The last 24 hours . . .

Dear all,

Well, here is a story to top many other stories.  On Wednesday I went to the optometrist in Costco because my vision was plenty funky (I thought I would need bifocals, ugh.).  However, my optical nerves turned out to be swollen, so I was referred to get an MRI to see what was up since I had also been having migraines.  I had MRI #1 on Friday morning.  The next 24 hours turned out to be the craziest of my life.  Dumdumduuuum!

Step 1:  7:00am  MRI doctor calls me into his office and very bluntly says that I have a brain tumor.  He may be a very smart man, but he really needs to work on his interpersonal skills.  He then  sends me off straight to a neurologist/neurosurgeon.

Step 2:  7:55am: Have a meeting with the neuro-dude (Dr. Thomas C. Origitano), who was unfortunately not told by the MRI doctor that we had already been told about the tumor, so there were some REALLY awkward minutes.  After the awkward moments, we get to see the MRI pictures that were taken.  I officially have a tumor inside the left side of my brain about the size of a racquetball. To quote the doctor, it is "not like a cherry in jello".  The tumor has unfortunately decided to integrate itself well into my brain.  It must really love me.

Step 3:  8:30am:  Date of surgery for Monday at 6:00am planned by Dr. Origitano.

Step 4:  9:00am:  Time to drop off of my new medications to take before surgery.  They are:
                               -  Keppra:  anti-seizure - apparently it is a small miracle I haven't had a seizure yet
                               -  Dexamethasone:  steroids - bring down brain swelling
                               -  Pepcid:  keep nausea down (best one!)

Step 5:  11:00am:  I make a trip out to Marion School to let them know that I am going to need a long-term sub.  It went really well in the car, I practiced what I was going to say without crying and everything, but failed miserably as soon as I entered the office.  Everyone there was too darn supportive and just made me cry more.  One of my fellow teachers pointed out that "the nicer they are, the worse it is."  Deb, you are a genius.

Step 6:  1:00pm:  Official check in for surgery on Monday.  I get to fill out more paperwork at the hospital, and I made my husband take pictures to document the process.  I figured that this way you guys can see most of the adventures I'm going through.  Tests I got to enjoy:
                                                       1.  Two rounds of blood being drawn for testing
                                                       2.  Peeing in a cup
                                                       3.  Interview with nurse for Monday (best person I met all day!)
                                                       4.  EKG (with sticky pads that just wouldn't stick)
                                                       5.  Salsa danced with a nurse

Step 7:  3:00pm:  More MRIs.  How dare they not let me take pictures of the MRI with a metal camera and around a giant magnet!  Anyway, it was about another 1 1/2 hour of laying in the MRI.  I got the fun privilege of looking at a screen and doing whatever the screen asked me during a scan to see what part of my brain did what.  The biggest thing I remember about this, I really needed to go pee.  Rock was kind enough to make A TON of phone calls during this time.

Step 8:  6:00pm:  Panda Express for dinner.  Yum. :)

If you haven't guessed yet, I am pretty darned scared about this, so I would greatly appreciate all of your support.  Rock (my husband) will also be writing posts on here so you can stay updated when I enter the hospital on Monday.  What I am really wondering about is what I should bring to the hospital for my stay.  I've never spent over night in a hospital before believe it or not.  Any suggestions what I should bring and prepare for?