Just over one week ago I had my fourth thyroid cancer surgery–this time at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. My parents, Andrew, and I drove the six hours up the day before and back a couple days later.

Rochester Marriott Hotel

The night before the surgery we swam in the hotel pool, and it was the first time I put a bikini on all summer! With working full-time and taking a night class, I haven’t made it to the beach yet this year, so it took driving to Minnesota for surgery to give me a brief chance to swim :).  It was so nice.

We quickly coined this trip a “surgication,” because even though we were there for my surgery, we were able to break away from work/school/life and enjoy each others company surrounding the procedure. With meals we raised our glasses to our “surgication.”

The overall experience at Mayo was positive, and my vocal chords were spared! The first day I struggled with significant nausea that did not go away until the next morning, but other than that, the hospital stay was short and sweet. My drain only stayed in for a day, and I talked my way out of the leg compression device (which help you from getting blood clots, but are less than conducive with sleeping uninterrupted), and they unhooked my IV for the night, so I could sleep with minimal wires attached. I can definitely say after the nausea passed, I have never slept that well in a hospital.

After three surgeries going through the same incision, this surgery made a new mark. I can’t really decide what story I can derive from this now–what do you think? As many of you know, my fall back story is always that I live in Chicago, and people don’t ask many questions. 😉 Please comment below and tell me your creative story for my “y” shaped scar:

This surgery I managed not to take any narcotic pain killers and stick to occasional ibuprofen, so my pain was definitely easy to manage. This also allowed me to enjoy some more wine on our “surgication” before we went back home.

However, I do ask for your thoughts and prayers in my continuing recovery. I have yet to sleep through a night after leaving the hospital, and as a result, I have been even more exhausted than usual during the day. I have been taking a one-week intensive class this week entitled “What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About Business,” and the sleepless nights have really added up. Our final is tomorrow, so I’m praying for a good night’s sleep tonight.

Another prayer request is for my lungs and heart. My chest has been burning off and on, and it’s been hard for me to breathe freely. I’ve experienced this with past surgeries, so I know it’s part of the healing process, but it definitely adds to the exhaustion. I did a short stationary bike ride at the gym the other day and stopped because my heart rate was off the charts. I haven’t done anything since then, but I would really like to get to the point where I can at least jog again. Without the endorphins of working out, there’s only so much coffee that can help counteract my exhaustion from sleepless nights, on top of general surgery exhaustion.

Thank you all for your love and support–I certainly felt the love the past couple weeks.