Postponed again.

Kerissa • March 17, 2018

Hello friends,

My family and I recently got back from an amazing vacation in Orlando, Florida!  I shared this on FB, but for those who didn’t know, a very kind friend and his wife wanted me to “make a wish,” so I chose Disney World/Universal Studios since I’ve never been there, and my family and I all had the most wonderful time!!!   The weather was so beautiful, the food was amazing, the parks, rides, and shows were all so very fun, and it was just so nice being able to get away from weekly doctor appointments and all things medical-related.

Anyways, this past Wednesday was supposed to be my big surgery, but it got postponed AGAIN.  I’ve had central vertigo for almost 2 whole weeks now, and it has never lasted this long. It makes my head feel awful, and the medication that calms it down makes me so exhausted (it’s a benzodiazepine).  Also, my prealbumin blood level (which shows nutritional status and how well a patient will heal) dropped down to 18 even though it got up to 22 at one point, and my surgeon said it NEEDS to be 20 or above in order to do surgery.

I can’t remember if I ever mentioned this before, but there’s been a TPN (IV nutrition) shortage because one of the main places TPN is made from is Puerto Rico..  They’re still recovering from all the hurricanes, etc., so because of the shortage, my IV protein had to be decreased by 10 grams per day.  That is one of the reasons why my prealbumin dropped.  My dextrose (sugar) also had to be taken out of my IV magnesium bags because they’re short on that, too.

So, I made another appointment with my surgeon to discuss the new plan once again.  She’s booked out, so it’s not until next month..

I recently saw my orthopedic hip surgeon, and she thinks my right hip labrum is torn (my left one tore in 2016, and I had to have surgery for it…recovery took a whole year unfortunately).  My right hip has been locking, getting “stuck,” popping, and causing a lot of pain with certain movements.  So I have to do more physical therapy and get a diagnostic ultrasound-guided hip steroid injection into the hip joint soon.  Once I fully recover from this other major bladder surgery, I have to get a hip MRI arthrogram, and if the scan confirms that the labrum is torn, then my surgeon will have to perform surgery to repair the labral tear. I just can’t wait until I have a new body in Heaven!

I will keep you posted when my bladder surgery gets rescheduled and what my surgeon plans!  I will also try to keep the updates going when/if anything new comes up..

P.S. Not sure if any of you have noticed, but I haven’t blogged as often like I used to because I’ve gotten side-tracked.. I now hand letter pretty much every single day, and I love it so much!!  It’s just the best!!  I’ve also been doing custom orders!

 

Surgery Update 😊

By Kerissa Lee • August 21, 2026
Dear friends, I just wanted to thank you all so much for praying for me during my abdominal surgery on August 6th! 💚 All of your messages/emails really encouraged my heart! If you missed my previous post, I had to have an unexpected surgery to take down the jejunostomy tract and repair an enterocutaneous fistula (a rare complication from having a j-tube for 12 years). I truly felt your prayers, and the Lord answered so many of them as well! 🥹 My surgeon only had to remove about 1 1/2 inches of my small intestine which is great news! I was in the hospital for 4 days because my blood pressure was low and pain control was rough (it’s a long story, but pain management is complex due to a specific medication I take daily at home..). But aside from that and having an allergic reaction to the surgical glue, I’ve been healing well. Thank you again for praying!! God has been so faithful throughout this journey. I got a visit from my sweet foster nephew when I was in the hospital (2nd picture)! 🥰 I can’t wait until I can show you his face—he’s so adorable. 🩵 I’ve mentioned this before, but an important medication I take causes severe insomnia (still not falling asleep until anywhere between 3 AM-9 AM). 😞 But I saw my naturopath this past Monday, and she’s going to treat me for suspected cortisol spiking up during the night (which disrupts the body’s circadian rhythm). I’m thankful for the wisdom God gives her, and I’m excited to see if this treatment will help! It will take 6 weeks to see if there’s any benefit, but I first have to specially order it.. 

August 6th Surgery Prayer Requests 💚

By Kerissa Lee • August 6, 2026
"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." -Psalm 46:1

Another surgery 😞

By Kerissa Lee • July 25, 2026
Hi, friends, I thought I wouldn’t be posting for a while since I’ve been doing really well, but I’ve hit a bump in the road again and would appreciate your prayers. 💚 This past Tuesday the 21st, after nearly 12 years living with it, I had my jejunostomy tube removed completely. I thought it was going to be a simple process and that the stoma (hole) would close quickly within 30 minutes like they said. That didn’t happen, though, as the stoma started draining a ton! I couldn’t even leave the lobby and had to go back up to the clinic on the 8th floor to have an ostomy bag placed to collect all the small intestinal digestive juices that continually drained. Unfortunately, I’m experiencing a very rare complication called an enterocutaneous fistula. 🥺 I’m disappointed this is happening, but I’m not exactly surprised since my whole medical case with Mitochondrial DNA Depletion Syndrome has been rare from the very beginning.. I also don’t heal well due to connective tissue problems from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (case in point: my port site issues back in May when I had to have a new one surgically placed on the other side of my chest).. 😞 The clinic told me to keep emptying the ostomy bag and monitor the output. It wasn’t a fun 2 days. This whole process has definitely made me so grateful to God that I’ve never needed something like an ileostomy! TMI, but I lost almost a whole pound of fluid because so much was gushing/spurting out of the stoma every time I ate or drank. Losing so many electrolytes, I started experiencing symptoms of dehydration—weakness, high heart rate, and headaches. So yesterday, I had to go back and see the surgery resident who basically placed another j-tube (it was so painful again!). 😭 This is a temporary “plug,” and I’m bummed to say that I have to go to the operating room to have the jejunostomy tract taken down and the fistula repaired. This surgery will be happening as early as next week (it depends on my surgeon’s schedule).. She said it will be complex, especially because adhesions (scar tissue) form when a person has multiple abdominal surgeries.. I lost count what number this surgery/procedure will be, but I do know I’ve had more than 20! 😞 I know God is with me wherever I go and will supply me with the strength to endure yet another surgery like he always does. But, I’m still sad that I have to have more incisions added to my body. I shared the lyrics to this song before on an old blog post (the song is called It Is Well With My Soul by Matt Redman), but it immediately came to mind again when I was thinking of scars. As the song below said, it’s a reminder to me that my scars can be a testimony to others of God’s grace in my life and how he has brought me through every single pain and sorrow. In the Bible, I’ve always thought it’s so neat that Jesus still had his scars after he rose from the dead—he had a new body, and yet, his scars were still visible. ❤️ Our scars are a sign of grace in our lives Oh Father, how You brought us through When deep were the wounds And dark was the night The promise of Your love, You proved Now every battle still to come Let this be our song It is well (it is well) With my soul (with my soul) It is well, it is well with my soul