The Life of Taylor and Drew

Implanon - Day 3

2010-08-11T13:09:00.001-07:00

So my bruise has pretty much just gotten more yellow and green. No pain at all on movement anymore and no soreness. It feels fine, just looks kinda icky still. Here are a few pictures:

1. This was yesterday, it was still more blue in color.

2. Here it is without the lovely orange bandaid. You can see how tiny the insertion site is.

3. This is today. Much more yellow/green. Still have the bandaid on, probably not much longer, though.

I don't really feel any different. So, all's good for now. I don't know that I'll go into too gory or personal of details on here, but generalities and photos of the site I can still do for now. haha.

In other news, I was able to pass and re-new my license - woohoo! The bad news is I had to take a new picture, and of course, I have my braces now. Yuck. And the license is good for another 8 years - so I'll probably be paying for a new picture at some point once my braces are taken off, haha.

Pretty boring day today. I'm reading Eragon, which is a teen series that my mother-in-law recommended and I'm really enjoying so far. Perhaps I'll hit up the pool tomorrow...

Implanon - Day 2

2010-08-10T08:17:00.001-07:00

First, some pictures from yesterday...
1. The huge goofy bandage that makes me look like I was in a car wreck or something.

2. The site compared to a dime. The insertion site is tiny - looks like a freckle!

3. A view of my upper arm. The bruise to the left of insertion site is where the Implanon rod is.

That's it for now with pictures...

Well, last night my arm started to ache a bit - like I'd bumped something and it had a bruise. I took a couple of Tylenol and it was fine. I woke up this morning and it's not too sore at all. Haven't taken off the bandage I put over it last night before bed (I was afraid I would mess with it in my sleep). Will update later if any changes should occur. I've got to go now and get ready to go and renew my driver's license. I have to take the signs test again...!??!

Implanon - Day 1 - Aug 9, 2010

2010-08-09T11:49:00.001-07:00

Cool, today is 8-9-10.... anywho... Today I had Implanon placed in my left arm. I have decided to try (and that's a big word, "try," because I am not a regular blogger) to blog about my experience with Implanon. I was frustrated in my search for a long-term but reversible birth control method because I had no friends who had used Implanon, so I was lacking in that friendly-advice type of information relating to it. I am hoping this blog might provide this for some of my friends in the future.

First, the reason why I opted for Implanon. I have been taking the pill since 2008, first Yaz, then Alese, then Yaz again and then Ocella. Yaz was great but I had breakthrough bleeding, and switching to Ocella stopped that. The trouble with the pill overall, though, was that since starting the pill my blood pressure has been high - constantly - it runs around 135/90, which is not good for someone my age. Healthy is 120/80 over less. My doctors said that the pill is probably what raised my blood pressure. Having blood pressure constantly that high is not a good thing, so that was the main reason I wanted to switch to Implanon. My docs said that since Implanon does not have the estrogens that the pill does, the negative effects on my blood pressure should be less. So that's great. We'll see. I'll keep you posted on that. Another PLUS to Implanon is that it is good for 3 years, and doesn't involve any daily pill-taking. It's just a small flexible plastic rod (about 1 inch big) placed in my upper left arm, where it will remain for the next 3 years. I love that I don't have to remember to take a pill every day!! So liberating.

Now for my worries about Implanon. The main reason the doc today said that women have it taken out is irregularity of periods, and sometimes heavy bleeding. Sounds awesome - not. I've never had much trouble in terms of cramps or heaviness, so I'm hoping my body in general will accept it and be alright, nothing too out of the ordinary. Even if it is annoying sometimes, if my blood pressure goes to a more normal level it will be well worth it. My second main worry with Implanon is scarring. I had a mole removed on my thigh about 2 years ago and the scar is horrible - red, huge, and ugly - it's about 6cm long and 1cm wide... right on my upper thigh.. I hate it. So I don't want another visible scar on my upper arm! The incision for placement today was super tiny (photos to come). The only issue can arise when removal time comes, because if the implanon has shifted places and moved to a more difficult spot, it may have to be removed with a more extensive surgery. So I'm just hoping mine will stay right where it is and not cause any trouble.

Now about 2 hours post "surgery" I am sitting here with no pain. I haven't felt any yet. Every now and then I feel a little bit of a "pulse" in the area, but I think it's just because the bandage is pretty tight. No discomfort, though. They used a little bit of lidocaine for the insertion (it did require a needle stick, but not bad at all) and then my doc placed the Implanon with the quite large needle-delivery-device thing -- but it was painless. Just a little pressure. The whole process took maybe 10 minutes. It was easy, I got to keep my clothes on and didn't have to wear a silly gown, and it was just overall a nice experience. I felt the Implanon in my arm afterward - kinda weird that you can feel it, but at the same time nice to know it's there and hasn't moved!

That's all I can think about for now. I will post some pics tomorrow when I take the bandage off and keep everyone posted. Ask any questions in the comments and I'll try to answer :)

We're Aliiiive!

