Dear Health Journal: Well it happened again- the second Sunday night in a row. I went to Julia’s and she served the most amazing bbq chicken cream cheese dip. By the time I got home, I had that same intense burning in my rib cage. It curled around to my back to where I couldn’t lay down//I couldn’t sit up. I finally moved to the spare bed and tossed and turned and cried out to God to take me Home. (Apparently Ben woke up to hear this desperate prayer and apparently that’s an unsettling prayer for a husband to overhear 🤷🏻‍♀️) I finally got to sleep about 3 am after I got sick on my stomach for awhile…

My dad called to check on me the next day and his voice was edged with worry “Kendra! What’s going on? Ben says you had a really rough night?”

My poor family- they’re so supportive and caring and I don’t know what I’d do without them…

“Yehhhh, I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I don’t think I have the flu, but I got really sick in the middle of the night. Maybe I ate too many tums?”

And at that moment the lightbulb turned on. “Wait! Intense burning! Tums!! Sick on your stomach! Kendra!!! Have they checked your gallbladder? Thats exactly what I dealt with for 15 years until I ended up in the hospital and they removed it!!!”

Could it be?

God had ordained that I had a CT scan set up for the next day as a 3 month check up on the lung with the blood clot (all clear, PtL) and I spent Monday afternoon talking to my doctor and getting an ultrasound added to the testing I was going in for.

And wouldn’t you know, both the CT and ultrasound pointed out a sick gallbladder.

It all makes sense now. I’m scared to hope that this is what I’ve been fighting since May. When you google the list of foods to avoid if your gallbladder is acting up- you will find the list of foods you can eat if you’re in the middle of an ulcerative colitis flare. No wonder I’ve been struggling over here 🤦🏻‍♀️

The surgery wasn’t that big of a deal. I’m pretty sore, but the surgeon said “basically you’re being stabbed 5 times” so I guess soreness isn’t a shock. 😂

So anyhow, this Thanksgiving week looks a bit different than I was expecting it to look. But as I chill here in the LaZboy, my heart is overwhelmed once again with thankfulness.

God cares so much about little details that He even planned our family Thanksgiving a week early so that I could enjoy that precious time with my family.

Thank you all for praying for me. God answers prayers, and I’m so thankful.

Kendra