Last year on January 9th I came home from the hospital after having surgery to remove a breast abscess caused by mastitis :( Looking back it was the beginning of the beginning of feeling good as a new mommy.
On November 11th Connor turned 1 month old & I woke up sick. It was my first experience with mastitis. It was horrible and thankfully the prescription antibiotics did their job and I was on the mend in a matter of days. I had just over 3 weeks of "normal" and then was hit with round #2 of mastitis.
On Dec. 6th I was back on antibiotics and began a roller coaster of good, bad and then REALLY horrible days. I would get a little bit better after completing a dose of meds, have a couple of days of good health and then relapse back to feeling miserable again. December in general is one massive blur of pain, tears and exhaustion. I can't count the number of times that my mom folded laundry for us. My in-laws decorated our Christmas tree last year because I honestly wasn't able to lift my right arm up beyond a 90 degree angle due to the pain & I just wasn't in the mood to try and tackle that task. I cried OFTEN because I was so tired of feeling sick & I was constantly struggling to hold and care for my little baby. Then I cried even more after a consultation with a surgeon when I was told my only option to end the infection was to stop breast feeding. I wasn't prepared for this demand and my exhaustion mixed with my still spinning post-baby hormones left me a broken mess in front of several doctors as I searched for answers to get better.
I honestly can't even remember what prompted me to go in to the doctor on January 8th. (I am not kidding...my memory is a blur). I was either feeling miserable or I had a follow up appointment scheduled because my symptoms hadn't improved...or maybe it was a follow up from one of the two aspiration appointments I had been to? Whatever the reason, I know that God was orchestrating the day for me. Dr. Stedland, the surgeon that I had previously seen (he was AWFUL & cold and unbelievably unsympathetic) was out of the office this day...the nurse told me they could squeeze me in to see Dr. Lovett...he was an answer to my prayers.
Rick & I left for the clinic and when Dr. Lovett arrived in the exam room we were greeted by a kind & gentle old man. He did an examination. One look at my breast and a quick update on my journey of pain and he verified I would need surgery...that very day...ASAP. He put my worries at rest and said I should be able to continue breast feeding. Then he squeezed my hand and said, "We're going to get you better." I burst into tears. He turned to Rick and told him to have me back to the ER in 2 1/2 hours and gave him some other information about what doctor to ask for, he would call ahead with details and make sure they were expecting me.
We made arrangements for family members to swap baby duties with Connor at our house and then arrived for our ER appointment. By this time my fever had spiked to 103.something?? And I was feeling MISERABLE. The nurse that took my temperature rocked back in her chair a little when she read the thermometer like she couldn't believe the numbers...yep 103...I have never been so sick :(
The rest of the night was honestly a piece of cake compared to everything else that had happened. Shortly after being admitted into the ER they gave me some wonderful pain meds and that was truly the end of the pain...PRAISE GOD!! I was wheeled up to surgery, prepped and in a bright, sterile room in what felt like the blink of an eye. I remember laying there, feeling no pain and thinking...I am SOO ready for this!!! All I wanted was to be done with being sick. That is exactly what happened. I ended up spending the night in the hospital. Rick went home late that night to get some sleep and I slept too. The next morning I couldn't believe how much better I felt but after hearing that they had removed an abscess the size of an orange from my breast I figured it kind of made sense that my body was battling pretty hard to try and get healthy and it just couldn't do it all alone.
As I said, it was the beiginning of the beginning of feeling good as a new mommy. Life still had plenty of challenges in store and I know there will be more to come, but tackling them on the feelin' good side of health is something I am truly thankful for!
1 year later I have a healthy, beautiful little boy that currently refuses to drink any form of milk unless it comes from me...take that Dr. Stedland ;)
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