Whirlwind of events coming to an end...

After my last post I have gone through a whirlwind of testing to figure out what is going on with my body. On October 27th I had my MRI (something I will never do again). After they put the IV in (my MRI was done with a contrast) I was moved into the tunnel. I thought I would do just fine, but then they started to ask me to hold my breath; which is what made me panic a bit. After the MRI I had a couple of weeks before meeting with the doctor to review my results. I also at this time had some blood drawn to check my liver and pancreas.
The day finally arrived to meet with the doctor and review my test results. The MRI came back showing absolutely nothing, so it was back to square-one. However, the blood work they did showed that my liver enzymes were elevated (normal is 40, mine were 246); this means, you got it, more tests! I believe the final count of tests being ran was 15. Again, I had to wait another two weeks before finding out the results.
Yesterday, I met with the doctor to go over the new findings. I am happy to report it is nothing serious! It is simply a viral infection….Mononucleosis…often referred to as Mono. This explains why I have been feeling so run down lately, why my body aches all of the time, and why it never seems like I get enough sleep.
As for the chest pain I was experiencing the doctor believes it is residual pain from my gallbladder. I guess it is more common than one would think. Instead of getting pain from the gallbladder the bile duct will contract and mimic the same type of pain. He is starting my on some medication that will prevent the pain!
I am excited to get back to normal life and to be away from the hospital for a long long while!!!!

On a more positive note, Fall Semester 2011 is almost over!!!

This, that, and the other.....

Where does one begin? It has been far too long since I posted anything on this blog, so much has been going on I haven't had the time.

For starters on September 17, 2011 I took dad to the ER. He was experiencing some pain in his stomach area. At first we just went to Insta-care, but they sent us to the ER--they thought that he had kidney stones (boy were they wrong!). When we got to the ER, they did some test and found out that he had an infection. They were unsure where the infection was coming from, but the numbers were so high they had to admit him. On top of it all his WBC and Platelets were extremely low again.

He was in the hospital for five or six days (I can't remember). However, during his stay the infection moved to his blood which cause for more concern. While in the hospital they ran several test to monitor his organs and make sure the infection didn't do any damage. Since being released from the hospital he has been on an antibiotic for almost six weeks now (they put a Picc-line in), he has had surgery to remove scar tissue and allow him to urinate--during this surgery the urologist stated that he feels the infection is coming from his bladder, and his WBC and Platelets have remained low.




We are kind of back at the beginning of everything, but on the plus side dad is finally feeling a little better!


So, after dad was released I started to get my mind back into school. I finished the entire application process for the Education Program at Weber State University. The interview they administer was difficult and made me really think on my feet! My school work has been steady and strong (only 6 more Mondays in this semester!) I have been trying to stay focused and dedicated to what I need to accomplish. However, it has been a bit difficult to do. If it isn't one thing, it is something else in our family. Two weeks ago I started to have chest pain. It started on a Saturday, I kept ignoring it and hoping it would go away. On the following Tuesday it was extreme pain--I have a high pain tolerance and this brought tears to my eyes. So, on Wednesday I stopped into Insta-care on my way home from school. The doctor I saw was concerned that I might have a Pulmonary Embolism (blood-clot in my lung). He decided it was best if we did an EKG and a Chest-X-ray. My x-ray came back normal, but my EKG had a few indicators of blood-clot, this meant more tests. I was sent to the hospital where I had a CT scan. Luckily this scan came back negative for blood-clots and I was sent home. Dr. Winn (Insta-care) said that if I was still having pain to keep him informed. The following Tuesday I was still having pain, so I went in for another appointment with Dr. Winn. We discussed a few possibilities for chest pain in someone my age (anxiety, heartburn, etc...). Suddenly, Dr. Winn asked if he had me drink something the time before. I stated, no and he quickly had the nurse bring in this white mixture. The white mixture coated my esophagus and numbed it which took away my pain. Dr. Winn now was beginning to think my chest pain was due to heartburn--so he scheduled a EGD Scope.




On Thursday, October 20th I had a scope down my esophagus and to my stomach. Dr. Porter performed this, but before he did the procedure he asked me a few questions. One was, why are you here? I explained my chest pain and the proceeding tests. He asked if they ever checked my gallbladder, I laughed and told him I had that removed in February. He then asked if I had stones in my gallbladder--the answer, yes. He explained that even though the gallbladder is removed the bile duct can still form stones. He said he would still do the scope and check things out (everything was great), but he wanted to run some more test (of course!). Dr. Porter is having some blood work done on my pancreas and my liver. I am also going in for an MRI of my abdomen on Thursday, October 27th to check for stones. We will hope for the best and see what the outcomes are!!



On a more positive note....I was ACCEPTED into Weber State University's Education Program for Spring 2012!!!! All of the worry and stress is over, I am beyond excited to finish up school and begin my career as a teacher!!!

Life Adventures continued....

