7mm

7mm....the size of approx an m&m.  Yep, that was inside of me, but this was jagged, like a rock.  It all started the day before our church picnic (August 31st).  I woke up in a middle of the night with bad side pain and felt sick on my stomach.  I thought it was a kidney stone.  I took some medicine that I had from a few years ago for something else and the pain eased up and I was able to sleep a little bit.  I woke up Sunday and didn't have any side pain, but I didn't feel well.  After church I decided to run by urgent care before our church picnic.  I explained my side pain, but they said I definatley had blood in my urine, so it was a UTI.  They put me on antibiotics and I was able to go to the picnic.  That week I felt pretty good, but I would have some bad moments.  About Thursday I told Jack that the antibiotics didn't seem to be doing the trick.  I felt fabulous on Friday and Jack came home Friday night and I started to feel bad again.  We went shopping and then to get ice cream  and I went to bed.  As soon as I went to bed, my side pain came back.  I was up the entire night....running to the bath tub to take away the pain, doubled over on the couch, putting heating pads on, throwing up etc.  I wanted to go to the ER but I didn't want to leave the kids home alone in the middle of the night and I didn't want to take them.  About 7-8 am I woke Jack up and told him I needed to go somewhere.  We decided not to go back to urgent care because they would probably not help me, so we went up to the ER on 42.  They were wonderful.  After blood work and a CT scan it showed a 7mm kidney stone.  I was well drugged up at the ER and feeling wonderful and sent home with 4 meds.  I went Monday to see the urologist and he said a 7mm is very hard to pass.  I would need surgery on Friday.  I felt good Monday going to the doctor and then picking up the kids, but when I got home I was SO sick again Monday night.  This continued all week.  After Monday night, I was ready for the surgery because I knew I couldn't go on like this any more.  I'm hardly ever sick, so this was hard for me.  Surgery went well and I saw part of the stone that was blasted....it was about a 2mm stone.  He got it all, thank goodness....nothing left except they had to put a stent inside of me that has to stay in for 10 days.  It doesn't feel comfortable, but I know it is healing the kidneys up and I think slowly I am on the mend.