Monday, February 2, 2009

Biopsy tomorrow

I have my routine 4-week post op kidney biopsy tomorrow. The biopsy will take a much closer look at how the new kidney is functioning. It is an outpatient procedure; I have to stay at Mayo for around 4 hours afterwords so they can monitor me for bleeding & such.
The biopsy is ultrasound-guided. Mayo has their own pathology lab on-site, and my coordinator said that if anything bad shows up, she will be notified within 24 hours. If everything is normal, we should have the results in around 2 days.

I had a kidney biopsy last January when they were trying to determine what was wrong with my kidneys & how damaged they were, and it was no fun... I couldn't bring myself to look, but Rick said the needle thing they used was HUGE and at least a foot long... yikes!
They do numb you up, but they can only numb your skin & flesh, not your internal organs. It was only a little painful, but it really freaked me out that I could FEEL the thing jabbing around inside. But the doctor told me a biopsy on a transplanted kidney won't be as bad as the one that was done on my own kidneys. That one had to be done through my back, and they have to push through all that back muscle & such.

I will be a sore for a few days afterwords, but nothing terrible. I think anything will seem like a breeze after being diced open...


On a lighter note... GO STEELERS!!! We had my folks over for the game. My best friend Carissa also came over with her hubby & their son Trey, who is one of the lights of my life!! Carissa's mom is also from Pittsburgh.
He is SO cute! He will be one year old on Feb. 10. He really is a gorgeous baby. And so photogenic. He knows exactly what a camera is, and when you point one at him he smiles away! Trey brought over his Terrible Toddler Towel that I bought for him in P-burgh in August. Love it!
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Willow knows how to relax....
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Rick & Erin at the Biltmore House, Christmas '09