I Love Tests

I know it's a nerdy thing to admit, but I really, really like tests. I guess you could say that I love 'em. I prepare like a madwoman for them (anybody who saw me study for the California Bar Exam knows this), and when test day rolls around, I am completely invigorated and ready to go. Sometimes, I even get emotional...like on the morning of the LSAT, when I teared up as I did my hair and makeup, realizing that I was going to do great which meant that I would achieve one of my dreams -- getting accepted into Stanford Law School. Tests are emotional for me because I work incredibly hard at prepping for them and I know in my heart that on test day, I've done my best -- which is usually pretty darn good.

Today, I got to take a bunch of tests, and I was bouncing off the walls the moment I woke up.  

Test Number One: get through the "special" instructions for CT Scan prep from Dr. Sugarbaker's office successfully (which means without vomiting and/or having to stop short of the full directions). These instructions were pretty onerous, but he's the genius and, as Dr. Lenz says, the "pope" of my future surgery (officially called CRS/HIPEC), so I went with it. I was warned by Taline (my nurse practitioner) that this stuff would probably make me sick, and she assured me that I really didn't have to follow the instructions if I started to get sick. That was all I needed to get excited for the challenge. I vowed to myself that, no matter what, I was not going to let this special prep make me nauseous and I would abide by the instructions. Can I really prevent nausea by willing myself to not get nauseous? I don't know. But so far, so good, actually -- I've definitely bucked the odds on multiple occasions when my upchucking was almost a foregone conclusion.

So, the "special" directions? First, I had to stop eating solid food and switch to clear liquids on Sunday night (think clear broth, jello, etc.). Ok, done. Next, I had to drink 10 ounces of this slightly nasty "cherry" flavored laxative. I hated to throw my bowels into confusion after they've been so wonderful to me post-surgery, and I apologized as I drank. But I gulped gulped gulped it down nonetheless. After that, I had to drink about 12 ounces of this "berry" barium drink, which was a thick-ish white liquid that didn't taste like berry. I had my first barium drink at midnight. Yup, my first. There were more. 

I woke up today, knowing that food was a no-no, and opted for a little bit of jello. On the way to USC Norris, I dined on my second barium drink. There would be another one, but first, the ultrasound on my leg.

Test Number Two: If you've followed this blog from Day 1, and I know many of you have not (that's okay -- you can catch up), you know that on the day I got my portacath installed, I had an ultrasound of my legs and a tiny blood clot was detected in my right femoral artery (my right thigh). Ever since then, I've been on Lovenox, and I get nightly shots in the upper butt from my loving and skilled hubby. Today, we checked to see if the clot was gone. 

It was gone. Test Number Two: passed.

After my ultrasound, I gulped down another barium drink. That was three. 36 ounces. The radiologist said that I didn't need a fourth, and my instructions said to check with my radiologist about the fourth bottle. Which means.... 

Test Number One: passed.

And on to Test Number Three, the results of which I won't know until next week. I had my CT scan to check on how the idiotic cancer has fared over the last six weeks. As I said, I don't know the results yet -- just like I didn't for the California Bar Exam and the LSAT immediately after I took those tests -- but I feel very good about my performance. I prepared meticulously, worked my butt off at the gym and sleeping and meditating and eating healthy food, and I know that I put my body in the best place possible to beat this silly junk.

I decided to cap off my physically demanding day with some weights. I graduated to 160 pounds on the bench press and handled it without a problem (I was supposed to graduate to 140 pounds but I didn't correct my trainer, Wayne, when he set the weight at 160 -- why would I?!), and worked my triceps until they burned like crazy. I don't really consider the physical challenge of working out at the gym after my earlier endeavors today to be a test, per se, but if it was...I passed.

A pretty successful day, I think. Days like these make me want to pull out my old property law flashcards from the Bar Exam. But I'll refrain. :)