which, although it's only been done for about 6 years, has good anecdotal chances of fertility afterwards. Several of the more published researchers are doctors who operate in hospitals in Chicagoland. So even though my doctor didn't seem to have too much to say about it, I could get a second opinion from someone who has a lot more experience with the procedure.
On the work front, apollyonus got a call yesterday for an interview on Monday. It would be for a company that develops those automated phone systems that sound like you're talking to...well, maybe not a person, but a conversational machine, at least. He'd get to do Linux administration. The schedule would still suck (6pm-6am), but not as much, since it would only be 4 days a week (Sunday night-Thursday morning). He could be seen in public again! And it's in Deerfield, which would be a much shorter commute than he has now.
My boss rocks. Somehow I have endeared myself to those in positions above me on the corporate ladder and they're starting to put me on some really high-profile projects. Flattering, to be sure. Now I have to figure out how to have effective meetings in a minimum of time; I hate the damn things, but I'm apparently getting to be what they call "upwardly mobile".
Eh, whatever. At least there's job security in a job I actively like.
For those of you who have the desire to keep track of where I am at any given time; I'm going to be in Arizona (Chandler, specifically - the greater Phoenix area) the week of September 10th. Other than that, I'm here at home until the end of September.
*By the way, I am of the opinion that if we could harness the energy of angst, we could stop using fossil fuels altogether. Think about it - you wouldn't even have to have internet access; teenagers have been filled with unfocused rage and depression throughout history. Entire sections of bookstores are devoted to thwarting and/or diverting those feelings either from within or without (parental advice). Not that there aren't more than enough people who not only invite drama, but thrive on it well past their 20s, 30s, hell, even into their nursing home days.
All we need to do is find a converter...