Sex Ed via Google Images

I woke up late after staying up with a toddler that refused to sleep.  While I was drying my hair I missed the call from my doctor's office.  Of course!  That's how Mondays go.  So I rush to call back hoping it wasn't bad news.  I waited on hold for the nurse for 8 minutes and 5 seconds and finished getting ready for work as my body shook uncontrollably.  Calls from doctors scare me.  With the gene mutation and a touch of hypochondria, you automatically think the worst.  Turns out it wasn't that bad.  All my tests came back in the "normal range".  The kicker is (insert dunt, dunt, DUH) the doctor doesn't want me to wait to schedule the hysterectomy.  I am transferred over to the Surgery Scheduler, Gayle.  At least I didn't have to hold for long this time.

Gayle asked me if September 18th is good for me.  In my head I sarcastically said, "No, no day is good for me" as I write the date and time on an old receipt laying in the console of my car.  She gives me the date and time for my follow up appointment and tells me the hospital will be calling me to come in for blood work soon.  Then she gives me my surgery instructions.  You know, the "don't eat, drink, smoke, have sex, take any medicine or anything else that may make you less likely to freak out that you are having surgery tomorrow" instructions.

I asked her to read me the order to make sure it was what Dr. P and I discussed.  Ovaries...check, Fallopian Tubes...check, Uterus...check, Cervix...check.  Yep its all going! To my husband's dismay of course.  He didn't realize my cervix was coming out too.  I think it shocked him a little.  (I mentioned this blog is uncensored right)  

My husband and I had a little talk about what my female anatomy will be like after surgery.  Being the nursing school drop out that I am, I brought out Google Images and broke it down for him.  Google can do so many things for you, even give Sex Ed classes in the comfort of your own bedroom.  Here's an example of the different types of hysterectomy performed.

I am having a "radical hysterectomy" which means the only thing I will have left of my reproductive organs is the vagina.  OK, for those boys reading...I know not something you want to hear about, right!? Well, here's the good part.  No periods, no worries about accidental pregnancy and no PMS eventually.  Just a year's worth of PMS in the beginning called Menopause.

All of this and it was just hitting 8:30 am.

Now my work day begins and I have to tell my managers about being off work for 4-6 weeks.  I had talked to them about it last week but I was under the impression that the surgery would be a few months away instead of 3 weeks.  I'm not sure I got the response I wanted.  I asked about FMLA and got two different answers.  I'm praying that the second answer from our interim HR person is the correct one and I will receive FMLA for my time off.  Lots of stuff still up in the air but I'm one step closer on my journey.

I requested the paperwork to be mailed to close my annuity as well today.  That just down right sucks.  There goes that portion of my retirement.  I don't think I will ever get to retire.  After all the penalties I have to pay to close it early plus the taxes I have to pay on the income I'm left with about 60% of what I have in it.  It should cover my wages while I'm off work but will do nothing to help with the medical bills that will swarm my mailbox soon.  We won't even get into the health insurance debate.

I see my oncologist tomorrow.  I am not looking forward to that at all.  Not sure how it is going to feel in an office full of cancer patients.  I took my mom to a lot of her appointments during her battle so I purposely stay away from those places now.  I don't visit people in hospitals for this same reason.  Those are memories I would rather leave deep inside where I have buried them.

Surgery #1...23 days and counting.