Mike Wazowski Has Left the Building

It is hard to believe that a little over 3 days ago I had brain surgery, and now I am sitting in my living room writing a blog post. Except for a little stuffiness in my nose, leftover from having it packed for 3 days, I feel fine. I'll admit I was a little nervous as Tuesday approached. I had no idea what to expect. I knew surgery would go fine, but I didn't know what I would face when I came out of anesthesia. Truthfully, I never really had any real pain beyond a sinus headache. Actually I had more pain from the numerous times I have been stuck for labs and IV's
It's been such smooth sailing that I cannot believe that I had, in my doctor's own words, a HUGE tumor removed from the middle of my brain. As I talked to Dr. Sahni before I left the hospital today he actually said that he could not believe I was walking around with it without complaining. I cannot tell you why things are going so well. It could be that I heal very well. I have a positive attitude. I have a high tolerance for pain. It could be all of those, but I do know that from the moment I announced I had this hundreds of people have held me in prayer and loving thoughts. I am so thankful for the love and support that everyone has shown to me and my family. I still have a journey ahead. There was a little leakage of spinal fluid, and a little fat was taken from my side to act as a plug. He could have taken all the fat, I don't mind sharing. My biggest challenge right now is taking it easy, not something I'm used to doing, but I am following doctor's orders. It's hard to judge the healing of something internal. I will close for now as I don't want to overdo, but thank you for being with me every step of the way,

Mike Wazowski

Well, ladies and gents, it is 12:20 AM on the day of my surgery. I have eaten my last morsel and drunk my last sip of water. In 5 short hours I will be on my way to the hospital for brain surgery. As the witching hour approaches, it seems surreal. This morning around 8AM I will go to sleep, and when I wake up about 5 hours later, this tumor will be gone. There are so many things I wonder about. How will I feel? What will my vision be like? How much have I just gotten used to? Of course, the big one, how much pain will I feel? I will be honest. I am a tad bit apprehensive. The anticipation is always far worse than the actual event. But tonight as I was riding around taking care of last minute things, something wonderful was happening, My phone was blowing up with friends and family texting and posting to Facebook their loving thoughts and prayers. I went to an event on Sunday night for the Richmond Theatre Community. My night was filled with hugs and squeezes and kisses all wishing me well and surrounding me with love! How can things not go well today? 

You may be wondering about the title of this post. My tumor is pretty round, and it has a small dark spot in the center, an eye, if you will, so I have named it Mike Wazowski, after the character in "Monsters, Inc." Mikey, my friend, time to exit stage right, and forget about a sequel!

See you on the other side, my friends.  

Thank You is Not Enough!

If you read this blog, you know by now that I have a tumor sitting in the middle of my brain. All kinds of things run through your mind when someone tells you that you have a tumor. Of course, the first thought that springs to mind is Cancer. That is not what I am dealing with, and I am very relieved. However, it doesn’t mean that what I am dealing with is nothing either. When you go through something like this, you need someone to lean on, a rock. I have had that rock in my youngest daughter. She is only 19, but she has been there from the first diagnosis until now, and every step of the way she has provided me with just what I needed. Friday, she did something that touched me deeply. It is no secret to my friends or readers that I have struggled financially since I became a single mother in 1998. I truthfully had to start my life over from scratch. Just saying, that ain’t easy my friends. Imagine what I felt at the prospect of paying thousands to make sure that I would be able to have this tumor removed to regain my sight at the least and keep my life at the most. Once again, my rock, my champion, my hero swept in to save the day. This is what I read online Friday. 

Medical Funds for Mom's Brain Tumor

69

RICHMOND, VA MEDICAL

$6,870 of $20k

Raised by 69 people in 2 days

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Created October 23, 2015

Georgi Hicks

Hey everyone! My name is Georgi and I made this gofundme because, I need help. My mother just recently found out she has a brain tumor (pituitary gland tumor to be exact). We found out it is not cancerous but also found out that it is a lot bigger than we expected. When we discovered how large it was the doctor said every day she waits to get the surgery is another day she risks going blind. So, her surgery is scheduled for October 27th, this coming Tuesday. My mother is the stronest person I know. She has been through so much and has never put herself before anyone else. Even when she found out about this tumor, she pushed it back to finish the show she is currently in, because she didn't want people to lose income by having to end the run early.  I admire her strength, her confidence, her independence, her will, but most of all, her courage. She has always had to worry about money, ever since she became a single parent, started with nothing and had to raise two girls that were only two and five at the time. Even though we've always had money problems, she made it so that I never wanted for anything, and worked hard to make sure I could stay a child for as long as I could. Ever since the day my father left, she has not done one thing for herself. My mother is a hero, not my hero in particular, but A hero in general. And for once, this hero should be able to take off the cape and just worry about herself. This brain tumor is a big deal and she is being so positive about the whole thing, so I don't want her worrying about money, just this once, I want that worry to be absent from her mind. The money needed for the surgery, the three or four days in the ICU and the three weeks she'll be out of work is an overwhelming amount to us, and is money we don't have now, and won't have anytime soon. So, all of this to say, we need your help. Any donation helps! I am posting this because it is hard for her to see that she is so worthy of help and support, but i know she is, help me let her know how much she is. Thank you so much for taking the time to read all of this! So much love to all of you! Thank you

At the writing of this, the campaign has raised over $6000. To say I am humbled is an understatement. I am touched beyond belief at the love and support of my friends, family and strangers. Love is an amazing thing!

