On Medical Advice and Sacrifice

I feel almost completely recovered after my laparoscopy and hysteroscopy a little over a week ago. Even though the surgery wasn't a huge inconvenience, and the recovery period was much quicker and more comfortable than I had imagined, I still really hope it was all worth it. The entire point of the procedures was to a.) get a look at how extensive my endometriosis is and b.) do some correcting that might increase our chances of getting pregnant.

We'll have to wait to see if it all really works. I need to take a few months right now to let all my insides heal.

So, in the mean time, I am very glad to be back at work. I almost don't even want to call my job "work" because I love it so much!

Oh, and I feel it is my civic responsibility to share my doctor's words of wisdom, a tip for anyone after a laparoscopic or hysteroscopic surgery.

(If you have no intention of ever having laparoscopic surgery you can just skip this tedious bit of information.)

I have heard so many people talk about what severe pain they were in following the surgery - because of the gas left in their abdominal area. For the surgery, the doctor will have to blow up your abdominal cavity with gas. He tries to remove it all afterward, but it's just impossible to get it all out. The gas starts moving around after the surgery, causing the diaphragm and right shoulder to be in stabbing pain.

I'm not sure why no other doctor apparently knows about this, but I must say it works like a charm. For everybody else: when your diaphragm starts hurting a little, crouch down knees and elbows together, forehead on the ground, rear end up in the air (think of how Muslims kneel to pray). If you can, have someone massage your tummy gently. Remain in this position for five minutes.

From personal experience, I can verify that after you do this, the pain in the diaphragm and shoulder will subside and I personally had no other pain. Ever.

(*For those of you trying to get to the interesting part of this post, you can start reading here.*)

Actually, there is a much more interesting and important point to this post. My favorite part of the past week was receiving a letter from Ronnie (our sponsored child with Compassion International).



Here's (part of) what he had to say:

I thank you so much for the family gifts you have sent to me and my family in order to be able to build a house. My family is so happy. We are all very happy. We appreciate you and pray that God sees you and blesses all that you do because you have made us so special. I hope that soon I will send you a photo of our house we have built. We are still building it now and I hope soon, God willing, we will complete it and start staying in it.

Can you tell he's happy?

Can you tell I'm happy?!?!

Can you believe that $600 was all it took to allow this family to purchase their own land and materials to build a house of their own so they do not have to spend more than half their income each month to rent a tiny shack for their family of nine?

$600. This is one of the reasons why we choose to forgo cable, live in a small house, eat our meals at home, and sacrifice a little on our clothing budget.

And when you get to know one of these children - through letters, pictures, and maybe a sponsor tour visit - the sacrifices seem small and bearable. Because you can picture your child and his or her family living without a TV or computer, much less cable and internet; making do with a few shirts and pants while our closets are larger than most of their homes; and depending on the weather to make their garden grow in order to eat, not even knowing what a restaurant is.

Is there something you might be able to sacrifice in order to sponsor a Compassion child? You don't have to give large family gifts. Just $32 a month changes a life: education, spiritual growth, healthcare, nutritious meals, and opportunities that lead to a bright future.