My schedule has not permitted me to blog as often as I would like, but I am posting things as they happen in my life. Fall semester has officially started, we are already on week three. I am taking some easy classes, but courses that are needed to finish up my degree. I am taking Earthquakes and Volcano, Advanced Writing; Grammar, Style and Usage, Human Sexuality, and Methods in Health Education. So far I would have to say my favorite class is my methods class. We are the ones teaching the class, in order to learn different teaching methods. We will be creating health lesson plans, bulletin boards, PSA's, and getting tons of feedback on ways to improve our teaching methods!

I officially submitted my application to the Education Program at Weber. My interview is scheduled for September 26, 2011 and I should know if I am accepted by the end of October!

Several months ago I posted about my weight issues . It is something I have struggled with for a large part of my life. I began in February after my gallbladder surgery working on losing some weight. I weighed myself this morning and have lost 24 pounds since February! I don't really know how I am losing the weight, I don't feel like I am doing anything to promote it. I also don't notice any change with my clothes or my body---hopefully the scale I am using is right :-)

Anyways, nothing really exciting is happening in my life and I haven't been writing at all. Maybe one day I will actually get on top of all the things I want to do in life!!!

Thanks for reading!

Puppies, school, and essays; Oh my!

So, it has been quite some time since I have been able to post. There is so much to write about, I hope I can remember it all.

To start with our family got a new puppy! We got her about three weeks ago, her name is Dakota and she is a landseer Newfoundland. Kacee got her sister and her name is Bailey. They are 11 weeks old today and are quite the handfuls. They are pretty funny. As they get older they will get big; they are called gentle giants and will get to be about 120-160 pounds. Even though they are a lot of work, they are also a lot of fun.


Dakota


Bailey


Dakota (left) and Bailey (right)--this picture will give you an idea of how big they are and they are only 10 weeks old in this picture!


Mid-run...they like to play keep away with their toys, then the one without the toy will chase the one with around the room.


Summer semester ended!!! I am now down to only 4 semesters left...yes, I said 4!!!!! This semester was relaxed and fairly easy; I was able to get A's in both classes I took. I am a bit nervous for fall semester, because I will have class from 7 am until 2:30 pm; then I have to be to work at 5pm...I just hope I have time to actually study!

Finally, I have been working hard to finish up everything for my application to the education program. I took my CAAP test on June 4th and passed it on the first try! I just completed my essay (just need to have Kacee proof read it for me), and I will be submitting my application as soon as summer semester grades show up on my transcript. Then all I have left is my interview. It is all happening so fast, I have been working for so many years to get to this point it is just crazy it is finally here! I have attached my essay below (again, it hasn't been proofed yet)!


Education Essay:

Every child dreams of what they want to be when they grow up; I was no different. Dreaming of becoming a dentist, a nurse, or even someone who was going to end world hunger; it was not until third grade when my teacher, Miss Higgs, showed me compassion that I knew what I was going to be when I grew up.

My desire of becoming a teacher started while trying to write the letter ‘G’ in cursive one day in Miss Higgs’ classroom. Every day we had a specific letter we had to practice in cursive. If we completed our set number of letters to Miss Higgs’ standards we could go out to recess. On this particular day I struggled. I worked very hard—after erasing and trying again several times, I finally walked up to Miss Higgs to show her my paper. She looked at my work, then at me and said, “Go try again.” I went back to my desk discouraged, I remember staring at my paper and thinking, there is no way I was going to write the letter ‘G’ in cursive. Miss Higgs must have seen that I was discouraged; she stood up from her desk and asked me to come to the chalkboard. She drew two solid lines and a dotted line in between. She then handed me the chalk and said to draw the letter ‘G’. I tried several times, before I put the chalk on the tray in frustration. My exact words to her were, “I can’t do it.” Miss Higgs handed me the chalk again with a smile, she stood behind me, held my left hand and glided it the proper way. We did this several more times; she then asked “do you think you can do it on your own, now that you know what the motions feel like?” Miss Higgs took a step back and watched as I successfully wrote a cursive letter ‘G’ on the chalkboard. I felt so happy that I accomplished something that I was struggling with. Miss Higgs then turned to me, looked me in the eyes and said, “I don’t ever want to hear you say “I can’t do it” again!” “I want you to know I will never give up on you, so you can’t give up on yourself!”

I want to have the same impact on my students, the same way Miss Higgs impacted my life. As a substitute teacher for Weber School District, I was able to see first-hand the impact I can have on my students. Even though I was only a substitute, the students in the class that I was subbing were my students. In the five years that I had the privilege of being a substitute I learned many things, such as: patience, understanding, teaching methods that work and some that do not, discipline techniques, and I learned that every student just wants someone to show compassion towards them.

