When it Rains, it Pours

It's been a long time since I got visited by the 3 amigos (when shit happens in threes), but it has never been all in one day, before! The last time was in 2012 that I remember - I posted about child #3 here, and Children #1 and #2 here.

Child #1 is my computer acting up. For a few days it had BSOD'd a couple of times due to software/driver issues, which I think started after the latest Windows update, most likely. I pretty much ignored it until yesterday when...

Child #2: Odin, my gerbil. I'd had him for almost 3 years. Yesterday morning, he looked dull and sick, and I figured it was his time. (Gerbils live 2-4 years on average). He'd been getting slower with age. Not nearly as energetic and annoying as he used to be. I told Patrick that he was probably dying. I told him not to mess with him or his cage that day and I would check on him when I got home from work. When I got home yesterday evening, he was pressed up against the glass. His eyes were closed and he was barely breathing. I didn't want to move him or anything for fear of making it worse. He was still hanging in there, though, that little trouper.

That's when Child #1 reared it's ugly head: I got a BSOD that was fatal. After backing up some of my files, my SSD finally went kaput. There was nothing more I could do but try to wipe the drive and start over with a fresh copy of windows.

In the meantime, Patrick and I watched as Odin took his final breath. He was gone. Knowing that I would be inheriting Patrick's cat in the coming months, I wasn't planning on replacing my gerbil with another, so Patrick got rid of his home and toys as we set up to go bury him at my parent's house, where the Pet Cemetery of my past animals resides. I set up my computer to install Windows, and we left for the burial.

When we got back, I decided to check my mail. Oh child #3, I thought you'd never come. While my surgery bill for my cholecystectomy was only $580, turns out the anesthesia bill is much more. $900. Damn. I'm looking at this bill while seeing PC death on my computer screen because the boot sectors of the drive have apparently been corrupted. And although I try a few fixes through Command Prompt, nothing was working. So I resign myself to spending $70 on another SSD in order to get my computer up and running again.

I called the anesthesia people today, and they accept Multicare's financial aid, so there is a silver lining to all of this, at least. My bill should be reduced greatly, and I'll find out within a week or two. The other bit of good news is that I purposely have my boot drive as pretty much just that - a boot drive. Nothing of value resides on it, so it's no big deal to lose it (although come on - it was only a year old!!) so, there's that. And regarding Odin... I knew for the last couple of months that it was coming. Isn't it strange how you know your animals so well that you can just tell when things change or don't seem right? Odin lived a long, healthy life and died of old age. That's the best any momma could hope for. So of course I'm sad that I lost him, but I'm also glad that he lived as long as he did.

I'm also so incredibly glad that I have Patrick's support and that he happened to be there that evening with me. I might have broken down without him. He's so amazing and I don't know what I'd do without him.

My First Real Surgery

Technically, I've had minor surgeries before; both Lasik and a colonoscopy. But - I have never been under general anesthesia. I am perfectly confident in my surgeon, but I am terrified of going under. It's kind of funny actually, since I work with a surgeon. I've seen hundreds of his patients go under anesthesia and come out perfectly fine - and those surgeries are scary and intensive. What I'm doing is a gallbladder removal [cholecystectomy].

If you know me at all or follow this blog, you're probably aware that I've had gallstones (link to my blog about it here) since my first attack in February of 2006. This pretty well describes my whole feeling about the stones and why I've waited this long to get it taken care of. I actually didn't mention how it could possibly exasperate my IBS-D, but honestly, those attacks are pretty rare these days as well because my diet is much better than it used to be.

My deciding factor to get the surgery was three-fold:

1. I qualified for 80% FA through Multicare even after my insurance paid. Without this assistance I never would have gone through with it.

2. I had 2 attacks in the span of 2 months (after going 6+ months between attacks) and both required TWO Vicodin to get under control. That was certainly not normal and concerned me a great deal. Especially now that narcotics are on such a tight leash, I'd be lucky to ever get a refill again after my current supply runs out (which I've had for 3+ years now)

3. My mom said "what if you get a life-threatening attack while in Canada?" Touche. The last thing I need is gallstone pancreatitis when I'm away from home.

Like I mentioned already, I'm perfectly confident in my surgeon. Cholecystectomies are one of the easiest surgeries to do, and Dr. Burns does roughly 5 a week. I've got no comorbidities that would make the surgery more difficult. But I have no idea how I would react under general anesthesia. No one does when it's their first time. I keep being told that everything will be fine (allergic reactions to anesthesia are, in fact, very rare) but hello - I'm allergic to an allergy medication, remember? (Allegra). I gets the hives and a swollen upper lip, which the company confirms is a "severe reaction". So yeah, I'm a bit freaked out over this. So much so that I've filled out a Health Care Directive and Power of Attorney just in a case.

And of course, I will chronicle my surgery from start to finish in case anybody is curious!

Oh, also (look away now if you don't want to be grossed out), I will have Dr. Burns take a picture of my gallbladder once its out! Here is an example pic: