Content Queen Update: I am about to face a tough journey, but I will be back!
I am very sad to say, this will be my last email for a few weeks (maybe even a month).
Yes - it is storytime. It is time for me to share with you something that has been going on for around 5 years now.
Back in 2016, I had horrible pain in my stomach. A pain that sent me in an ambulance to the hospital. A pain that meant my mother had to travel 2 hours to get me from the hospital and pain that (without being too dramatic) has actually changed my life. I just didn't know it then.
So I was diagnosed with gallstones. In Feb 2017 (legit Feb is not a good month for me so it seems), I had my gallbladder removed. This removal would mean I just had to be mindful of what I ate but would live a pretty pain-free life.
That was not the case for me. I knew a few friends who said they had no pain after gallbladder removal, but for me - it was very frequent. The most memorable one was the pain that nearly stopped me from boarding a flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Siem Reap.
One of my favourite trips, with my parents in November 2018. It was on this trip I met a lady who, like me, had pain after the removal of her gallbladder. She was informed that she still had gallstones in her body. She strongly advised me to get checked when I returned to Melbourne.
Of course, Christmas got in the way, but in early 2019, I booked myself into the Drs with the demand of ultrasound to work out what was going on.
I remember another pain in 2019. I was at a Hens Party in the beautiful Sorrento (Victoria, Australia). We had a weekend of a lot of alcohol and cheese. The Saturday night, I spent from 2am-6:30am sleeping by the toilet. Not because I was drunk, but because I didn't know what was happening to my body. I was in just as much pain as I was when I had gallstones.
So 2019-2020 was a series of CT scans and MRIs (I think I had about 10 MRIs in total). If anyone has been lucky enough to have one, they aren't much fun. In June 2019, my Liver specialist told me I had an unusual spot on my liver and she STRONGLY recommended I come off the pill (I had been on it for 10 years and this is a WHOLE other story I won't go into today).
Once I came off the pill, it was 6 monthly MRIs to check in with how the little spot on my liver was tracking. In December 2019, the specialist was happy with my liver, and all was functioning well, my symptoms weren't as bad as they had been - but there were foods that just did not agree with me.
Although the spot was okay, she recommended another MRI in 6 months. Of course, it was pre-COVID and I was planning on travelling in mid-2020, so I asked her if it was possible to do the MRI before I left. Well of course.
Right in the middle of COVID (May). I had my next MRI. This time, I was told, there was something else showing and I would need an Endoscopic Ultrasound (a camera down my throat), to have a better look. Because of the lockdown, this happened in June.
Apparently, the camera wasn't that great and another EUS was needed. But again, lockdown happened so this didn't occur until October 2019. I remember when I came out of the procedure, they told me they took a biopsy and I was not allowed to eat for 24 hours (for those who followed me on Instagram knew I was really pissed off - hehe). I also remember reading the notes from the procedure and next to it was “could be carcinoid”. I Googled it, yep okay. Never Google.
But in November 2020 on my Telehealth appointment, it was confirmed. I did in fact have a carcinoid tumour on my bowel. Well, this was after I planned to move to Sydney. I was told it was a very low grade and it could just be a simple operation to remove it.
The specialist was comfortable with me moving to Sydney and told me she would transfer all my records to St Vincent’s in Sydney (shout out to both hospitals, they have been AMAZING).
Everything happens so fast from appointments to CT scans and another EUS. On December 28, the surgeon wanted to urgently see me discuss options. But it was confirmed this Monday. I have two tumours. One on my bowel, one on my pancreas. Both low grade, not cancer, but not benign.
My next step? A major operation called Whipples. Without going into too much detail (because let's be real, I have already said a lot), it is an operation that requires the removal of half of my pancreas, part of my stomach, and part of my bowel to remove the tumours. Then once that is done, they will realign the way my digestive system works!
Pretty crazy, but gosh I am so grateful to have an amazing surgeon and amazing support. I'll be in ICU for a few days to recover followed by 2 weeks in the hospital connected to loads of tubes (so no working for me - if you know me well, you know that was the hardest news haha).
It will be around 6 weeks until I can be mobile and 6 months for a full recovery! For the 2 weeks in the hospital, I will be mostly offline (of course) but I do want to share my journey with you all.
So - this is set to happen in early Feb. It is time to look after my body, ensure my clients are supported (because that is just how I operate) and explore Sydney before some freedom is lost.
The major lessons from this have been. Health is number one. If you think something isn't right in your body - get it checked. You can't be the best entrepreneur you want to be without your health. Rest your body.
Thank you for supporting me. Thank you for reading and letting me share my story. I will be back soon. But right now, it is time to heal.
So much love for you!