One moment in particular that taught me the most occurred while doing a four-month assignment in a junior high math class. During this time I had a student, Emily, who spent a lot of time in my classroom. Every morning Emily would come in to talk with me about her family, school, friends, etc..., after school Emily also came in to receive help on her math homework. I did not think of the impact I possibly could be having on Emily; I only thought I was doing my job. Upon the conclusion of my four-month assignment, I was cleaning up my desk where I stumbled upon a note. I opened the note and discovered it was from Emily. The note expressed Emily’s gratitude to me. She shared with me that during this time I was the only constant in her life; that she felt like her world was coming to an end, except when she could talk with me. She told me that her parents were getting a divorce, her friends started to abandon her, and her grades were low except for her math grade. Emily told me that it was because I was willing to listen that she was able to overcome this trial. Finally, Emily thanked me for being someone who cared. This little note of appreciate from her taught me that teaching is exactly what I need to be doing with my life.

Through the years I have remembered the words Miss Higgs said to me, they have been the guiding force behind my desire to teach students. I hope to be just like Miss Higgs; by being someone who inspires, guides, comforts, and is an example to her students.





Thanks for reading!

Do You Hear the People Sing?

I have talked several times about my love for Broadway and for music in general. Well, my family and I were lucky enough to attend Les Miserables on Sunday, May 29, 2011. This was our third time seeing it and it did not disappoint!










Here is a link to a video of my favorite parts of the show (sorry not computer savvy, so I don't know how to load the video)

http://youtu.be/77br_LeQ77Y

Another of life's little adventures....

Today's post is not something I don't talk about that often, if fact I try to avoid the subject as much as possible. That is my weight! I have struggled with my weight for a large part of my life. It has always been a constant battle; one not many people understand. There have been times when I have hated myself because of my weight. There are so many different ways I've tried to lose the weight. There are times I have been humiliated, teased, and tortured because of my weight. The hardest part of being made fun of is that I have tried to lose the weight; it is not something I enjoy in my life (like some of my fellow classmates thought)yet they don't understand the pain they caused me. I was in the 5th grade when I really noticed I was heavier than my classmates, not because I visually saw it, but because the other kids made sure to point it out. As I have grown older I have tried to figure out when and why I started to gain the weight. I don't really have the answer quite yet, but I believe a large part of the weight is built as a shield; a way to protect myself from getting hurt (even though it didn't work very well, it only brought more pain). There was a time in junior high school that I finally had enough of the comments that I went to the extreme. I remember that I went to my P.E. teacher (Mrs. Smith), I told her that I needed help in losing some weight. At this time I don't know how much I weighed, but she agreed to meet with me before school and help me work out. I went to the gym every morning and worked out with my teacher, I made sure I put all of my heart into gym class later in the day, and I did what no girl should ever do...I stopped eating. I quickly started to lose the weight and the comments started to change from being called "Shamu" to "Wow! Sam, you are looking great!" I liked it and kept with it for the rest of the year. Again, I don't recall how much I weighed, but in my mind I was getting healthy and people were noticing. Well, Mrs. Smith left Roy Junior and I quickly put the weight back on; in fact I kept gaining over the years. Junior high school was an incredible time for me despite the name calling and comments. In high school I continued to gain, unfortunately the names continued all the way to graduation day (toughest was walking to get my diploma and boys made comments as I walked by). I allowed my weight to dictate my life. I missed out on so many opportunities and adventures because I felt I was to heavy and I would be judged.

I don't write this down today for sympathy or kind words, I write down my experiences as motivation for myself. At the beginning of January I hit my all time highest weight and it scared me. In February I had my surgery, I went to a doctors appointment on April 12th and I had lost 14 pounds. I wanted to keep up this weight loss in a healthy way. So, I have decided to eat healthier and exercise daily (simple I know)! Since April I have lost an additional 3 pounds.It is coming slowly, but surely. My goal is to lose 30 pounds by the end of the year. It doesn't seem like a lot, but I know it will take a lot.

So, I close with encouraging words to myself....

The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person's determination. - Tommy Lasorda

What to blog?

School seems to be the story of my life. I ended another semester at Weber, only five more remain!!!! This summer semesters is pretty relaxed; I am taking a health educator's class online and then I also have a British Lit class that will start at the end of June. Until then I have been studying for my CAAP test. I will be taking it June 4th. This test is required to apply to the education department. It mimics the ACT. Also, I didn't end up getting the straight A's I hoped for, but I did get 3 A's and a B!

Since I am tired of just writing about school and I haven't really been writing poems or stories as often as I should--- I don't really know what to write about. I will however, give a quick update on my dad. It has been a few months since I have talked about the whole WBC & platelets. Dad went to Huntsman Cancer Institute where he was evaluated. They looked at the bone marrow biopsy that he had done in March (I believe), they too stated that it is not Leukemia. WHEW!!!! They are not really sure what is going on. One of the doctors believed it could be Myelodysplastic syndrome (pre-leukemia), but he didn't feel confident in making that diagnosis. They sent dad home with really no answers and we are back to square one. Dad eventually got over his sinus infection (it took several months), he still gets tired easily, and his counts are still low. However, dad has made it very clear he isn't going to worry if the doctors are not worrying. He isn't on any treatments for it and the last blood test showed that his counts were normal again. I guess we will just live life and worry later! :-)

Thanks for reading and I am sure I will add some poems and stories soon!