The dreaded biopsy is over.....

...and thanks to a very caring Dr. it went well. Stacy called on Wed afternoon and said if we could be in Omaha by 6:30 on Thursday, it would get done, otherwise we had to wait until Monday. We jumped at the chance even though it meant getting up at 3 AM. The good news, there was no rush hour traffic to battle, and it only took about 10 minutes from leaving the interstate to arrival. We are getting more familiar to the huge campus and found where we were going with no problems.

The more we are down there, the more impressed we are with that hospital, I don't know how many pre-op rooms there are, a lot and they were all filled but they ran right on time. Mine was scheduled for 8:30, I was poked, vitals taken, IV hung, wrapped in warm blankets and ready to go when the Dr. came in to talk to us. I was told, erroneously, I discovered, that I would sleep through this procedure but found, to my dismay, that I would not.

When I had the liver biopsy at Mercy, it hurt like a son of a b - uh, gun. They numbed the area but immediately stuck me. It's like the song, 'SumBeach', he goes to the dentist, ♫They stuck that needle down deep in my gum, then started drilling before it was numb, SumBeach, Somewhere....♫

The Dr. reassured me that he would do his best to make this a 'good experience', I would have a sedative and he would give the numbing shot time to work but sometimes they need to have you hold your breath so the nodule won't move around while they are trying to sample it. That was upsetting enough, then he started in on all the 'what ifs' - it could cause my lung to collapse that would necessitate a hospital stay of 1-3 days OR there might be excessive bleeding that could be life threatening! He said it hadn't happened to him yet but it probably was only a matter of time!

OK Doc, quit while you are ahead! I wanted to tell Bruce to get my clothes, we are out of there!

Instead, I signed the consent, kissed Bruce goodbye and I was wheeled away. I'm happy to say that it was a 'good experience', the happy juice they gave me made me very sleepy, I felt nothing but heard the clicking as the Dr. got the samples he needed, the pain hit when I was rolled back into my bed. I couldn't take a deep breath, cough or clear my throat (or call for the dogs after we arrived back home.) Back in recovery they took an x-ray to see if my lung was okay, it was, they retrieved Bruce from the waiting room and I promptly feel asleep for a couple of hours. I had to stay for another hour, get a final x-ray before going home, I did get some crackers and water which was much appreciated since I'd had nothing since midnight. It took x-ray longer to come so I was really ready to go when we got the okay, stopped at McDonalds right down the street and scarfed down Big Mac's, fries and pop. (It was only later when I read the discharge instructions, that I should 'eat lightly' that first day, I thoroughly enjoyed my Big Mac.)

Bruce had made tentative plans to go with some friends to the MN cabin for the weekend, I was feeling better all the time he got the green light. I went to bed at 7 PM and slept until 8 AM Friday morning, he kissed me about 6:50 and I never woke up, that was good stuff they gave me. I was told to take it easy for a few days so Zoe and I spent the day in the gazebo, we would have done that even if I hadn't been told what to do.

We were both entertained by the dogs trying to get a cheeky squirrel in the tree. 

"I know he's here someplace."

"I think he went to the grove."

"No stupid, he's up in the tree!"

I guess Zoe wasn't as entertained as I was.

("Stupid Dogs.")

"I agree, stupid dogs, do they really think I'm coming down there while they are around?"

"I'm sure he's coming and I'm ready."

I finally took the dogs for a ride to the farm to feed the cats so the squirrel could leave in peace, this is what happens when a big round bale of hay is struck by lightning. We had a bad storm with lots of lightning and luckily it struck this bale rather than the cows in the pasture. Thankfully this bale was off by itself rather than nestled up against the other bales.

This was a picture I took earlier in the week of Bruce backing the spray tank into the shed with the skid loader.

And he tells me NOT to do this!

Back at home this dinnerplate hibiscus was calling to me, everyone should have a plant in their yard or garden, they make me smile.

It's now Saturday, I heard that the preliminary result is promising......negative for lymphoma.  However we do have to wait for the full core biopsy to completely call it non-cancerous. That is very encouraging, I hope we hear soon. Monday is my echo-cardiogram that I have to take "because of my age", how rude! I also had a half hour telephone interview with a hospital social worker. One of the question was "Do you use any recreational drugs that you will miss while you are in the hospital??" Do people answer these questions truthfully??

(And the answer was a resounding "NO"!)

What I will miss terribly, besides Bruce, is Zoe, she is my constant companion and she has to stay home. Maybe I can get her to act like a stuffed animal, after all, she sleeps all day in the gazebo and all night with me.

Tape a key to her fur and pretend to wind her up when she moves.....

I need to think on this....