Picture Perfect

I won't bore you (or gross you out) with the pictures, but I am sure that you will be thrilled to know that you have been reading the blog of someone with a "beautiful" esophagus. That's right. I said "esophagus." I will explain.

I have suffered...and by that I mean SUFFERED...for years with acid reflux. It got so bad about 4 1/2 years ago that I thought I was having a heart attack. I was returning to my car from shopping at Tanger Outlet Mall. I love that place. No crowds. Close parking. But I digress. Walking across the parking lot I began having severe chest pains. I got in the car and just sat for a few minutes while the pain moved up into my left shoulder and into my neck and jaw. It scared me. Before I even pulled out of the parking lot I called my doctor and scheduled an appointment. A doctor visit, a cardiology referral and a few dozen tests later I was referred to my gastroenterologist, Dr. Zopolsky. I love this man. He's like a life-sized Weeble. As sweet as they come. Anyhoo, he scheduled me for a surgical procedure called an EGD. Bottom line, they put you to sleep and run a scope down your throat to look at your stomach and esophagus. My esophagus was severely inflamed and that little flap that covers your esophagus was having a field day with spasms...thus the pain. A high dosage of omeprazole and I've been good to go. Or so I thought. On my most recent visit in order to get my prescription renewed another year, Dr. Z informed me that I needed another EGD done...and will apparently have to have one done every 4 or 5 years. It seems that acid reflux puts you at a much greater risk for esophageal and throat cancer. Oh boy.

So, on Monday of this week we trekked off to the surgical center AT 5:30 IN THE MORNING!!! The only good thing about that was that I knew that I could go back to sleep during the procedure and that the "anesthesia hangover" would let me actually REST while sleeping the day away.

Oh, yeah. There was the post-surgical report from Dr. Z that I have a "beautiful" esophagus. So. There you have it. Eat your heart out all of you with plain and/or ugly esophaguses...esophagi? Whatever.

And for my doofus brother-in-law, Keith: No, they do not use the same equipment they used with the colonoscopy of the patient before you!