2010-08-02T12:26:00.001-07:00

Wow, I never blog. I do habitually read other people's blogs, though. I've started following a lot of folks who have adopted or are in the process of adopting children. We just had a series at our church (The Summit Church) on adoption, and it's something we think is such a beautiful demonstration of the gospel. I've enjoyed reading about their stories and their lives so much I felt like updating all 1 (one) of our blog's followers on our own life. Haha.

I'm currently off on a 5-week break from school. It's probably the last long summer stint I'll have off. Drew is, most unfortunately, not off on break. His break was in May/June, and he spent all but one week of it studying for the first part of his National Boards - NBME 1. We are so grateful to all of you - Tom & Kathy, Mike & Ruth, Lorna, Manny, Collin and so many other friends and family members who kept Drew in their prayers while he studied. His diligence paid off and he exceeded even his own expectations. We are so excited about what the future holds for us! It was a huge relief to have that exam completed, particularly successfully!

Next year, third year dental for me and medical for Drew, is supposed to be the busiest and most challenging yet. This is proving to be true already in Drew's case, as his third year began at the end of June. He's in his Pediatric block right now and enjoying the experience. I can already tell that it is going to be a very different year since both of us will be gone for 10-12 hours now every day. We hope we can figure out something for the poor doggies. We'll see.

I think I am finished for now, going to go and read. That's mostly what I've been up to over my break, other than a short trip to my parents' house to visit and also a bit of cleaning here. I have found some good reads - I recommend The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins (the third book of the series, "Mockinjay," comes out on 08/24/10 just in time for me to start back at school). I have also read Moore's "Adopted for Life," Young's "The Shack," Larsson's "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," and a couple of books by John Piper. My favorites, though, were The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. This week there will likely be much more reading going on, as I am on call as a Dental Assistant until next Monday at 8AM. Let's hope I don't get called in at 2AM for anything crazy. I'm off for now - who knows when or if I'll update again :)

Fluoride

2009-03-04T15:30:00.001-08:00

So, we had a three-lecture series on Fluoride at school and I wanted to blog a little about it for all my friends and family members with kiddos since a few of you have asked me about Fluoride or when you should take the little'uns to the dentist!! If you're a dental person and you're reading this and there's anything that is inconsistent with what you know, share in the comments!! :)

So first, relating to dentist visits, the recommendation now is that you take your child to the dentist on/around his or her first birthday. This is so the dentist can see the child early and make recommendations specific to his or her needs. They look at your child's fluoride exposure, parent's history of cavities, diet etc. They can at that time make diet recommendations, fluoride supplement recommendations if necessary, toothbrushing/toothpaste recommendations, that are all unique to your child's cavity-prevention needs.

It's important to take your child to the dentist around 1 to start getting him or her used to going to the dentist and also to catch early anything that could place him or her at higher risk for getting cavities (like low fluoride exposure, sugary/starchy diet, weak enamel). Your little one's permanent front teeth are forming in the gums underneath their baby teeth between 1 and 3 years old, so you want to visit the dentist right before that time period begins to be sure you're doing everything right according to his/her needs while those teeth are growing.

One of the biggest risks in this time period of 1-3 years is of fluorosis of the front teeth that are forming. Fluorosis is the formation of little white spots on the tooth enamel caused by overexposure to fluoride during tooth development. This minor fluorosis is not necessarily a bad thing, the white spots are actually more resistant to cavities, but many people do not like the look of the spots. Moreover, ingesting an excessive amount of fluoride can result in more severe fluorosis. This involves enamel that is actually weak and can result in permanent brown spots on the teeth.

The excess Fluoride exposure generally comes from toothpaste ingestion, not fluoridated water. Children under six are not good at spitting - they swallow 80% of the toothpaste or mouthwash they may be using. Especially if they like the taste of the toothpaste! This results in WAY more fluoride being ingested than the recommended daily dose. Most toothpastes in the US, even children's toothpastes, have about 1000ppm (parts per million) of fluoride, whereas optimally fluoridated water has just 1ppm. On a side note - if you get water from a well - ask the dentist about how to check its Fluoride level where you live. You could have really low or really high Fluoride in your well water, all depending on the ground and rocks that the water is running through.

1ppm is equivalent to 0.001mg/mL. The recommended amount of fluoride is 0.05mg of Fluoride per killogram of body weight per day (0.05mg Fluoride/kg/day)... so the average two year old weighing 10kgs (20ish pounds) should only ingest 0.50mgF per day.

A pea sized amount of toothpaste contains 0.25mgF (see photo below of black brush with white toothpaste), so brushing twice a day with a pea sized amount would reach that recommended daily fluoride dose if the child swallowed most of the toothpaste. That 0.50mg, though, is the maximum amount of fluoride he or she should get in the day - but he/she is still getting fluoride from food and water! So the child in total exposure is actually receiving more than the recommended amount of daily fluroide, most of which is coming from ingested toothpaste (yummy!)...

