Jan 27th - Praising God and turkey legs

Today was VERY eventful.  Two major things happened which could not be more separate from each other. :)

First, after months of planning and hard work from the Pursuit staff (Matt, Janie, Alex and Erin), local volunteers and out-of-town volunteers, and prayer partners, the Pursuit Christian Church opened the doors for it's very first church service.  It was really amazing!  Having been involved with the Pursuit since it's beginnings in Miami, today was just great!  To see everything that we've been planning, everything that we've talked about, and all of the dreams come to fruition is something truly awesome.  I think God worked in amazing ways today to reach every person who came, worshiped and participated in what was the first of many services to come.  As I sat there listening to Matt preach I couldn't help but feel that God has some amazing plans for the church and the city of Miami.  The energy, emotion and fullness of God filled that place today.  I can't describe the excitement. :)  I'm super stoked to see what the future holds.

After church, my friend Jaime and I met up with a few others from our University program and went to an outdoor concert.  Once there, I had no choice but to label the concert for what it was... the South Florida Caucasian Convention... aka... the Kiss Country Chili Cook-off and Concert.  I really didn't know how to act... I'm pretty sure every caucasian person in South Florida was there!   All kidding aside, it was actually a lot of fun.  I'm not a big country music fan... but the live music, fair-style food (I ate my first whole turkey leg.. and it was AMAZING!), rowdy atmosphere and gorgeous day made for a lot of fun.  We spread out some chairs, blankets and just took in the scene.  It was different for me, but fun. :)  Who knows, maybe my next step is gettin' a cowboy hat and a big truck... ok, maybe not! 

 

Surgery Update

It's been awhile since I posted an update, so here goes:

Since about Thursday of last week I've been feeling much better with each day.  The process was painfully slow for the first week or so as it seemed there was little to no improvement each day.  Thankfully, that's not been the case for the past few days.  Each day brings some good progression and healing for the throat.  I'm still not at 100% and my throat is still sore, but it's MUCH better than where I was as of the middle of last week.  

I can now generally equate the pain with a really bad sore throat or a bad case of strep throat.  The only difference is that I can still feel some pain/pressure from the back of my throat to my ears.  Even still, it isn't too bad.

I've noticed that if I talk too much in a given day, my throat gets more sore... I think thats a mixture of still healing and not having used those muscles very much over the past week and a half... so I am still trying to keep speaking to a lower level than normal.  

I have an appt on Wed with the surgeon who will hopefully tell me that everything is healing nicely... if thats the case, it means an end is in sight for the soft food diet. :)  It's been a lot harder than I thought it would be... eating soup, ice cream and jell-o for two weeks.  But, I've also lost about 8 lbs... so thats nice. :)  Maybe I'll lose a few more before Wednesday to make it an even 10!  haha  Lets just hope that I don't gain it all back when I start to eat again... :(  C'est la vie.

So thats where I currently stand.  :)  Remember to have your pets spayed and neutered... good-bye everybody!

Ed Young and Fellowship Church

Last month I created a post about my visit to Fellowship Church in Miami and it's pastor, Ed Young.  Mainly, the post was about Ed Young.  Being new to blogland, I never imagined that my post would reach beyond a few people.  I also did not feel that the post would be considered controversial, if those who read my blog knew me.

I was proven wrong on two accounts.  1) somehow my post reached many people and 2) most of them do not know me and therefor do not know the spirit with which it was posted... how could they?  Items written on the 'net are purely open to translation... I can't expect people to understand what was meant when written.  

With that in mind, I want to apologize to Ed Young and the members of the Fellowship Church that my blog may have affected or offended.  My intention was never to be malicious, judgmental or harmful.

In the end, my goals and Fellowship's goals are the same... to reach people for Christ.  And ultimately, that's all that matters.  When the world sees Christians fighting with each other; it only hurts our ultimate cause.  And my intention was not to initiate a rift or fight among brothers and sisters.  For doing that, I am sorry.  

Days 6 & 7: a hint of light?

Not too much to report... Days 6 and 7 were similar for the most part.  I think day 6 was slightly better, but I didn't leave the house.  Overall, the pain is still fairly constant, though it may be lessening slightly... emphasis on slightly!  I'm sleeping better, which is good... I think that will help promote healing.  :)  I attempted going to class on Tuesday.  It made me pretty tired, but I was able to endure.  Hopefully I'll be able to attend classes on Thursday and not fall too far behind.  To date: I've lost about 6 pounds and have one more week of eating nothing but soft/luiqidy foods... I guess it's good that I'm losing weight. HA  

Days 4 & 5: It's all a lie!

I'm sure most of you are waiting in anticipation since I didn't create an entry yesterday... yea right.  Well, at the end of day 5 I have come to one simple conclusion.  The promise that things will get better... is a lie!  I'm fairly certain that I'm never getting better and will continue in pain and soft foods for the rest of my life.

