Sweep the Leg! No Mercy!

I've been trying to catch up in my blogs for the past couple of months so I haven't really been talking about what is going on 'right now'. Yesterday I was at Sunnybrook all day for tests. I had blood work, a bone marrow biopsy and CT scan. Now let me tell you a little something about what I'll refer to as the bmb - bone marrow biopsy (not to be confused with bbm haha)! It's a procedure that no matter how careful they try to be, you feel no mercy. Its like in Karate or the Karate Kid Movie! (thus my picture today) Sweep the leg, take the opponent down, get them, no mercy - Woweee!! ... and finally a big old OUCH.

I wasn't really sure what to expect yesterday when I went in for the procedure. In fact I had purposely not read to much about it because I didn't want to freak myself out. This week was also really busy as I also had to study and write my final Psych exam. (Which I'm pretty sure, fingers crossed, I passed.) Trying to keep up my psychology class as been challenging with my health 'dilemmas' but its also helped keep me focused and worry less about the things I can't control.

Sarah came with me in the morning to hold my hand as only a close gf could. I was being tough but still when you get in that procedure room and see the big, long, daunting needles laying there waiting for you - you suddenly become a little kid. The doctor asked if it was okay for 2 fellows to watch her to help train them. WHY oh WHY do I always get the doctors training the newbie Grey's kids. The procedure itself would be much less scarry if you didn't have to listen to a play by play of every ... little ... thing ... she is going to do and has just done. FREAKY FRIDAY DUDE. (in this case, Freaky Thursday but who's paying attention anyways.) Of course in the true sense of science I said it was no problem - half way through I was wishing I had kindly declined the additional attention from the lovely 'doctors in training'.

The worst part is that you totally trip yourself out thinking the worst pain of your life is coming when in reality its only the worst pain that day that comes (maybe that week or even month) but it definately wasn't the worst pain of my life. What I'm about to write isn't for the faint of heart - so if you are squimish or faint easily I'd skip over this part. They perform the Bmb by freezing the outter later by your hipbone before pressing in further to then freeze the actual bone. Once that is done they insert a much larger needle that goes right down and they suck out bone marrow. (this is so lovely ... all you can do is think happy thoughts .. think happy thoughts...yowzaaa.) Once they get that sample they go back in with a bigger needle and take a sample of the actual bone. It feels like they are stirring something in your back with alot of pressure and twinges of pain. Believe it or not throughout this I actually kept my sense of humour and cracked a couple of jokes (inbetween trying not to breath to fast and hyper ventelate.) I managed to get a chuckle out of Sarah and the nurse. At one point the doctor actually stopped and said 'I don't usually have to say this to people but you have to stop giggling as its making you move around.' OOPS .. sorry Dr. Gena.

Now don't think that I wasn't in pain because let me tell you it ain't pretty. As I'm sure you've figured out so far my way of dealing is with humour which I managed to maintain somewhat. You can ask Sarah she was there holding my hand the entire time. (sorry again for almost squeezing your hand off girl). Near the end the doctor moved the needle and I got a sharp pain (at which I did let out a couple of small yelps). When she started to go back in I just said 'just getter done, give'er' .. she laughed and said 'I like that 'give'er' hahaha ... No one in that room knew it was from the movie FUBAR so basically I had a inside joke only with myself - oh well still funny! A few other funny things happened that relieved the stress and calmed me down which I'm sure Sarah can reiturate better then I. High levels of pain I'm sure made me minimally delusional.

The rest of the day I was waiting for my CT scan (pretty uneventful for the most part). I had a good friend spend the afternoon with me and take good care of me last night by making me a yummy dinner. Thanks Buddy! Thank goodness I did have someone with me because once the freezing started to wear off ... WOWZA!!! I felt like I'd been Karated Chopped across my lower right back. I suddenly felt like one of Mr. Miyagi's students - the students that lose and pretty much get the 'sweep the leg, no mercy' move and lose against it. I started feeling it at the hospital when I had to lay down again for the CT Scan but I really felt it at home when I was trying to sit on the couch. Now aside from the fact my body felt completely beat up after leaving the hospital and sitting was alot of pain and uncomfortable - it was quite amusing I'm sure watching me try to come up with new ways to plop myself down on the couch. Everytime I got up and came back to sit down it was this huge ordeal. I would just stand and stare at the couch for a few minutes figuring out my strategy. lol

So that's that ... Lesson I learned yesterday is Bone Marrow Biopsy = Sweep the leg, no mercy move. Strike that one off my list of andrenal rushes.

BTW - DISCLAIMER: I'm not very grammically correct - I write what I feel and sometimes spell check, sometimes don't. I write long sentences and put !!! and ??? and ( ) in places they probably shouldn't be..haha... At the end of it though I get my point across and hopefully without driving to many peeps to nutty. ;-)