As is common knowledge by now, I had surgery in early March. What is not so commonly known are all of the reasons why I had to have surgery. Don't get excited or nervous...today is not the day for me to go into that. :)
What I will say is that I had my first post-op doctor visits yesterday. One with my surgeon and one with my hematologist. My surgeon had nothing but wonderful things to say. I see him again in October. I was very happy and anxious to get out of there. Frankly when your day starts with your hiney buck naked under a thin sheet on a thin piece of paper with strangers, well heck, it can only go up from there.
Sorry, I couldn't resist, it IS funny. :)
So onto the next one. My hematologist is the best. All kidding aside, he is the best hematologist (if not doctor) in the State of Arkansas. His name is Dr. Brad Baltz. He is fantastic. I have been seeing him for years now. I adore him. He yells at me. I still adore him. His office wait time is up to four hours (more on a really bad day). I still love him. He holds a stethoscope to my head every time he sees me implying that I am crazy as a betsy bug. I love him even more. He gets me. I am stubborn. He takes stubborn to a whole new level. He is a zealot. For example, with Dr. Baltz you have to get a full CBC (Complete Blood Count) done on every visit. Let me be clear. Every single solitary visit. No exceptions. It doesn't stop there. The CBC and your visit with him MUST occur same day. Let me be clear again. Same day. Period. Once someone died in the back of his office while I was in the waiting room. As you would imagine, all of us waiting got rescheduled and sent home quickly. Note that all of us had already had our blood drawn for our CBC. When we came back, most on the next day, I imagine (I did.), we had to have new blood drawn. Dr. Baltz will not review "old" blood test results. Like I said, he is a zealot (in only the best of ways).
When I began seeing Dr. Baltz years ago, at that time I had been referred by my primary care physician because she had been doing regular blood work on me and something didn't look right (to her). It was Dr. Baltz who admitted to me on that first visit with him that day long ago (with my dear friend Karen by my side) that my doctor had feared I had leukemia. I did not. I still take a deep breath every time I think of it. I DID though have results that he didn't like, so he started seeing me on a regular basis. I won't get into all of the specifics, but needless to say at the time I took A LOT of vitamins. Probably 6-10 a day. It is hereditary. My Granny is a health nut. I recognize I had/have a problem, but my Granny is going to be 89 in a couple of months and looks at least a decade younger, still drives, and can put out a five course meal (on china no less), so there is some validity to the madness. :)
So to move quickly ahead to yesterday, lets just say that over a period of time Dr. Baltz got me off all of my vitamins. I would like to say it was a mutual decision, but he literally browbeat me into seeing it his way. I clearly say this with a smile on my face and a giggle in my heart. So you can imagine, with my new found love of gummy vitamins after my surgery, that I was conflicted on whether to admit my "sin" to Dr. Baltz during my visit. Well, my hesitancy disappeared after he was less than enthusiastic with my CBC results (the whole story is that the most important ones will not be in until Tuesday anyway...I digress), and it....well it ticked me off, just to be honest. I had completely psyched myself up for a Woo Hoo moment, and he rained out my parade. So I mustered up the five year old inside of me (admit it...in. us. all.) and said, "Well, since you are upset already, I have something to admit." I stood up straight in my chair and announced, "I am taking vitamins." Picture it, he had not even given acknowledgement to my declaration, continuing his writing in my file, but when I said the word "vitamins", his head swung around and he exclaimed, "What!?" all in one clean motion. I instantly felt very much like the five year old I was channeling. I shrunk back a little bit, and started my excuses....I explained about my assistant's surgery and her recommendation and how I was so lethargic....and finally blurted out they're those gummy adult vitamins...and I don't care what you say, I feel better. The only problem was, he never heard that last part because he was giving me a high-five saying, "That is great."
Huh????
I actually sat back in my chair, jaw dropped, looking around to see where I was. Could this possibly be the man who had quite literally YELLED at me about taking vitamins, and held it against me at every, single, solitary appointment since...even though I had not taken any in years????
I thought I had found a GREAT deal at Target, but then Karen found them at Sam's ~ 150 for $17! :)
It seems he approves us those and the chewable Flintstone vitamins because they dissolve quickly...yada yada yada. I honestly stopped listening.
Baltz approves of them, they must be good. The man doesn't like anything.
So, what is the glad game in this...I am glad I took them...I do feel SO much better. I am glad I was honest with him. Dr. Baltz is going to be with me the rest of my life...we have to trust each other. I am also glad that people can still surprise me (in the good ways). Isn't that the greatest thing? Just when you think you have someone figured out...Wham!
I am super, duper glad that I have a clean bill of health. I have some stuff I am going to have to contend with for the rest of my life, and I am not happy about that, but as my little sis said, "Heather, don't be a baby." She really didn't say that, but that is what I heard. She was right (both ways).
Sunshine Dreams to You ~ Today and Every Day! :)
