How is everyone doing? Enjoying your summer? Ok, so I know I need to update everyone on my gallbladder. First, if you are considering the sleeve, don't panic! Only about 5% of people who have the sleeve ever need their gallbladder out... go figure, right? ;) Also, this turned out to be a pretty long blog...just FYI. :)
So, what happened(?) you ask. Let me tell you. ;) I may have mentioned before that I am a meat eater. Most of my protein comes from meat, and the more fat, the better! Since I only eat 3-4 ounces of it at a time it hasn't been a calorie issue for me. ( I know what you're thinking) ...
Let me start from the beginning. I started having pain after I ate some BBQ ribs in mid June. Center of my stomach, no fever, no vomiting but pretty intense (and you know I have a high pain threshold). It went away. It happened again about a week or so later. We thought "maybe it's a hiatal hernia. So I took some Prilosec OTC for the two weeks recommended and didn't have an issue.
July 1st it happened again, but this time the pain was so bad vomiting ensued. (We all remember how I REALLY, REALLY don't like vomiting, right?) But, again, it was after ribs so I was pretty sure it was now a gallstone. No Fever still and it went away, and no sign of jaundice or other life threatening issues. I just decided I needed to stay away from fatty foods for awhile.
July 12, I had some pea soup and and a couple hours later a half a sandwich for dinner. By the time Jay got home from work about 11:20pm he found me on the floor of the rig, crying. I had been vomiting violently and could not believe the pain. Those of you that have given birth think of a severe contraction...how it tightens at the very top of your belly and wraps...well this stayed tight at the peak of pain...for an hour and a half... steady.... when Jay got home I was ready for the ER. I needed help.
Of course, by the time I was checked in at the ER and was waiting in the incredibly busy waiting room ( we got there at 11:50 pm and got taken into the back about 1:30 am) I was pain free and ready to go home. But whoa there Nelly, that was not to be! They took some blood and about 4:00 am they did an ultra sound. The lining of my gallbladder was thick (not a healthy sign apparently) and oh yeah, there were probably 8 or 10 stones in there. Now, if you're like me you probably think that a stone got stuck in the duct and that's why the pain. Nope.
My blood levels came back and my lipase level (supposed to be around 200) was at 18,750. Now, I'm not a doctor, but that didn't sound good. According to Dr. Trieu what actually happened was the stone dropped fine through the gall duct but when it dropped into the common duct it turned and caused a reflux action into my pancreas. The pain was actually pancreatitis. So...what do they do for that? You don't eat or drink. Yeah, seriously. You just have to wait for your pancreas to settle down. They kept flushing me with an IV too. While the gallbladder was not awful, it was not great either and since I NEVER want to have that pain again, Dr. Trieu said it definitely needed to come out. By Friday the 14th my lipase numbers were down to around 400 and I was able to eat without pain. He told me his first opening for surgery was Monday so I could go home until then and just avoid the fatty stuff until my follow up appointment.
Now, if you don't know what a gallbladder is for:
What many of you do not know is I was supposed to start a new job on that Monday. Yeah.
Due to their strict social media policy I can not tell you what company I'm working for but it is a fast food chain. This is what I mean by unintended social experiment. First, to me a part time job is a part time job. I want to earn some extra cash to help our life choices and although I have never worked in this side of the food industry I was willing to learn.
My first surprise was Jay's reaction. While he knows that I have always considered customer service a skill he had a hard time wrapping his head around the image of me, a former executive manager, working in fast food. I actually was excited. This is a new field so you know there will be a lot to learn and it's part time so low stress, right?
My second surprise was how angry it now makes me when I see the "fast food people don't deserve a living wage" posts. Yes, I was always against these (see customer service as a skill comment) but now that I have actually seen what goes on in the job I really get emotional.
To start with:
1. The employees. These are not high school kids that come in and just don't care what they are doing earning gas money. They are single moms busting their butts so they aren't on the system any more, they are widows trying to make ends meet, they are young adults trying to live while going to college, they are young dads working a second job to help their families, and there are many like me that are semi-retired trying to supplement their small income. These people take pride in their jobs and if you happen once in a great while to get a sandwich that got crooked, you might want to think about a day when you weren't a hundred percent at whatever job you happen to do. Machines break, people make mistakes. Someone new might be training. We try very hard to get things right.
2. The standing. A typical shift is 8 hours with a half hour non-paid break. You are on your feet that whole time and you are BUSY!! There is no standing around, idle chit chat going on. People are trying to meet numbers and expectations and things happen.
3. The computer. I come with an IT background. I have been told I am doing great. Let me tell you, it's not easy. There are MULTIPLE screens that have every variation that people can come up with for orders. Think someone is going too slow? Maybe you could understand that not everyone gives the same order you do and it might be that person's first attempt to find all those substitutions you are making. How many times have you got one exactly right and not thought anything of it? Yes, it's supposed to work that way, but people are human.
4. The customers. As I've said (multiple times now) customer service is a skill. Most people are extremely nice. I've had people say the loveliest things to me. Some people... are just cranky. Now, maybe they are having a bad day. Maybe they have a health issue. I'm willing to be generous and today I was told "You are the most positive person who's ever worked here", but sometimes people are mean. They are condescending and supercilious and every other word that comes to mind when someone just thinks they are better. Better because they don't happen to be serving food to others that day. Someone actually told the super sweet girl I was working with in drive through yesterday that her voice sounded like she was taking helium. And he kept going with it. Not even to be funny. Just being mean. And you still have to be nice. You still have to smile and apologize even if they changed their mind 6 times then get mad that you haven't caught up yet.
Now, I'm not saying that I deserve to get paid anywhere near what I did in my old life, but I can tell you right now I don't feel guilty about getting $9 per hour for minimum wage. I wouldn't feel guilty at $12. I've done easier jobs for that much.
I like serving people most of the time. I enjoy working part time. It keeps my brain going and we do enjoy that extra income. I could not image doing this full time and I salute the Managers that are working their hearts out and the team that take pride in their work. Also, they were super understanding about having my gallbladder out making me unable to start on my first day! In fact, I was out for my first week and couldn't lift for two weeks. Nice, right?
So next time you go through a fast food restaurant remember it could be me! Be nice please! I really want to make your food the best it can be and if you're patient with me it will help that process for you!
One of the best things about this line of work is there are chain restaurants everywhere! I can now add this to my resume and be able (hopefully) to have employment where ever the road takes us!!
That's about it going on for me these days.
Remember, it's hot out! Hydrate!! Are you walking? How are your goals looking? Keep your chin up! We're all a work in progress!
Thanks for following a long!
~Mikki
