Hospitals and Doctors and Tests... Oh MY!

It has been forever since my last post, mostly since I have spent the last 6 weeks in and out of hospitals and doctor's offices, being poked and prodded in ways better not to describe and most of the time haven't had a valid internet connection or the energy to sit down and post.

To make a very long story as short as possible, when I returned from Barcelona, I had incredible stomach pains and cramping and all the fun that goes with that. This lasted for about 10 days before on a random phone call to my aunt who is a doctor, I described to her my symptoms and she recommended I immediately go to the doctor. This scared me because I could hear the urgency in her voice, and I had summed it up at the time that I had caught a bug in Barcelona and would feel better in a few days. And I am not a big fan of going to the doctor in Dublin as I've heard several times over from other American's of the short-comings of the Irish healthcare system. So against my stubbornness I made the appointment for that afternoon.

Scary got scarier when I walk into my doctor, explain my symptoms and she immediately refers me to the hospital...of which I am arguing, can't I go tomorrow? To which she responds in a "do not stop, do not pass go, do not collect $200" way and insists that I go immediately. So I did, and the next thing I know they are admitting me into the hospital as I am basically freaking out. My family doesn't even know I am there, I can't get a hold of anyone in LA, they are trying to admit me for an emergency endoscopy (at this point I don't even know what that means) and they are attaching all kinds of IV's to me (have I mentioned I am claustrophobic when I can't move and am attached to IV drips). I end up there for 3 days before they release me saying I have had bleeding stomach ulcers which are now not bleeding (thank GOD) and to take some pill once a day, get rest because it must be stress-related and don't drink beer. Gee thanks.

So I book a flight to LA where I can at least rest in the comfort of my family and friends vs. being alone in Dublin to figure out why I am "stressed". The forgetfulness of the anesthesia causes me to have complete brain lapses and I get all the way to the airport only to realize I've forgotten the most important thing you need to get on an international flight...my passport. AAAGGGHHHH! My friend E races to my apt to retrieve it while I frantically try to switch the flight causing the intense pain in my stomach to increase dramatically which makes me think, maybe I am stressed and this is what is causing my pain. After much time and racing to the 2nd flight (I missed the first one), I caught a connecting flight from Dublin through London to Los Angeles. And as things would go, they lost my luggage for 3 days so I land in LA homeless with no clothes...are you kidding me?

A few days into the "R&R" trip home, the pain begins to worsen again and after many more visits to the doctor and then specialists and many many invasive tests, it turns out I had a very serious bacterial infection in my upper and lower stomach from something I ate or drank which basically eats your stomach out from the inside, causing my very misdiagnosed Dublin "stress ulcers". Unfortunately, the doctor also saw something else that was suspect and despite taking over 12 pills a day for 4 weeks to kill the bacteria, I am still having many of the same symptoms and pain in my lower stomach and so I am waiting for the final results of a capsule test and blood test to determine another similar but separate issue that I may be having. For those of you who don't know what a capsule test is, I swallowed a horse-pill sized camera, attached electrodes and a computer to my waist and had to keep it on for 8 hours while it took pictures of my stomach, which transmitted to the computer I had strapped on. I have also learned that I am allergic to the tape they use to attach electrodes so by the end of the day, my stomach was red and itchy and the claustrophobic feeling to get this device off of me was practically unbearable. I don't want to even think about what the results of these tests may mean so I'm going to wait until the doctor confirms it definitively before even discussing it.

In the meantime, I was scheduled to be in LA for Karen's bachelorette party and wedding which took place last weekend and I have to say it was the most amazing wedding I have and will ever see. The only difficulty was keeping my stomach bloating down enough to fit into the beautiful bridesmaid's dress she had picked out. The stomach problems caused me to lose 12 pds so this was easy to accomplish as long as I didn't drink alcohol or eat spicy food for the week before the wedding. Can I tell you how sucky it is to be celebrating your best friend's wedding and you can't eat or drink half of the things at celebrations.

Unfortunately, the tests are taking longer to get back than anticipated so I have had to extend my stay in LA for another week in order to get the final tests and treatment before returning to Dublin. I will write about Karen's wedding separately as it is definitely worthy of its own post.

So that is the health update for now. I'm praying that this will resolve itself quickly and without further major issues.

Noteworthy shout outs of MAJOR thanks go to:
-Jo for helping me with my apt, concert tickets, etc. etc. and for being generally amazing
-Rena for being my only daily visitor while I was in the hospital in Dublin
-E for getting me my passport and not driving my car to Belfast while I've been away
-Jude for patiently letting me take over the Barbie room at her place for 4 weeks unexpectedly...one day I will return the favor.
-Karen for letting me stay at her place while she honeymoons in Italy & France, for the most amazing wedding experience of a lifetime and for not telling me that her cat was going to hiss at me daily while she is gone.