More News from The Norman's

Well, lots has happened since my last post. All is still well with my health reports, I go for my 6 week surgical follow up this Wednesday and I expect that all will go well. On March 4 (my 26th birthday) at about 11 pm, Mr. Ed (Ed's dad) had a stroke. He has been in CCU in Thomasville since that time. He has right sided paralysis and is unable to speak more than a few words. He is having some trouble swallowing and has a feeding tube in place. He is getting lots of therapy, speech, physical and occupational, to regain some of his function. It will be a very long time before we know exactly what the lasting effects are going to be. We are praying for significant recovery of his independance and speech. He was moved yesterday into a regular bed and out of the unit. We are hoping that the window in the room will help him to readjust his time schedules. His sleeping patterns had gotten out of whack in the CCU. Our next step is to try to get him into the Inpatient Rehab Center at Archibold. It will be a few more days before they can evaluate him and determine if he is strong enough to be a candidate for this type of intensive reab. Pray that he gets accepted into this center, as the more therapy he gets, the more likely he is to regain function. I plan to keep updating this as much as possible to keep those interested in the loop. Thank you for your prayers and thoughts through our MANY recent trials and tribulations!

Pathology Report

Most of you probably know this by now, but in case you don't...The path report was negative. It showed no evidence of any dysplasia. No precancerous cells or anything. I am not sure I can explain this. I have an appointment to meet with Dr Trescot tomorrow to get his take on how the first biopsy showed severe dysplasia and the cone showed nothing. But no matter what the reason, this is good news. The treatment plan is the same, repeat paps every 4 months to make sure things stay normal. But no more procedures and no more worrying. I will let you know when I talk to him if he can give me any answers to all of my "whys?".

I DO NOT HAVE CANCER!!

Ahhh....the joys of living in a small town. Rumors, rumors, rumors. Apparently word is out, and as things usually do in small towns, the truth got twisted. I do not have cervical cancer. I have pre-cancerous changes on my cervix that if left untreated would have turned into cancer many years down the road. I would appreciate it greatly if those of you who read this blog would help me in setting things straight. I understand that my Hopewell family and my New Bethel family have received word that I have cancer. I appreciate all of the thoughts and prayers and would like to clear this up. Thanks so much!

Surgery's Done

Well, I had the surgery yesterday. It went well. Procedure only took about 45 minutes. Woke up feeling great. I haven't had any pain at all. I am laying on the couch for the next 3 days, only getting up occasionally to go to the bathroom and stretch my legs. We won't have the pathology reports for 8-10 days. That is what will tell us if he got everything bad out. He seemed confident that he got it all, and that if he missed anything it was something that could be frozen. He doesn't think we will have to do this procedure again. So, I feel fine and am doing great. I appreciate all the prayers and thoughts. Thanks so everyone who called to check on me, sent flowers, and brought food! I will continue to keep y'all updated as we hear more. Thanks again! :)

Life is like a box of chocolates...

Well, you know how the saying ends. Most of you have probably already heard by now, but in case you haven't let me update you on the newest drama in the Norman house. I am scheduled for surgery on Feb 4th to have a Cone Biopsy done of my cervix. Had an abnormal pap and an abnormal punch biopsy, so they will remove, hopefully, all of the diseased tissue with this cone biopsy. It is an outpatient procedure and I will be out of work for about a week. After that I will have follow up paps every 4 months for a year to make sure this does not come back. I am sure that you all know what a worrier I am, so this has been a little scary for me. I am feeling better after doing TONS of research and seeing that about 97% of the time, this is a curative procedure and it does not usually come back. So...that's the news. Keep me in your prayers and I will keep you all posted!

Rant of the Day

Why is it that in the days of modern technology, patients think they know whats wrong with them and how to fix it before they step foot in the ER? It is as if I am only there to write the rx that they request and order the studies that they feel necessary. The fact that I went to school for 6 years and suffered many long, sleepless nights studying means nothing. That is what WebMD is for. And to think that I may have a different opinion than the almighty Web MD, well that is just unfathomable. Not only do they want me to only do what they ask, write which rx they want and give them a work excuse for the next week, they want me to do all this for free. And then they complain if the RX I write is not on the $4 list at Wal-Mart. They cannot afford a $10 rx, that means the ER bill won't ever be paid, but they can afford the 2 packs of cigarettes a day, can afford to be 17 with the third child on the way (she's still is not quite sure what causes that), and can afford that $200 cell phone she is constantly texting on while I am trying to get her history. Seems to me those should be the first things to go, but what do I know....I am not WebMD.

Unreliable Poster- Updates!

Sorry guys! I have not posted anything on here in a while! I have been pretty busy with getting the new house in order and working! Just haven't had much time! I was scolded by my father that he checks this everyday and I never put anything on new on here!
So what's new in the Norman Life? Not too much! We are enjoying the new house. We still don't have grass! Ed says when hunting season is over, he's going to start landscaping. January 15th is the last official day, so I am counting on a yard full of grass around January 16th! ;)
Shelby is doing well in Kindergarten...she was the student of the month last month and was really excited about that. She is reading really well now! I am impressed with her ability to sound things out! The only bad news is we have to be really careful now...we can't really spell around her anymore because she will sit there and figure it out. She is too smart (and nosy) for spelling anymore!
I am looking forward to the next few months. Deer season ends on January 15th and Turkey season doesn't start until April so I have 2.5 months of NO SEASONS! I hope to get a lot of Ed's honey-do list done in that time. If you haven't seen our house yet, feel free to drop by at anytime!
We had a wonderful Christmas and am looking forward to the new year! I am hoping for a great and happy year! Rene' is getting married in April, so we have a lot to do and look forward to in that department. Georgette is preparing to have twin boys, so they will be a joy to start spoiling in the next few months. Zach is taking the LSAT and looking in to starting law school so we are excited for him. Julie and her family will be visiting in the summer and we can't wait to see them and the girls! Shelby misses them and is excited for their five week play session! So alot of things happening this year!
I will try to be a more dedicated blogger! I am not making any promises, but I will try for at least once a week!