Larry started having pain on July 5th while we were at Jerry and Darinda's. He was pretty sure it was kidney stones. The pain would come and go and when it came it was very, very painful. Larry would double over because of the severe pain. I saw his jaw quiver as he cried because he hurt so bad. More than once he was curled up in a the fetal position trying to find relief from his intense pain. It was heartbreaking to witness. I felt so helpless. He did everything he should have. He had our boys give him a blessing. He went to the Doctor and got some pain reliever and another medicine that is helpful to passing kidney stones. Even doing those things he would double up and about die because of excruciating pain. After a week he went to the ER where he had a CAT scan to see the stone and to see there was only one but that it was lodged by the bladder. He thought he was passing segments of the stone but later found out he was passing blood clots instead.
I stopped by his shop before taking the kids up to meet their new niece, Jordyn. He said he was feeling good and told me that he hadn't taken any pain meds since the night before. I left and hadn't been gone a minute when I got a text from him saying: "Oh my Attack. MAJOR!" Then he called me barely able to breathe telling me to come get him and take him to the Urologist. He couldn't wait until the morning to see him because he was suffering so bad. I turned around and we drove right to the doctor. When the pain started Larry took 3 pain killers and by the time he got in to see the doctor they had kicked in and he was feeling okay. The doctor was great....my kids even really liked him. He told Larry that he had a few options but the best would be to have the stone removed immediately. He sent Larry over to the Hospital to get prepped for surgery. (not the same hospital that Julie and Kevin and Jordyn were at...darn it)
A few hours later Larry was in surgery having Ureteroscopic Stone Removal done. During the surgery the doctor uses a scope that goes in the ureter. A wire basket is inserted through the tube and removes the stone. The doctor went in the first time and couldn't see the stone because Larry's bladder was so swollen. He had to use a larger scope and try again. This time he went directly to the stone. When this happened he looked at his nurse and asked her if she had been praying for him. She smiled and nodded yes. Then he was able to remove the stone. The stone was smaller than expected and smooth. It was about the size of a BB. (small but deadly)
Part of the surgery is to put a Ureteral Stent in. This is a soft plastic tube with holes in it. It helps drain urine into the bladder. One end goes in the kidney the other in the bladder. It helps the Ureter to heal. A string is attacked to it that comes out of the body so that it can be removed after about 4 days. The problem with having this in is that you feel like you have to pee all the time, but you are not able to. Frustrating to say the least.
After about 8 hours we left the hospital and headed home. We got home around 11:00 pm. Larry went right for the "throne" and stayed there most of the night.
I felt confident that Larry would feel so much better after the stone was removed. Boy was I wrong! He still had extreme pain but totally different from the kidney stone. At 1:00 am he was moaning and rocking back and forth because he hurt so bad. At that time I went searching for an all night pharmacy which I finally found in Layton. I was gone for an hour getting him pain medicine and also another medicine to relieve the pressure from his bladder. While I was gone he was screaming to release the built up pain he was experiencing. He told me that and I did hear him when I got home. I felt so bad.
When I was driving home from the pharmacy I continued praying for my hubby. I wondered why our prayers weren't being answered the way we wanted. I was reminded of all the times our prayers were answered the way we wanted and thanked Heavenly Father for those times. I asked that He would help me understand why Larry had to suffer so much. I was having a hard time understanding....I was so tired since I had been up since the night before...and this just wasn't making sense to me. Then a few hours later I read this post that a friend had on Facebook...
Elder Holland 2001....."If He could come forward in the night, kneel down, fall on His face, bleed from every pore, and cry, "Abba, Father (Papa), if this cup can pass, let it pass," then little wonder that salvation is not a whimsical or easy thing for us. If you wonder if there isn't an easier way, you should remember you are not the first one to ask that. Someone a lot greater and a lot grander asked a long time ago if there wasn't an easier way."
I know that because I have witnessed the suffering of my sweet hubby that I have a "little" better understanding of the suffering that our Savior went through for each of us. I know that Larry understands better as well. I don't understand why we need to know all the things that we are taught but I do know that in the long run they are good for us. This experience has been one of the worst experiences of our lives...maybe the worst. But because of it we are closer to our Savior and Heavenly Father and we do understand better what He went through. Knowledge can be so Painful!
