the worst is over...

I am home from the hospital and feeling better. I still have some pretty massive headaches but the Dr. was able to remove the entire tumor and my prolactin levels are already back to normal! It was all worth it. It will probably take another few weeks to get back to normal life but I am so relieved that it's all over. I'm recovering at my parents house in California and Kelly, my mom and I will be returning to Idaho on Sunday. My mom is going to stay with us for a few days since Kelly is gone during the days. Thanks for all your support, love, and prayers...they worked!

Politics

I definitely do not claim to be a political smarty pants or anything but I have been watching the debates and keeping up as much as I can. I am really excited about his election because this will be the first time I am allowed to vote in a presidential election. Last election I missed the cut-off date by 4 months.

There has been a lot of talk here in Idaho about Prop 8 in California. We have been asked to call, as LDS church members, the residents in California that are for Prop 8 and remind them to vote. I heard in church today that if Prop 8 doesn't pass that marriages will no longer be allowed to be performed in the temples in California. I don't know if it is true or not but someone mentioned it today. I tried to do some research to see if that is true but I couldn't find anything. Does anyone know if this is true?

why must you sleep like that?

My Dearest Husband,

I now completely understand and support your brother Kory's decision to push you off the bed you two were sharing many years ago. I know that you have no idea what you are doing while asleep but let me share with you a few of your many sleeping quirks.

• Before you fall asleep your constantly rub your feet together and violently shake one of your legs and thus shake the entire bed.
• Exactly 7.2 seconds after your head hits the pillow, you make one fast jerk and then begin breathing heavily, indicating that you have fallen asleep. In the meantime, I stare aimlessly at the ceiling, listening to you breath, while I attempt to fall asleep.
• On multiple occasions you have tried to suffocate me. I woke up one night with your entire hand covering my mouth and nose as you were sleeping peacefully...I'd like to know what you were dreaming about.
• Several times a night you roll over and land on top of me and decide to park it. I tell you to move and gently nudge you to your side of the bed only to find you on top of me again 5 minutes later.
• You steal covers and pillows...you are a selfish sleeper.
• You make clicking noises with your tongue and sometimes you grind your teeth.

Thank you for not snoring or making gross smells while you sleep. Even though you can be quite annoying I love being able to roll over and see your adorable self lying next to me every single night.

Always and Forever,

Your sleepless wife

one word answers

*This fun tag is going around the family and I am it...enjoy!

ONE WORD ANSWERS

Where is your cell phone? dunno
Where is your significant other? sleeping
Your hair? unkempt
Your mother? friend
Your father? hilarious
Your favorite thing? family
Your dream last night? none
Your dream/goal? health
The room you're in? office
Your hobby? reading
Your fear? infertility
Where do you want to be in 6 years? family
Where were you last night? school
What you are not? calm
One of your wish list items? house
Where you grew up? California
The last thing you did? bath
What are you wearing? Pajama's
Your TV? distraction
Your pet? eventually
Your computer? broken
What do you think of tags like this? interesting
Your mood? tired
Missing someone? yes
Where would you rather be? paradise
Something you're not wearing? bra
Favorite store? Nordstrom
Your summer? short
Love someone? unconditionally
Your favorite color? changes
When was the last time you laughed? today
Who will participate? Lisa

The Verdict

Kelly and I have decided, after many doctor visits and prayers, that I need to have surgery to remove my tumor. The date is October 20th.

While I was in California I saw a specialist, Dr. Sandeep Kunwar. He is a UCSF research doctor who specializes in the pituitary. He removes about 120 pituitary tumors a year. My condition is not very common so we were very lucky to find someone who is so specialized. I feel 100% confident that Dr. Kunwar knows what he is doing.

The surgery is done through the nasal canal since the pituitary is at the stem of the brain. There is no incision and the recovery is fairly quick. I will only be in the hospital for one night and I can fly home after 5-7 days. I will be back to school full time within 2-4 weeks. I will have a runny nose for 3 or 4 days and a bad sinus headache. I say that is pretty minimal for having brain surgery!

There is a possibility that the tumor could be slightly embedded in the vein which means the Dr. would not be able to remove the embedded portion of the tumor. If that is the case the tumor will come back in 3-5 years. If that does happen I will have to go back on the medication but I will take a much smaller dose and we will catch the tumor before it gets too big. Dr. Kunwar told us that there is an 80% chance that he will be able to take out the entire tumor and we will never have to worry about it again.

There is a chance that I will need to use fertility treatments to get pregnant. The doctor mentioned hormone treatments and possibly in vitro fertilization. I don't know how I feel about this. I am trying to take things one step at a time but I would love to hear from others who underwent fertility treatments. How did they make you feel? What worked the best? What do you suggest trying or not trying?

*I feel like all of my posts lately have been about my health issues...sorry! Everything else is going well. Kelly is staying incredibly busy with school and we are enjoying our time together. We are excited to be able to put this all behind us.