Ok, thats a little dramatic.  Surely it will all end sometime, but I'm not sure when.  Day 4 was really hard because I was really hungry but it hurt to even eat Jell-O.  So, I took some pain meds hoping that would allow me to eat.  Wrong.  Since I hadn't eaten anything, it made me nauseous.  So Day 4 was this terrible battle of needing to eat in order to take pain meds, but things hurting too much to eat.  Boo!  Today, Day 5, was better because I forced myself to eat some eggs when I woke up and then took some pain meds... so today was slightly better because I have consistently had narcotics in my system. :)  But, I'm still slightly nauseous, which isn't cool.

As far as getting better... I hope I am.  I hear that things get better after day 5; I hope that's true!  I need some sort of light at the end of the tunnel.  I've researched and read things online that would indicate I could be feeling much better any time between now and in another week.  It really varies for everyone... we'll pray that it's sooner rather than later.  I'm pretty hungry, tired, and bored out of my mind!  

For now, I'm calling it as I see it... the light at the end of the tunnel is a myth.  A farce.  A lie.  Hopefully tomorrow will being a different point of view! :)

Day 3: halfway healed?

Today, by far, was the most painful day.  I think a lot of the throat pain came from sleeping with my mouth open and drying out last night... though the pain continued through most of the day.  It was MUCH harder to eat or drink anything today... though I've managed to take a good amount of liquids.  Also starting today was some intense ear pressure and pain.  I had read in some other blogs that this might happen on day 4 or 5... but for me, day 3 it is.

After emailing one of the ladies at the ENT office, I have learned that the ear pain, while unpleasant, is a good sign.  She said that this will occur when I'm approximately 50% through the initial recovery... apparently the pain is caused when the tonsil muscles heal and begin to spasm and contract.  She said this could last for another day or two, but hopefully the pressure will lessen soon!

Time to get some rest and take some pain killers!

Day 2: the first steps to recovery

Day 2 and it's a little worse than yesterday.  I think that yesterday was not bad due to remaining drugs and whatnot that were still in my system.  The throat pain is a little more today, and things seem a little more swollen and odd.  My tongue is swelling a little and the uvula is definitely still swollen, creating an odd sensation in the back of my throat... I'm noticing the difference with the tonsils and adenoids missing.  Breathing seems to be easier with all of the additional room... but when I talk air is forced through my nasal cavity making some odd noises.  I read that this may occur and should go away after a month or so when my body adjusted to the extra room.  Hopefully it won't take that long! :)

I'm a lot more tired today... and this whole soft food diet thing is a drag.  I'm hungry! haha  But, my mashed potato dinner was tasty. :)  I think I need some ice cream now; orange/vanilla. Mmm!

Day 1: surgery

At 530am this morning I headed to the South Miami Medical Arts Surgery Center to have my tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes put in each of my ears.  As I have nothing else to do, I think I'll attempt to keep a log of each day's progression.

Apparently there are several different ways to have your tonsils removed.  The method used on me was called coblation.  The wand uses radio frequency energy to break down molecules... kinda cool.  Here's the link to further information: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/13677.php

I went under around 7am this morning, woke up in recovery a few hours later and was home by 1030am.  I was a little woozy and what-not from the anesthesia, IV, and meds that they gave me.  So I came home, laid on the couch and got some sleep.  I got some good drugs from the doc, so I took those once I woke up.  

Overall, I'm felling much better than expected.  I've been able to drink a lot of fluids and stay hydrated and I've been hungry for soup, popsicles and yogurt.  Downfall: the doctor has requested that I stay on a soft diet for 2 weeks regardless of how I'm feeling.  Upside: he said that I might lose 15-20 pounds because of that... I will welcome the weight loss! haha  But it's a drag being on a soft diet... I'm already craving chips and salsa!

So, other than the discomfort of having my throat cut up, a still slightly swollen tongue and a ridiculously swollen uvula... i'm feeling fairly decent.  I'll take some pain pills before bed tonight and hopefully get some great rest!  I've read on some other blogs that day 3 can be the worst, but that was with a different method... so hopefully I'll be getting better with each day!  

Pushing forward...

After a small hiatus only one thing could bring me back to the blog... the return... of American Gladiators! I remember watching this show with my family as a kid.  I LOVED the American Gladiators; now they're back.  I'm uber excited.  I'm finishing up the first hour of the show's 2-hour return... the ladies just finished the Eliminator.  Now, if you have been watching, you know that the Eliminator was not easy for the ladies.  They literally looked like they were going to drop dead.  Exhausted. Out of breath. Pain coursing through their bodies... yet they kept going.  They never gave up!  They continued pushing forward with complete disregard for how they were feeling.  And for what?  The prize at the end...  knowing that they've finished the race and done all that they could to finish as strong as possible.

It makes me wonder... what if we all continued pushing forward, continuously reaching toward the Prize just like the contenders on American Gladiator.  What if we raced for the finish line with reckless abandon and disregard for how we feel; knowing that the prize at the end is well worth the work?  What if...?