TMI About My Body

So in my random interweb eugoogalizing (I think I was looking up info on the Dallas World Aquarium), I came across the blog Steece's Pieces. It's written by a 29 year-old mom of quadruplets, and the whole family is just too cute. She has a link back to when they found out they were carrying quads, and whoa, baby (!). They were struggling to conceive and took a low does of a fertility drug and it happened.

Aside: How funny is this? She recently recapped her birth story since they were featured on the Discovery Health Channel earlier this month, and this was the doctor's exchange with them after the birth:

When the babies were out, Dr. Tabor asks Dr. Thigpen very loudly: "Hey Dr. Thigpen...where did you go to school again?" He replied proudly: "the UNIVERSITY of TEXAS!" Tabor then says: "ME TOO!", leans over the drape and says: "I just wanted y'all to know that the first people to touch your children were longhorns!" (hisssssss, Joe graduated from Texas A&M--rival schools) ;)

majorly adorable fam on Steece's Pieces*

Like me, she has endometriosis. My doctor has recommended surgery for the pain, but I haven't been ready to go under the knife until recently. For one, I haven't had any huge bouts of pain since the super-debilitating episode a year and a half ago. (Which is another reason - I was so ticked about my resulting huuuuge ER bill where they misdiagnosed me with an infection usually caused by STDs [um, whatever] and sent me home with an antibiotic after I told them I know from my appendectomy that I have endo that I haven't wanted to take on more medical bills than necessary.) I did another sonogram on my last doctor's visit, and while those pesky ovarian cysts have shrunk, those suckers aren't going away. My doctor freaked me out when she said DH and I could start trying and see what happens (uhh....not ready for that just quiiite yet). She also freaked me out when she said as part of the surgery, they'll shoot dye up my fallopian tubes to see if everything's working as it should. There's the big reason: While I'm not yet trying to have a bebe, I'm somewhat scared of my fertility, and surgery could produce an answer I don't want to hear. But I know I should do it.

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Since I started thinking about my healthcare more, I also decided to consult an ENT. Two people I know recently had surgeries for deviated septums, and I wanted to look into the possibility of having one myself. (I am such a follower, right?) I don't feel I can breathe as well as I should out of my nose, I'm so tired of hearing people complain about my snoring (hurts my feelings, people; I can't help it), and I feel perpetually tired, especially for the last few years (so don't make fun of me for not being a morning person, either).*

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I ended up doing a sleep study earlier this month, and I went back to my ENT last week for the results. Findings? Snoring: very minimal (take that!). Sleep apnea: yes, mild but considered moderate to severe during REM sleep - I stopped breathing 40 times an hour that night. REM sleep is the restorative phase, so no wonder I never seem to get enough sleep. The doctor is recommending surgery to fix my deviated septum and to cut down the turbinates. (For some reason I love this word and what the informational video called the procedure - partial turbonectomy. Maybe I'm just proud of myself because I previously kept calling them flagellans and student doctor husband thought I was crazy.) So the thought is, maybe I can save some dough by having both surgeries done at once (1 surgery center bill, 1 thing of anesthesia, less time off work) rather than separately.

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I'm still a little hesitant. I know I shouldn't put off medical procedures, but I didn't put enough money in my FSA in preparation for this so that I can pay for it with pre-tax money and save. I could wait until January when next year's contributions start, but who knows if I'll still be employed and have ample insurance. (It's looking more promising, but you never know.) The cysts could grow back. The nose surgery may not help the REM apnea, and I could end up with one of those oh-so-chic CPAP machines, so would it be worth it?

I need to set up an appointment with another ENT who'd be able to operate out of the same surgery center as my ob-gyn, so I can get a second opinion then. Apparently it won't change the outer appearance of my nose. (Boo.) If they could smooth out the bump in my nose while they're at it, I think the answer to the question of worth is obvi. Just call me Ashlee Simpson.

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Sorry for the rambling; if you're even still reading this. DH has fallen asleep (apparently, he's tired, too), and I'm bored. If you are still reading, here's some more TMI:
When I went to the ENT, he scoped the nostril not blocked by my septum to see where the blockage starts/stops. What does this involve? He shoots numbing liquid up there, and then sticks a looong rubber thing about the width of a pen all up in your nose. I was cool up until it felt like my brain was being poked. (I mean, what was it touching?!) I'll spare you the resulting headache and never-ending drainage. (Whoops, I guess I didn't spare you.) I'm bringing this up because it's almost a week later, and I actually feel like it improved my airflow in that nostril. I wonder if that's possible--forget surgery! (Can you tell I'm also a wimp?)

Ugh. Sorry for the unappealing visual images of this post. I have tried to make it better by interspersing it with some pretty pictures.

* Luckily the hubs only complains about me stealing the covers.

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