Entertaining Angels Unawares

In about a week from now, hopefully, I will be out of surgery and into recovery, perhaps even in my hospital room in the ICU. I am not nervous now. I know I am in good hands, and I trust my doctor. I can’t tell you how I’ll feel when I leave before dark next Tuesday morning to head to the hospital for the procedure. I have already had a major outpouring of support including some of you who read this blog. Medically, I know I will be fine. I have faith that all will go well. What I am worried about is finances, specifically the cost of all of this and what my insurance WON’T pay, and losing income as I stay home to recover. I had to go in to have all of my pre-op testing done this morning, and when HCA called to schedule, they asked me if I would like to take care of the $500.00 deposit they would require over the phone. I declined, knowing full well they would ask for it this morning, I was a little nervous. It’s embarrassing to tell people you don’t have money. I mean, it’s not like this is elective surgery. Have the tumor removed or go blind. Kind of a no-brainer, no pun intended. So today when I went in, I had 2 scenarios in my head. 1. I will offer them $50.00 and hope they take it or 2. I will cause a scene and tell them that if I walk out of here and drop dead because I have an aneurysm, it’s on them. Luckily, I did not have to employ either of these. I had a wonderful woman named Dee register me today. She asked the obligatory question, “Would you like to take care of the $500.00 deposit today?” I replied, “I don’t have it.” She never missed a beat, and said, “That’s all right. I do see that your surgery is in a week, they will require that it’s paid before they do the procedure.” She then handed me a business card and told me that if I thought the $500.00 would be a problem, I could call and make an arrangement. I instantly felt a peace about everything. She then proceeded to talk about the fact that she knew very few people who could sit down and write out a $500.00 check, thereby making me feel less embarrassed and more normal. Dee was my angel today. I firmly believe that I was called to her booth because God knew I needed her gentle spirit and demeanor today in my situation. I will call, and I will make arrangements, and because Dee guided me today, I will not have the added anxiety of money when I go to have brain surgery next week. So, thank you, Dee, and thank you, God, for sending an angel my way.

It's Not Brain Surgery...Wait! Yes It Is!

The big white spot in the center is the tumor.

On September 9^th I went to the eye doctor. It had been over a year since I had had an exam, and it seemed that more and more issues were coming up with my vision, especially at night. I went for the exam, and if you’ve ever had an eye exam, you know they put this big machine in front of your face that looks like a huge, bionic pair of glasses.

 The room is dark, and they show you on the wall in front of you, about 15 feet away, a strip with four capital letters, black on a white background. They test one eye at a time. First up – the Right eye. I could see the first 2 letters fairly clearly, the last 2 I couldn’t, and when I say I couldn’t, I mean, THEY WERE NOT THERE! Not fuzz, not unclear, ABSENT! I blinked my eyes, and they would appear briefly, but fade away to invisibility. I told the doctor this. He switched to the left eye, same problem, but I could see 3 of the letters, the 4^th pulling the same disappearing act (reading right to left.) We finished the exam. He turned on the lights, and was writing out my prescription, ready to send me on my way. I stopped and said, “Wait a minute! What causes that, the letters disappearing?”

He paused a moment, then decided he might dilate my eyes, and “take a look” I waited for my pupils to dilate, then went back into the room and he looked into my eyes with a light as bright as a thousand suns for what seemed like forever. Then, giving you the Reader’s Digest Condensed Version, he told me even though I was very young to have it, I had the beginning stages of Macular Degeneration. If you don’t know what that is, it is an incurable eye disease that would eventually leave me almost blind, no central vision at all. He told me about some vitamins I could take to help slow down or stop the process, and told me some foods to eat that would help and sent me on my way. As I often do in these life changing moments, I took to Facebook and posted a brief summary of what I just shared. A very good friend, who happens to be an OD, immediately commented, “Get a second opinion.” Shortly after that I was at an event with my sister, and she said, “You need to go see someone else about your eyes.” Ironically they both recommended the same person, Dr. Juan Astruc. I saw him on September 30^th, and after 2 hours of tests and scans, and staring into the light and dilated eyeballs, Dr. Astruc came in to tell me I did not have Macular Degeneration. WHEW! Big sigh of relief! I’m not going blind. Then he said, “The next thing I say is going to freak you out, but don’t let it freak you out. You have a tumor pressing on your optic nerve,” quickly adding, “it’s benign.” YAY!....I have…a tumor!?? Wait. What? He went on to explain that they were common enough that he had the neurosurgeon on speed dial, and that the surgery wouldn’t be invasive, they go in through your nose. I’d need to have an MRI, but it was all treatable and everything would be fine. Fast forward to last Monday, October 12th. I had an MRI and saw the neurosurgeon, Dr. K. Singh Sahni, the next day, and he showed me the films. The tumor is a pituitary tumor and is larger than they thought. It has affected almost all of my peripheral vision, and we have to move pretty quickly, as in less than 2 weeks from today, I will be recovering from brain surgery. Naively when Dr. Astruc told me that they would go in through my nose, I was thinking it might even be outpatient. Boy, were my eyes opened. 4 to 5 days in the hospital, the first night in ICU. I am trying to get used to the idea, and don't know if it has fully hit me yet, but I know all is well, and what is going to happen is going to happen. I'm in good hands. Readers use this as a cautionary tale. If I had not gotten a second opinion, I would be well on my way to going blind, and not because of Macular Degeneration, because the tumor would continue to grow until irreparable damage was done to my optic nerve. Listen to your body, and be your own advocate!