It's always something...

Last night I decided that I wanted to go to church. I haven't been to church since my surgery about three-ish weeks ago and I am really missing it. Before the surgery, Sunday morning church was the only morning I left the house to go anywhere. I had to stop going to Sunday School because it was too early and I wasn't able to wake up in time for that anymore but I was still able to go to the morning service. Surgeries are hard on anybody but they're even harder when you feel real bad to begin with so it would be an understatement to say that the surgery took a lot out of me.

I haven't been able to go anywhere except the dialysis center, and barely even that. the last two weeks, though, I have been feeling really good on my two "off days" (meaning the days when I don't have dialysis) and I was just waiting for my chance when I felt well enough to go to church. Last night, I decided I was and made up my mind that I was going to go to church on Sunday in the morning.

Yesterday my stomach was kind of bothering me, but I just ignored it, thinking I ate something weird. But I knew exactly what I had eaten because I'm not eating very much these days so it's real easy to remember everything that went into my mouth on any given day and what I had eaten yesterday had not caused me any trouble before so why should it now? Sure enough, at about 3:00 in the morning, I made a trip to the great white throne and decided that I would probably not be going to church. I was right.

I don't want to gross anybody out and scare you away from ever reading my blog again so I'm not going to tell you what is wrong with me but I will tell you that it is something that I have dealt with before. Actually, several times before so me and my mom knew exactly what was wrong and we have the medicine to take care of it. I do have some advice for you, though, that will help in preventing you ever catching this nasty stomach virus, that you may take or leave as you want.

First off, be very very very very (ok, you get it) very vigilant at washing your hands. History shows us that the Jews were spared from the plague during a time of rampant uncleanliness simply because they washed their hands and they washed things that were shared between them. Avoid touching your face (eyes, nose, and mouth specifically) unless your hands have been washed. (Supposedly, this helps keep your face from breaking out, too.) You honestly can't wash your hands too much, and if frequent washings dry your hands out, then get a good moisturizer and don't let up on the washings.

Another piece of advice, avoid taking antibiotics if you can help it. I had a blood infection last year that they still aren't real sure of exactly what it was so they gave me seven IV bags of antibiotics. While it took care of the infection, the several different kinds of general antibiotics also wiped my body clean of any and all bacteria. Some bacteria is bad for you but some is good and when your body doesn't have any then you become extremely susceptible to the virus I am now currently battling, again.

Doctors prescribe antibiotics, sometimes first without finding out what is wrong, because they work and they work fast. So whatever is wrong may clear up simply because of the administered antibiotic(s), as in my case last year. But when you ask "is the antibiotic really necessary?" the doctor may tell you "No, but I just want to give it anyway." In which case me and my mom say "No, thank you, we don't want it if it's not necessary." Ok, not actually those exact words but that's basically how it all goes down.

Doctors are NOT gods and they don't have the answers to everything. You can question them, and should. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a doctor/hospital/nurse basher by any means. I love most all my doctors and nurses and have been very blessed by the medical practitioners I've been in contact with in my lifetime (and that's been a lot!). I do, however, get very annoyed at the people, especially the older generations, that blindly follow the doctor's advice without asking any questions, doing any research or getting any second opinions.

You (I'm pointing a finger at YOU) are the sole person responsible for your health. If you're old enough to be reading this blog, then you're old enough to start being responsible for your health even if your parent may be the prime person responsible for you at this time. If you're healthy, don't take that for granted because you can lose your health easily. Don't believe me? Ask the man I see at dialysis on Thursdays who was completely healthy until his kidneys just up and failed on him. That could be you.

Alright, I think I'm done speaking from my soapbox... until tomorrow, that is.

On a bit of a happier note, I am pleasantly surprised at how popular this blog has become in such a short time. I've kept several blogs but none of them have been so widely read as this one. I'm kicking myself for not starting something like this sooner since y'all seem to enjoy reading it. So, as long as I'm able, I'll keep it up and let y'all know what's going on.

And I'll finish this with a couple of prayer requests. The first one is, that I'd really like to hear from the transplant team tomorrow on the second part of the donor testing me and my parents did last week. This will determine which of my parents is a closer blood match and which one of them will begin the rest of the donor testing. The sooner the better.

Secondly, that I'd get over this virus quickly. There is an antibiotic specifically targeting the stomach and it helps take care of this. I'm also taking a probiotic so whatever good bacteria the antibiotic wipes out, the probiotic will replace so I won't be left susceptible to any other bugs or viruses. Sadly, this virus has pretty much ruined my two good days that I would have normally had and it kept me from going to church this morning like I wanted to. I have absolutely no energy reserves so when something like this comes along, I'm wiped out and mostly unable to get out of my bed. I spend most of the week in bed because of dialysis and I got used to my two off days being spent out of bed, which isn't going to happen this week, I guess.

Thank you for the prayers and thank you for your support during this difficult time in my life and my family's life. :-)