Thankfulness: Day 13

Today I am thankful to be alive! It was one year ago today that I had major surgery – a hysterectomy and removal of my gall bladder. I survived both and, with God’s gracious blessing, the surgery removed all traces cancer. I am so thankful that the cancer was caught and that the gall bladder went kablooey when I already had surgery scheduled. I am so grateful it all went so very well!

I am also grateful for my doctor, who recognized my symptoms as something more than pre-menopausal issues and had me tested. If she hadn’t picked up on it, the cancer would have been much worse and possibly spread.

The gall bladder thing…well that made me sicker than the cancer did. I threw up for a whole afternoon, had the worse pain EVER (someone who gave birth to three boys and had pancreatitis like me told me the pain is worse than childbirth), and was in the hospital for a week. Not to mention, I came within two hours of being moved to the ICU and being put on even more machines.  I lost 20 pounds in seven days and an additional 30 pounds or so before I had the surgery. Was NOT a pleasant experience at all.

But I survived. And I am very grateful to be alive! Thank God!!!