A Shot of Terror to Liven Up My Life

About a week ago, I started experiencing really severe pelvic pain. It was strongest on the right hand side, but radiated across my entire pelvis. I decided to go to the ER. In addition to my concerns that this was cancer related, I had also had a UTI the previous week (TMI? My blog, my rules #sorrynotsorry), so I was worried that it might pertain to that.

I explained my special medical history about a dozen times: to the triage nurse, to the nurse assigned to me, to some guy who may or may not have been a hospital employee, to a doctor, to another nurse, to another doctor.

I gave a urine sample to check for a UTI, and also for pregnancy, which HELLO i have no uterus, how the hell could I be pregnant? Finally they gave me some fluids, and some medication to help with the pain.

I had a CT scan. I have had so many CT scans since getting diagnosed in April that I'm shocked that I am not radioactive. I also had an ultrasound, external and internal. After the radiology finished the ultrasound torture, she went and checked with the head radiologist to make sure what she got was ok. OF COURSE IT WASN'T. And the part that needed to be done again was the internal ultrasound.

The verdict was a cyst on my right ovary. I've had them before, but none since getting diagnosed with cancer. If I'd thought it through, I probably could have deduced that that was what it was, and saved myself a $500 copay and 6 hours in the ER. But cancer has made me irrational about my body. Or hyper vigilant. Or something. Basically it boils down to feeling like every little twinge in my body is cancer coming back. And it sucks to live that way.

Per the orders of the ER gods, I followed up with my doctor the next. My gyn didn't have any openings until 12/9, so I made an appointment with my PCP. She went through all the labs with me and explained everything so it made sense, aka dumbed down like you're talking to a 2 year old. With ovarian cysts, there's not a lot you can do about them except to wait for them to burst, which is a whole other round of painful fun.

The most effective preventative treatment for ovarian cysts is birth control pills. However, there are risks in taking those involving cancer. So I need to talk to my oncologist and determine if the risk is worth the reward, so to speak.

I've been told by other survivors that you do actually reach a point where something feels wrong with your body, and your mind does not automatically jump to "Oh my god, the cancer is back!!!!!!" I just wish I could get to that point sooner rather than later.