Big Sigh of Relief

I had my appointment with the dermatologist today - his name is Dr. Daniel Shurman and he is with Family Dermatology of Reading. After just one visit, I highly recommend him to anyone needing this particular specialist, and I thank my aunt very much for recommending him to me! He was very nice, and knowing I was extremely nervous about this appointment, tried to keep me at ease. The assistant, Nicole, was absolutely wonderful too. I told her how nervous I was about the visit, and that I can be a big baby when it comes to needles, and she was very caring and understanding. They were both very easy to talk to and really listened to everything I said - and sometimes I probably talk too much to doctors, which most of the time is just nervous chatter. But anyway, enough flattery to my doctor - on to my appointment...

I had to fill out the usual paperwork, they asked the usual questions, and he did a quick skin check all over. He said that it's perfectly normal for skin tags and freckly spots to change and/or grow over time, as long as they are not multi-colored or asymmetrical. He felt as though all my spots seemed to be fairly normal and of no concern at this time. The mole that started off all of this panic was removed (I will spare you the gory details - and no icky pics of any of it either), mainly because it was becoming larger and could eventually get snagged on or irritated from rubbing on my clothes. Overall, he said it looked to be a typical mole, worthy of no other cause for concern. It will be sent for testing anyway, as is office policy with any biopsy or removal, and I should know the results either way in about 2 weeks. I was in and out of the exam room in about 25-30 minutes, and only waited about 5 or 10 minutes after finishing the paperwork. I felt about 50 times better after the visit was over - it's amazing how anxiety can wreak havoc on you! Even my hubby said "welcome back" later on and how he could see the difference in me compared to how I was earlier today and yesterday.

So the worst part of the whole visit was the local anesthetic. The needle was nothing compared to the actual anesthetic itself - that stuff can really burn! Kind of makes me feel like it contradicts itself...supposed to be numbing, but causes a decent amount of discomfort to get there! Now the numbness has definitely worn off, and I feel pretty sore in that area. It started feeling mostly like a bruise, but it has gotten a little worse as the night went on, and cleaning with peroxide didn't feel too great, so I will be taking some pain medicine and hoping for a restful, comfortable night. Now I just wait for my test results and hope there's nothing abnormal about them. I'm not nearly as nervous about that, especially since he seemed to think it was pretty normal, but I'm sure some worried thoughts might creep in there every now and then until I know for sure. Keeping my fingers crossed and thinking positive!

I didn't get any crafting done today due to this appointment, lack of concentration, and no motivation, so I'm hoping to accomplish a lot tomorrow for the yard sale at my parents on Saturday. Also, I will be making a made-over Chinese takeout dinner tomorrow, courtesy of recipes from Hungry Girl. On the menu: wonton soup, crab rangoons, shrimp egg rolls, and chicken lo mein. 1 serving of each item comes to a total of 611 calories! It's a little more than my usual calorie count for dinner, so I will have to adjust my calorie intake accordingly earlier in the day, but could you just imagine what the calorie count would be at for all that food from a Chinese takeout place?!? Maybe I'll figure it out and post it with an update on how everything turned out.

PS - Happy Birthday to my dad! Didn't get to see him today, but possibly will tomorrow evening. Hope he likes his gifts!