Where I've Been...

To my 5 loyal followers:

I am so very sorry for depriving you of my random stories for the past few weeks. What started out as a sore throat quickly turned into me in the hospital for two weeks with all kinds of issues. Basically, I was diagnosed with Lemierre’s Syndrome, which is extremely rare, as in only 160 people have been diagnosed with it over the last 100 years. Crazy, I know. Top that off with a blood clot (Deep Vein Thrombosis) in my throat and you end up with a really miserable November.

I’m happy to say that I am back home and still on the mend. I have to take blood thinners for 3 months and have a nurse give me antibiotics daily for the next few weeks. The blood thinners mean no drinking for the next 3 months, which is really disappointing. This means no eggnog during the holidays, no champagne on New Year’s Eve, and on that note having to take complete responsibility for whatever shenanigans I get into on NYE. But in the grand scheme of things, this is all a small sacrifice I have to make to get better.

As usual, I have to get cheesy and talk about the wonderful people I have in my life. My beautiful, selfless, patient and kind mother has been by my side since the moment I told her I needed to go to the hospital. She has been my advocate, my nurse, my strength and I can’t even begin to imagine how I would have survived this without her by my side. Aside from coming to visit me constantly, my dad and siblings surprised me with Thanksgiving dinner in my hospital room the Sunday after Thanksgiving when it looked like I wasn’t getting out any time soon. I can’t imagine being in their shoes, seeing any of them in that situation, but they have all been so strong. My older sister, who lives in Buffalo, called my mom what seemed like every few hours for an update. When I was up for it, I would get on the phone to chat with her. She has such a cheerful voice and is always so positive and supportive. I know she would have given anything to be here, but hearing her voice with my niece and nephew playing in the background did wonders for my mood. Taryn was in town basically from the day I was admitted to the day I got released. We had so many plans, so many things we wanted to do while she was in town, but instead she spent countless hours hanging out in my hospital room. My friends Laura and Erin have been amazing, visiting me in the hospital, making me laugh and showing me how lucky I am to have friends like them. Dave reminded me once again how completely grateful I am to still have him in my life as a close friend. I have always been able to count on him to make me laugh in the worst situations and to always shed a positive light on anything. He was constantly checking in, calling to make me laugh and just being there. I truly am so lucky to have these people in my life.

I can’t begin to tell you how much of a nightmare this whole thing has been, but I am glad it will soon be a thing of the past. Spending Thanksgiving in the hospital made me really sad, but I had a lot of people to be thankful for. If I were one to make New Year’s resolutions, mine would most definitely be for a 2011 with no health issues. Anyway, I’m back and looking forward to sharing more stories with the five (wow, get me more followers) of you.