Several months ago, I shared some health struggles I was going through, due to inflammation of my thyroid gland. Even though I wasn’t sure how everything was going to turn out, I sensed I was supposed to share this part of my story with others.
You can read what I shared here. After I posted that blog, many people let me know that they would be praying for me. I felt loved and supported. A few weeks later, I was given the opportunity to share at a women’s gathering at my church. I talked about how even though we can’t see God, we can trust that He is working behind the scenes on our behalf. I then mentioned that I was trusting God to help me navigate through my health struggles. After I spoke, one of the leaders asked if all of the women in the room could pray over me. As an introvert, it’s uncomfortable being the center of attention, but I accepted the offer and allowed the women to pray for me. I didn’t feel any different leaving church that night, but I was grateful for everyone’s prayers. Since June, I’ve had my bloodwork monitored on a regular basis, and I’ve had several appointments with my endocrinologist. By the end of September, my thyroid bloodwork was within the normal range, and I no longer had hyperthyroidism. As each month went by, I started feeling a little better. At the beginning of December, I went in for a repeat thyroid ultrasound. This was an important scan, as if my thyroid nodules increased in size from last time, I would need surgery. Normally during these scans, the ultrasound technician doesn’t say very much. However, once the scan started, the ultrasound technician immediately said, “Wow – Look at that difference!” I said, “Is that a good, Wow, or a bad, Wow?” Then she said, “Wait a minute.” After a few seconds she said, “It’s a good, Wow! I thought I had the wrong patient file pulled up because this scan is so drastically different from your previous scan.” During the rest of the scan, she seemed in disbelief. She said my thyroid looks completely healed. I asked her, “What about the 2 nodules on the left-hand side of my thyroid?” She said, “They’re not there. You don’t have any nodules on the left-hand side.” At this point, I was also shocked. The ultrasound technician told me in her 20 years of doing scans, she’s never seen a thyroid change so much from one scan to the next scan. I then sensed I was supposed to tell her that people have been praying for me. She responded, “You need to let me know who’s in your prayer circle.” I walked into that ultrasound appointment knowing there was a possibility that I would need surgery. I walked out of that appointment knowing that God had healed me. The next day I received the official ultrasound report, which had the exact measurements of my thyroid (the inflammation from earlier was completely gone), and it stated that I had a normal thyroid with no nodules present on the left side. In the past, I have prayed for loved ones to be healed, and that healing didn’t come here on Earth. God doesn’t always answer our prayers the way we want Him to, but He does promise to be with us and to strengthen, help, and uphold us (Isaiah 41:10). This time, God, in his kindness, chose to heal me. I don’t know why, but I’m so grateful. What I do know is that I now have another story to tell of His goodness. God used this experience to remind me that prayers are powerful. For those of you who have prayed for me – thank you! God heard those prayers, and He healed me. If you’re going through a challenging situation, I’d encourage you to let someone know. Let others support you, encourage you, and pray for you. And if your prayers seem to be unanswered...keep praying. Trust that God is working behind the scenes. Remember that He loves you. Know that nothing is impossible for Him.
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Recently I’ve been reminded about the importance of listening to your body. When you sense that something doesn’t feel right, trust that prompting. Over the summer, I was able to go on a few trips. I had a lot of fun and posted pictures of my adventures. However, even though I was smiling in the pictures, only a few people knew that I wasn’t feeling great. Here’s another reminder: Social media doesn’t always show you the full picture of what’s really going on in a person’s life. Behind the scenes, I was dealing with these symptoms: pain in the front of my neck, discomfort when swallowing, having trouble sleeping, heat sensitivity, and an elevated heart rate. At first, I thought maybe I pulled a muscle in my neck or that these were normal symptoms for a woman my age to be experiencing. After about a week, the pain increased, and I began to sense that something wasn’t right. A few days later, my Apple Watch gave me a high heart rate notification when I was just sitting still. I opened up the Health App on my phone, and I was surprised to see that for the past several weeks, my heart rate was drastically higher than normal. That was when I decided it was time to call my doctor. Within a 2-week period, I met with my primary care doctor and my endocrinologist, had multiple blood tests, a thyroid ultrasound, and a thyroid biopsy. I was diagnosed with thyroiditis (inflammation of the thyroid) and hyperthyroidism. I felt some relief having a diagnosis, and I began taking medications to help manage my symptoms. My endocrinologist explained what to expect over the coming weeks and months, as there are several phases to this thyroid condition. The ultrasound revealed 2 thyroid nodules, and I was sent to get a thyroid biopsy at a local hospital. The biopsy results showed some abnormal cells, but not enough to make a diagnosis. Because of this, the tissues/cells were sent to a lab in California for molecular testing. Up until this point, all of my test results posted in MyChart within 24 or 48 hours. Things were moving quickly...and then I had to wait 6 weeks for the results of the molecular testing. 6 weeks of wondering if today would be the day I find out my results. Surprisingly, I wasn’t worried...I just wanted an answer. In those 6 weeks of waiting, God gave me peace in the midst of the unknown. He reminded me that He already knew the results, and because of that, I didn’t have to fear them. He reminded me that no matter what happens, He will be with me to help me through it. Oh, the kindness of God. The molecular testing showed that I have a 50% chance of having thyroid cancer. I honestly laughed when I got the results because I thought, “After such an expensive test, the best they can tell me is that I have 50/50 odds?” Without a clear answer, I did the only thing I knew to do: I prayed. I prayed for wisdom and discernment for my endocrinologist...that God would guide him on what my next steps should be and if surgery is needed. Right now, the recommendation is to wait a few more months, continue to monitor my bloodwork, and then do a follow-up ultrasound. The results of that will determine if I need to have a thyroidectomy. In the past, I’ve shared parts of my story when a chapter has ended, but I’m learning it’s also important to share when we’re in the middle of a chapter....when we don’t know how many pages it will be, or how it’s going to end. Here’s what I do know: I trust the Author. Nothing catches God by surprise. Because of this, I can wait with confidence that no matter what happens on the next page of this chapter, He will be with me. Oh, the kindness of God.
One of the hardest things I’ve ever done was to reach out for help. One of the best things I’ve ever done was to reach out for help. For years, I hid my pain from others. Shame silenced me. Welcome to 2021! I don’t know about you, but I’m glad that 2020 is now behind us. It was definitely a tough year.
For many people, seeing the calendar change to January 1st means a chance to reset. To start over. To set new goals. To make lists of things you want to accomplish this year. Back in 2015, instead of making lists and resolutions, I decided to focus on ONE WORD for the entire year. On January 1, 2020 so many of us had hope, excitement, and anticipation of what the new year would bring. We made plans, set goals, and dreamed about how 2020 would be better than 2019. We said, “Happy New Year!” to each other and truly meant it.
And then March 11th happened. The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, and 2020 suddenly looked very different than how we imagined it a few months earlier. |
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