Healing

My stomach is looking much better! I am very excited about that. However, I am still very swollen, which has been causing a few issues. My stimulator has been cutting in and out a lot. I talked to my surgeon and Medtronics rep about it, and they did some tests. The leads all seem to still be in place, so they aren't 100% sure why I'm having such issues. My rep thinks that perhaps it's the extra fluid from the infection causing it to turn off. Who knows? It's been really annoying, so I've just kept the stimulator off during the day and turning it on at night since it doesn't bother me while I'm sleeping. I keep telling myself that it will go away when the swelling goes down, but I really not sure that's true. I knew that there was a high probability that I would have to have a revision, but I didn't expect to need it so soon.

Last week I was feeling well enough to go to a local lake with my dog and boyfriend. These are the things that I couldn't do when I was having horrible headaches. We were out for several hours. I was surprised that I was able to be that active so shortly after surgery. My dog decided she likes to dive off the docks, so I'm looking forward to getting her into some sort of agility class this fall.

On an even more personal note, I would like to thank all the people sending me e-mails. It has been keeping me busy, and reminding me that I am not alone in all this. I love answering questions and just connecting with people. I think I was so wrapped up in my own pain for so long that I forgot that there were others out there also suffering. I want to serve as inspiration, because, no matter how bad off you are, there is hope. It's easy to forget that.