andy112382
April 20th, 2007, 01:00 AM
Alright, I just felt the need to share this with everyone after all I have been blessed to have around me to help through tough times.
First of all, I am 24 years old, I have been happily married for 2 1/2 years now.
After never being to a hospital, I have now been in the hospital three straight Februarys - weird, huh???
The first time was to take care of a cyst on my tailbone, that was fairly quick and I was over that within a week or so.
The following year was the big one, I thought I was having simple back problems, but as the week went on it grew into the most pain I had ever been in. I went to the emergency room, they thought it was my appendix so they went in right away. They found my appendix to be alright, but they went ahead and took that out, then they found that two feet of my intestines had died, which we later found out was due to blood clots that had formed in there, a result of my dad passing along the protein deficiency in his blood, resulting in thicked blood than normal. Well, only problem is they did not treat me for that at first, which resulted in me being in ICU on assisted breating for 2 weeks before coming around after losing an additional 2 feet of intestines. I later found out they had told my parents I would not have survived a third surgery. Once it was all said and done they told me 12-18 months to completely heal and I would just have to take blood thinner from now on, no huge deal, I just have to be smart with what I do!
Well, 12 months had come around and I was thinking I was doing pretty well, but this past february I ended up in the hospital with pancreantitis (sp?) as a result of gallbladder stones. Well, being on blood thinner, having to come off of it before surgery and going back on it, I spent two weeks in the hospital. I later came to find out I was checked into the hospital a year to the day from the blood clot episode - weird!!!
I am doing much better now, it is amazing how allergies and a cold (what I have now, good ol' south carolina pollen!) just doesn't phase you after time spent in ICU!
Ok, to my main point here - it would be SO easy to give up during any one of those times, much less all three, but I can honestly say, not at any single point did I find myself thinking 'why me?' or wondering if I was being singled out or any of that. I had so very great and generous people help us with bills and pray for us the entire time, including one of my surgeons who gave me his copy of 'A Purpose Driven Life' before I was checked out of the hospital last year. On top of that, my manager at the computer store I work at, who had specifically told me how he never has been religious, or prayed came to me after I got out of the hospital and let me know he had found himself praying for me to pull through, and if that was not enough, my cousins now-husband started going back to Church after labeling my survival through the blood clots a miracle (he works at a hospital in miami) - those two instances alone made it all worthwhile to me on top of pulling through.
One thing I tell myself is the worst possible thing that can happen to you if you have accepted Christ and are right with God is you passing away, which would have you in Heaven, which for a worst case scenario, is one heck of a deal! How could anyone throw that kind of offer from God back at Him and turn their backs to Him????? It just baffles me......
I just wanted to share that with everyone, how incredibly great the Lord has been and how blessed I have been. I was talking a few months later to my new manager at the computer store I work at after the ICU stay, and he just randomly asked me if I feel like God is having a good laugh at our expense sometimes, and I just looked straight at him and quickly answered 'No, never' His response was 'well, you are young after all' and I promptly showed him my 6 inch scar down my abdomen and said 'Hey, I've been through a few trials already'.....that kind of got him thinking.
One last note, please pray for my wife and I, my best friend is completing his time in the Navy in June and moving back here, it has been our plan since we graduated in 2001 to start a business together and we are aiming to start this summer. Despite a few obstacles like all the medical bills that have piled up since I am not offered insurance through work, I shall press on! My top priority is keeping God a part of my business and leading by example while doing so by the way I treat everyone who steps into my store. It is going to be a computer retail & repair shop (custom built computers, repairs, parts, etc) Thanks for reading and I hope this proves worthwhile for someone!
God Bless!
First of all, I am 24 years old, I have been happily married for 2 1/2 years now.
After never being to a hospital, I have now been in the hospital three straight Februarys - weird, huh???
The first time was to take care of a cyst on my tailbone, that was fairly quick and I was over that within a week or so.
The following year was the big one, I thought I was having simple back problems, but as the week went on it grew into the most pain I had ever been in. I went to the emergency room, they thought it was my appendix so they went in right away. They found my appendix to be alright, but they went ahead and took that out, then they found that two feet of my intestines had died, which we later found out was due to blood clots that had formed in there, a result of my dad passing along the protein deficiency in his blood, resulting in thicked blood than normal. Well, only problem is they did not treat me for that at first, which resulted in me being in ICU on assisted breating for 2 weeks before coming around after losing an additional 2 feet of intestines. I later found out they had told my parents I would not have survived a third surgery. Once it was all said and done they told me 12-18 months to completely heal and I would just have to take blood thinner from now on, no huge deal, I just have to be smart with what I do!
Well, 12 months had come around and I was thinking I was doing pretty well, but this past february I ended up in the hospital with pancreantitis (sp?) as a result of gallbladder stones. Well, being on blood thinner, having to come off of it before surgery and going back on it, I spent two weeks in the hospital. I later came to find out I was checked into the hospital a year to the day from the blood clot episode - weird!!!
I am doing much better now, it is amazing how allergies and a cold (what I have now, good ol' south carolina pollen!) just doesn't phase you after time spent in ICU!
Ok, to my main point here - it would be SO easy to give up during any one of those times, much less all three, but I can honestly say, not at any single point did I find myself thinking 'why me?' or wondering if I was being singled out or any of that. I had so very great and generous people help us with bills and pray for us the entire time, including one of my surgeons who gave me his copy of 'A Purpose Driven Life' before I was checked out of the hospital last year. On top of that, my manager at the computer store I work at, who had specifically told me how he never has been religious, or prayed came to me after I got out of the hospital and let me know he had found himself praying for me to pull through, and if that was not enough, my cousins now-husband started going back to Church after labeling my survival through the blood clots a miracle (he works at a hospital in miami) - those two instances alone made it all worthwhile to me on top of pulling through.
One thing I tell myself is the worst possible thing that can happen to you if you have accepted Christ and are right with God is you passing away, which would have you in Heaven, which for a worst case scenario, is one heck of a deal! How could anyone throw that kind of offer from God back at Him and turn their backs to Him????? It just baffles me......
I just wanted to share that with everyone, how incredibly great the Lord has been and how blessed I have been. I was talking a few months later to my new manager at the computer store I work at after the ICU stay, and he just randomly asked me if I feel like God is having a good laugh at our expense sometimes, and I just looked straight at him and quickly answered 'No, never' His response was 'well, you are young after all' and I promptly showed him my 6 inch scar down my abdomen and said 'Hey, I've been through a few trials already'.....that kind of got him thinking.
One last note, please pray for my wife and I, my best friend is completing his time in the Navy in June and moving back here, it has been our plan since we graduated in 2001 to start a business together and we are aiming to start this summer. Despite a few obstacles like all the medical bills that have piled up since I am not offered insurance through work, I shall press on! My top priority is keeping God a part of my business and leading by example while doing so by the way I treat everyone who steps into my store. It is going to be a computer retail & repair shop (custom built computers, repairs, parts, etc) Thanks for reading and I hope this proves worthwhile for someone!
God Bless!