November 2019

Hey Lovers!

Gosh, I am thinking about November as I get ready to write this entry. It was probably the roughest month in all of my journey.  So here is my account of it....

The first week was great! I was able to work, I felt good after a month of being so sick. Life. Was. Good!  On a Friday I said Good Bye to my work friends, and told them I would be back in a few weeks.  They all laughed and said yea sure! GAME. ON! 

The night of the 11th was probably the worst and best night.  Remember my experience in the hospital with medicine that cleaned you out for a procedure? yea...multiply that by about 10 and there you have my pre-surgery experience.  My mom ended up coming over and stayed with me all night (well, until she knew I was asleep she said).  It was so important to get this right because if not, I could have ended up with a bag instead of the successful surgery I did.  I am so thankful for my mom coming to my rescue that night.  It was a strangely sweet time of bonding. 

The next day was surgery. That part was a piece of cake! They gave me medicine, I went to sleep,  The last thing I remember was them saying they were going to give me an epidural injection for pain, but I would not  even know what was going on. It's true! They said, here comes to happy juice but we need you to lean forward....and that's it! The next thing I knew I was being told all went well (can't remember if I was in recovery at that point or up in a room).   The next little bit of life is a blur with a few highlights I remember...1) I remember thinking why is a nurse asking me questions knowing i'm on drugs?  2) I remember trying to jump out of bed in the middle of the night, because "I have to stand!" - never you worry I wasn't moving fast!  3) The room was really really hot <-- this scored me a suite because they had no way to fix the air and no other rooms! we didn't complain! 

How long I stayed in the hospital was basically up to me.at this point. The faster I got up and walking and moving, the faster I could go home.  I have never wanted to be home so badly! So I spent my days sitting up as much as I could, walking as much as I could, and going without pain meds as much as I could.   My sweet nurses would come and walk with me, or whoever happened to be at the hospital would walk with me as well. We would pack up all the junk they had attached to me and take off down the hall.  Slow and steady.....I would run into my surgeon and he would come and say I was just coming to see if you were up but I see you are.  HAHA! Towards the end, they started to discontinue my "stuff".....I had some sort of pain deal that put medicine in my lower stomach, a pump that kept things clean, and my IV...getting comfortable in bed was uh...a task!  I had a pain pump with morphine, but it would put me to sleep for maybe an hour but not help with pain. My last night there I was introduced to duladid (I think I butchered that spelling).  ummm, I still don't think I have slept that good again! I slept so hard and literally didn't move a muscle.  I asked where that had been the whole time, evidently it's a last resort type medicine because it is highly addictive.....uh with that sort of sleep I get it! 

So Saturday comes and they clear me to go home! 4 days later and I'm busting out of there! Before we left I left with new information about what we were dealing with....it turned out to be cancer, stage 2A.  That basically means nothing had spread (which is best case)! When I healed from the surgery I would need to see a medical oncologist but for the time I could just go home and heal.  

You know, most people wonder and predict how they would react to the big bad C word....I remember just thinking ok. Well, we will do what we have to do but most of all God has me wrapped up so it's all ok! The important thing was the thing that was causing so much sickness was out of my body and we can deal with next steps as they come.  

The next few weeks were spent healing and resting and working on my goal of getting back to work ASAP.  I was so fortunate to have my parents let me stay with them. My mom was the best uber driver, she drove me to every single appointment and would even take me on rides just to get out of the house.  At my 2 week post op appointment, I was cleared to go back to work after Thanksgiving!!! This was music to my ears! I was so excited to get back to what made me, me....work! 

God is so faithful y'all! So so faithful...I prayed I wouldn't be out of work more than necessary, and being the Ultimate Healer that He is...it happened! Every day I grew(and still grow) a bit stronger, and I am currently even back to running now! How faithful He is the biggest part of this story! I mean, at every turn....he was absolutely there! 

I will leave you with a never before seen picture of my sister and I when she stayed with me one night in the hospital....

XOXO! 

October 2019

Hey Lovers!


