Today was my last day! Unfortunately, I had a pretty rough night and had to wake up at 4:00am. We arrived at the hospital at 7:00am so I could be on "standby" for the abdominal/pelvic MRI. It was never guaranteed that I would be able to do it, but it was worth a shot. I ended up waiting 5 hours and didn't get to have the test. The schedulers worked incredibly hard and even chased me down the hall to ask for five more minutes, because they thought they had an opening. They really tried; it just didn't work out. Luckily, I can do it back home instead of having to stay in Florida longer. We were in line to get lunch in the cafeteria, and a man started talking to me. He was so nice and wished me luck on everything. He told me about his daughter and how his wife just graduated college. It's amazing how much a small conversation in line can lift someone's spirits. He probably didn't even realize that he made a difference in my day, but he did.
After lunch it was time for my second gynecology appointment. I saw the doctor this time, and he was still confused about my body. He wants me to have hormone therapy again but to go about it a little differently in hopes of slowing down the growth of my endometriosis. If that doesn't work he wants me to try Lupron, which I really don't want to do. It is a type of chemotherapy and can have some really nasty side effects. Hopefully I can avoid it somehow. I was also made aware that my risks in surgery are getting incredibly high, so we need to postpone my next surgery as long as possible. He said no more for this year and hopefully I can avoid one next year too. I'm not sure if we will be able to or not, though. He pushed on my belly a lot and caused a pretty big flare up that made walking around the hospital incredibly difficult. Unfortunately, I didn't have my wheelchair with me since I had been doing okay. I was too embarrassed to call someone to bring one to me. I like to attempt to be tough and do as much as I can.
Later, it was time for MY LAST APPOINTMENT AT MAYO. I met back with the first doctor I saw to wrap everything up. I was a little concerned since we butted heads some the first day, but it was completely different this time. We got along so great. He changed everything he previously said. I honestly think he didn't believe that anything was wrong with me until I saw all of the specialists. He definitely believed me at the last appointment. He told me that the other doctors called him and told him they enjoyed their time with me and that I was very smart. They told him to trust me. It really made me feel good that the doctors did that. We hadn't even spoke of the original doctor, they just did that on their own. It also made me feel incredibly good when they told me I made the write choice by going into the medical field, and that they think I will be a good nurse. It was so encouraging, especially since I have been struggling to balance school and my health. The doctor reviewed everything, and basically I have sinus tachycardia, a lot of problems with endometriosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, and the other symptoms were unexplained. He read me the results from my brain MRI. Everything was normal except a fluid pouch was asymmetrical, which they believed has always been there. I misunderstood and thought he was saying I had a mental issue. He got a really good laugh out of that. I asked him if it could effect me at all, and he said it MIGHT could be causing the dizziness but nothing else. It wouldn't be effecting me cognitively. Thank goodness. Now I just need to have my next four tests done when I get home and send the results back. Everything is still a little unclear, but as always, I'm never normal. I was having a pretty big coughing fit during the entire appointment, so when I was walking out he called me back to give me a box of tissues for the road. I thought that was really nice.
On thing really surprised me about my entire trip. I'm used to my body not being normal. I'm used to confusing doctors with my health issues and not getting clear explanations or answers. However, I thought that at the Mayo Clinic, a place where people go when they have some crazy stuff going on with their body, I would be an easy, normal case. Boy, was I wrong! Every single doctor I saw said that I was an "interesting case" and that they can't explain everything, nor do they completely understand my body. We all laughed about how I look "normal" on the outside, but on the inside my body is a mess. I guess my story will always be about never being normal. That's okay, though. It keeps life interesting, and most importantly, my faith in the Lord strong. Thank y'all so much for praying for me throughout this time. It's been stressful but exciting. I will continue to post updates for those who are interested. Thank you again. Now let's go home!