____________________________________________________________________________________ Exactly one month ago I went to Kaiser Hospital in terrible pain. I'd had had a wonderful walk around our neighborhood the evening before and come home to one of my daughter's extra yummy desserts. About a half hour after eating it I got a stomach ache. As the night went on it got worse and worse. I threw up several times but had no relief. By about 2:00 A.M I realized what was wrong. I had an intestinal blockage, again. My husband rushed me to the hospital where I practically begged the emergency nurse to put the NG [nasal/gastrointestinal] tube down me. It's strange how, when a person is in extreme pain, they tend to lose their fear of unpleasant treatments. The desire for relief supersedes everything else. I say that because I hate the NG tube. Sometimes I get scared when they put it down because I'm afraid I'll throw up while they are inserting it. The worst part, however, is the terrible ear ache and sore throat that doesn't go away until it is removed. (I have a small throat.) But it's better than throwing up constantly--believe me. Projectile vomiting is the pits. Anyway . . . . why am I writing all of this? Well, I guess it's just a bit of background about why I am starting this blog. I had my second operation to remove adhesions in my intestines four weeks ago. Everything went O.K. this time; but, recovery has been very hard. I tried to take nourishment by mouth and ended up back in the hospital (NG tube again). So, my doctor decided to send me home with TPN (liquid nutrition that goes directly in my vein)so I could slow down the reintroduction of food. A week after I got home, I started clear liquid. It's pretty clear that it's going to be a long, hard journey. Yesterday my husband suggested that I start a journal to record my progress. I have found over the years that writing things down helps me to quantify my progress and recognize that reoccurring patterns in my life. I woke up in the night feeling pretty nauseated and decided to start writing instead of wasting time on the internet. (Sitting up helps.) ________________________________________________________________________________ I will try to keep a record of my progress. I try very hard not to get discouraged. But sometimes I just start crying. I called the blog neonancy because my initials are NEO and learning to eat again is like being a baby all over. When you think about it, what is a baby's job? To eat, and burp, and poop. And what is colic, really? It's just a baby's body trying to figure out what to do with food. Their intestines and tummies are trying to learn their jobs and sometimes it takes a while.