Headaches, Hormones and Hemmorhoids, OH MY!!

Okay, so thankfully, I'm not dealing with any of the above... TODAY. Been there, done that. But not today! I am, however, the recipient of some not so great lab work. Last Saturday, I drew my labs and while most came back great (most importantly, showing no cancer odds increase for my thyroid)... I had a CBC come back TNP (Test Not Performed) because it had clotted. I noticed that within 3-4 minutes, my SST (Serum Seperator Tube/Tiger Top) tubes had already clotted, when it should take around 20 minutes to fully clot. This concerned me. Well, when the results from THAT lab came back, they weren't able to do the CBC because it had clotted too. This is abnormal because there is an anti-coagulant added to the tube for the CBC specifically so that it does not clot.

I put in a call for my OB/GYN but have not heard back from him yet. His nurse called me to verify the details of my voicemail but I didn't get a call back as of this morning. (First call was 2 days ago). Thong says it's normal for blood to thicken in pregnancy and I've always been a "fast clotter" but never in 3-4 minutes!!! Although he is an amazing doctor, he's still the guy whose undies I wash and sometimes it's hard for me to differentiate between super smartie pants doctor and husband. I do trust his opinion, but typically like to get second opinions just to verify. Especially given that this could be pregnancy related. I wanted to check with my OB.

I decided to re-draw my CBC yesterday and it came back today. It didn't clot, thankfully!!!!!! (Could have been a lab error or maybe I didn't put enough blood in the original tube????) It did show that I am anemic though! Maybe this would help to explain my fatigue lately? Aside from the fact that I am building a human being one cell at time, this could be contributing!!!

Back onto the iron supplements. Oh joy. Who doesn't enjoy a bit of consitpation now and then? I certainly wave my hand in eager excitement!!! At least it's not vomiting though. I literally can deal with ANYTHING beside vomiting or nausea. That, to me, is the absolute worst thing IN THE WORLD that I have ever gone through. (And I've been through a lot!)

Today I have to go downtown to MD Anderson for my ultrasound on my thyroid; which I wrote about yesterday. I'm super nervous just because it's a draining experience to go through when I go down there. Thong took some time from work to drive me down there, THANKFULLY so that is one less thing for me to worry about!!! Walking into the building, though, brings the tears and feelings of life being all too real, into perspective. Every which way you look, you see someone lacking color in their skin, or a shade of cancer-grey... loss of hair, heads lowered in exhaustion and sadness as the poisonous chemotherapy drips into their vein one drop at at a time as they sit in their wheelchair wondering how they got there.

On the flip side, MD Anderson is a beautiful facility. Everywhere you look, there is a gorgeous fishtank with big, colorful tropical fish. Any table you sit at has a puzzle that has usually been partially put together and there are employees and volunteers everywhere you look who are willing to help.

This place brings about hope and despair all in one fell swoop. I am thankful we have such a state-of-the-art facility this close to home and I'm thankful I am able to get my post-cancer follow-up care performed here. I trust them.

I am hopeful that the pregnancy hormones don't mix with my usual emotions that overcome me as I maneuver my way throughout the massive complexes, going from one wing to another in my attempt to find the location I need to go for my ultrasound. (It's MASSIVE). The shuttles they run between inner corridor-linked buildings is a nice distraction from the otherwise long and tedious walk that goes on for miles (or so it feels).

I already find myself wearing my sunglasses every time I am in this building because I just can't typically fight the tears. Especially when I see a little kid who is obviously struck with cancer. You look at a child then glance up at their mom or dad who is trying their best to be brave but your eyes lock and they give the look of desperation to please help this child. Pray for them. Anything... You can't leave this building not being more thankful than when you entered, though, that's for sure. Whether you're more thankful for your own health or that of your family, you leave there closer to God and more appreciative of what you have. Those who have the "woe is me" attitude should go volunteer at a cancer clinic for a day. If they leave there still feeling like life is just horrible, they either have one heck of a bad situation they're battling that is true, or are hopelessly selfish.

Well, it's almost 9 and I have to go shower and get ready to go run some errands after having lunch with Noah, but before we leave for my appointment. I am happy to announce my new flat iron arrived yesterday and it is amazing!! It took me a few minutes to get used to how to use it to curl my hair but once I got it, I got it!! I'm looking forward to using it again today. It only took about 10 minutes to go from flat to awesome waves/curls in my locks!