I really like going back and re-reading my blog entries. It's almost like going back and re-reading a diary of sorts. Well, I promised I would update you on life...well, life certainly threw me a curve ball this year. I have spent a lot of time and prayer in how I would tell my story.  I want it to be relatable and worth the read.  What I don't want is a pity fest, because while you are reading this I am well on the other side of the fight and doing great!  So I think the easiest way to brake the whole thing down is to take you month by month in separate posts.  Let's start at the very beginning....October 2019.


2019 was my year! I was going to finally run (ok probably more run/walk) a half marathon. The Heroes Half in fact.  So I recruited some friends to do some long runs with me. On my 6 mile run, on the way home I got a really bad stomach ache, like had to sit down every several feet on the way back to my house.  My friend that was with me and I didn't think much of it....it went away....until the next week same thing happened with another friend.  I began to feel sick pretty much all the time and have bad cramps after I ate.  No one really knew about these cramps because I didn't say much but finally one night I couldn't take it anymore and I called a nurse friend...gave her all my symptoms and asked what  I should do.  She said it's probably wise for me to checked out.  She flew over, grabbed me and took me to the ER,

I am scared to death, I have never been a patient in any sort of medical setting other than a doctors office for a visit or lab.  They run all sorts of tests on me and finally decide on me having diverticulitis. They give him antibiotics and after a night's stay they send me home to rest for a week. During this week I don't really get worse but don't get better.  I end up back in the ER the next weekend with similar symptoms.  They send me home once again.  I get an appointment with my PCP and after the second visit she orders more tests than I can even remember to be run and gives me a new medicine.  Nothing shows up wrong with me! Usually good news right?  Well, in true Priscilla stubborn style I am trying to tough things out...probably not my smartest decision.  BUUUUTT you live and you learn.


I get back to work on.a Monday and we are sitting in a leadership meeting and my boss looks at me, says I look terrible and sends me home.  This is a great place to start saying how I could not have made it through without such a supportive boss,   I call my doctor and I am told that I need to go to ER because they could run tests a lot faster and more efficiently than she could get them ordered on an out patient basis. So for the third time in a month I go to the ER. They run the same set of tests, but this time the result is different. I am told they would be admitting me into the hospital for more tests.

Ya'll, at this point it's getting late because we have had to wait on them to get a room for us at the big hospital. My parents drive me to the hospital and we finally get into a room.  Of course by the time we get there we can't order food so my daddy goes and hunts us down some food.  I think he came back with mashed potatoes and green beans if I remember correctly.  HAHA! My mom goes and gets my dog so she can take care of him and brings me some clothes and overnight bag.  it was a team effort and Im so thankful for it.

The next few days are kind of blurry.  They ran an assortment of tests, including a colonoscopy. Let me just tell you...that was the best nap I have ever taken,  BUT leading up to that point was HELL! We didn't know how sick I was at the time, so they bring me the stuff to you know.....clean you out for the test.....that didn't work out as planned.  My body was not having it, and I would just throw it back up.  I will spare you the details on what all had to happen but let me just leave it at this....I basically have zero modesty with the medical world anymore.

Well, test results are in,  my colon was basically completely blocked by a mass. We are not sure at this point exactly what we are dealing with other than a big mass. This explained all the nausea, vomiting , cramping, all the things that had brought me in initially.  The doctor was able to put a temporary stent in (think like in your heart) that would push the mass aside (no I didn't feel it) until surgery.  Having surgery to remove the mass was the only thing we knew at this point.  

Enter Dr. Curley....One of the calmest, nicest, doctors you will ever meet. He came in and basically fast tracked me to get into surgery in a few weeks from that time.  After meeting with Dr. Curley and doing all the things they like for you to do to go home (eat, poo, have good vitals etc) I got to go home for a week before coming back for the surgery.

I am eternally grateful for the medical staff who finally figured out what was going on. Most people would say you spent a month sick and you aren't mad? NOPE! Here is why, God orchestrated that plan so that I would be in the very best care when I needed it most! It just happened that The GI doctor and Dr. Curley knew each other. If I would have had any other GI doctor I may or may not have been connected with Dr. Curley.  That is the biggest part of this story, is how abundantly God showered his love, grace and protections over me and my people.

Well, next up...surgery month....exciting right?

Until next time lovers!

XO!