We found the doctors office very easy. This was my first time in the Baptist Hospital complex so I was a little worried that we might get turned around. The people there were really sweet and since all my information had been passed along yesterday I didn’t have to do all that fun paperwork stuff. I will admit, it was overwhelming walking into that office. I had this fear going into it that I would walk in and there would be other cancer patients around the room and I would see people at different stages in the process and have to wonder if that was something I would look like. It really was a fear of mine. But once I got there, I realized this was a radiology office, so that was not the case today. There were people sitting around the room getting IV’s but I just put it out of my mind, because that was not what I had come to do here today. Mrs. Horne arrived shortly after we did and it was so great to see a familiar face. She thinks highly of the people who work in that office and that helped me feel better about it. Mr. Casey came back and got me and walked us back into the consultation room. He told us what we could expect from our visit with the the radiologist and we waited for him to come in.
When the radiologist came in, he explained that they were going to go into the mass near my neck and pull out several tissue samples. I had the choice to do a local anesthesia or have and IV that sedates you as well. I asked the questions I needed to, to understand what I would feel and hear during the procedure to decide that I just wanted to go with the local. Part of the control freak in me wanted to know what was going on and experience as much of it as I could (I was so glad I did. It was cool.) One of the things they told me was that the stick to get my neck numb was going to one of the most painful parts. Sometimes they just say those things, but this time they were right. I went back in the room for the biopsy. There was a really nice lady who took some ultra sound pictures of the mass for the doctor to be able to see where to insert and what to do. She let me look over at the screen and it was neat to be able to see what was on the inside of my neck. She was using an ultrasound just like they do for babies (yes my neck had slimy jelly stuff on it). It was neat to watch and I was grateful that she allowed me to do that. Once the pictures were taken, she got the room ready for the procedure. The doctor came in and numbed my neck. Even that though, wasn’t really that bad and it worked pretty quick. It wasn’t the paralyzing kind of numbing like you get at the dentist, but I couldn’t feel the prick of the needle when they inserted it into my neck. I didn’t get to see any of the instruments they used to know how big it was or anything, but I do know that it had to be like a small casing, because they stuck another instrument down inside it to extract the tissue samples.
She would stick it down in there and the doctor would tell her to insert it and then there would be a click (which he showed me once before they did the first one, so I could hear what it would sound like). They did this 5 or six times and then the needle slipped out. Now, I forgot to add that the doctor was holding the ultrasound wand at the bottom of the mass so he could watch every insertion. This medicine stuff really amazes me. Ok, the worst part of the the pain came when they pulled the needle out and had to put pressure on my neck to keep the bleeding down. Wowzers. I mean really they just had a needle in my neck and now they are pushing on it. I wasn’t mad b/c it was part of the process, but really, this is going to be the thing that is uncomfortable?
After they were done with the pressure, they put a band-aid on me and cleaned my neck up from the biopsy. Then, they gave me a cold pack for my neck and I laid there for a while. I asked if my parents could come back. I knew they would want to know what happened and there was no reason for them to just sit out there and me to just sit back there. So, mom, dad and Mrs. Horne came back there. It was great to see them and I wanted to them to be reassured that it went well and that I was doing ok. Mr. Casey was cool to get them for me and make sure I felt modest enough for visitors…little known fact..that was the least of my concerns!
So, we waited for probably 30 minutes. No need to rush, this could keep the swelling and bruising down. But, dad was hungry..no breakfast for us and we were headed to Mimi’s Cafe. I love that place and mom and dad had not eaten there. When I finally got up, my neck was really stiff and very sore. But, it is amazing what a set of Tylenol and some food can do. We did a little shopping in Little Rock and headed back to the Delph. I drove us home and dad slept. I cant imagine why he was so tired 🙂
The rest of the afternoon and evening was very relaxing. Dad laid down for a nap at 4:30 and we did not see him until the next morning. Mom and I had an amazing dinner of popcorn chicken and shells and cheese. We watched this awesome Dateline NBC special about the girls from Taylor University who were in a wreck together and their bodies were switched. I would so encourage you to pick up a copy of the family’s new book Mistaken Identity. It is a great story of faith and courage.