SO for children under three, it is recommended that you use a "lateral smear" of toothpaste for brushing. For infants with only a few teeth, toothpaste is not even necessary (if any of their teeth are touching - floss!). A toothbrush alone can work just fine to clean off the teeth. But once the child has a few teeth with contacts use only the 'lateral smear' of toothpaste to avoid ingesion of too much toothpaste and resultant overexposure to fluoride. The teal toothbrush photo is of a lateral smear of toothpaste - it is about the size of a grain of rice.

Also, mommies, remember that a cavity is actually a disease spread by bacteria. It is a specific type of bacteria, called Strep mutans, that are eating sugar and creating acid digestion products that are melting away the tooth. Your child is not born with this bacteria in their mouth - they are exposed to it by their loved ones, most often mom. So be sure not to share spoons or give too many kisses on the lips as these could spread the bacteria from your mouth to your baby's. This is definitely a bigger deal if you have cavities, and not such a big deal if you have a healthy mouth. If you're healthy - you probably don't have very many Strep mutans to share!

And a final word to all the parents out there, it is recommended that you help your child with brushing and flossing until 6-7 years of age. Before that time they do not have the manual dexterity to reach all of their teeth and clean them well - particularly the back molars. Even once those six year molars grow in they will need help brushing way back there (and be sure to go to the dentist once those 6 year molars come in and get SEALANTS on those teeth if the dentist thinks they would help reduce your child's risk of cavities)! Sealants are great for most kids. Those 6 year molars are the FIRST permanent teeth your child will have - many parents do not even notice when they grow in - but they often have very deep grooves, are not cleaned well by the young brushers, and develop cavities if not sealed. So get to the dentist once you notice them and ask about sealants!

K so summary --- get your little cutie to the dentist around 1, use a lateral smear of toothpaste for little ones under three, help them brush (and floss!) until around age 6, and ask about sealants.

Any questions?? E-mail me! I just learned all this stuff and it's super fun!

Windshield

2009-01-01T17:33:00.000-08:00

Well, I drove to see my friend Annie in Fayetteville last Sunday and a rock must have hit my windshield. Yesterday Drew and I got in to take my car over to see his sister and her family and we noticed a 4 inch crack growing from the side of my front windshield! My response was NOOOO! I am so fed up with having to fix things with my car, so I was not happy.

Drew was great today, though, and called the Safelite glass place and he found out not only that they can repair my car tomorr0w (hooray for not having to deal with it once school starts back up) but our INSURANCE will cover the cost of the repair. As long as the crack is smaller than a dollar bill (which it is right now) it's covered. So let's just pray it's not in a crummy spot that requires the whole windshield to somehow be replaced... because then it's a $500 deductible. Boooo.

In other news.... we sold our coffee table & 2 end tables on Craigslist finally for a quick $75 buckaroos - that was nice!! Drew's mom was in town the past few days and it was good to see her and the Dowd family. It was nice to get some use out of our guest bedroom, too, because we rarely have people over to stay during the school year since the guest room is Drew's office.

Sooooo definitely more positive things have occurred lately than bad :) Drew and I got to see The Curious Life of Benjamin Button which was.... curious. It was interesting... but I don't know yet if I really liked it. It was kind of strange in a Forest Gump-y kind of way, but I enjoyed watching it even though it was quite long. We also rented Burn After Reading (ehh horrible) and The Dutchess (good). I love movies.

We've also been reading. Drew's read all four Twilight books over break - how awesome is that? I love my husband :) It's fun to talk to him about them. I re-read the Twilight series at the beginning of break, then I started The Appeal by John Grisham as "airport reading" but have yet to finish it. Now I'm reading Running Scared: Fear, Worry and the God of Rest by Ed Welch. It's really great for a chronic worrier like myself. I want to send it to my mom so she can read it, too... chronic worrying is in our genes ;) Moreso in hers even than mine. haha

Mkay, I think I'll post a few more pictures from the wedding here! This is me and two of my nieces (Drew's sister's little girls) Sadie & Mia.

Forgotten Blog

2008-12-27T15:32:00.001-08:00

Well, I totally forgot I created this blog until I was piddling around on my cousin's blog and clicked to follow hers, and my own popped up! W-O-W!

So huge update since the last post.... we've been married over six months now - ta da!! We had a wonderful weeklong honeymoon in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. We had our first married Christmas a few days ago in Texas. We were there visiting family from the 21st - 26th (27th, actually, because our flight was delayed so much we had to catch a later one because we missed our connection...). I loved getting to finally meet little Preston and spend time with my cousins - we're all so grown up now - sad!

I really miss Texas. It was a lot of fun to be down there and see everyone. I will be taking boards next Christmas break, but we'll see if I can motivate myself to do them early and maybe we'll head back to Texas... if we can afford it, haha. All our Christmas money gifts went to paying for the doggies' kennel --- which did help -- so it's definitely doable. It was sad leaving our babies, Dougal and Scout, in some kennel for a whole week. It was a nice place, but they didn't sleep. They have been pooped out on their bed since we brought them home at noon (after a quick bath to de-stinkify them). Poor guys.

Well, in other news... Drew and I completed our first semester of Medical and Dental school, respectively. We're really enjoying school, even though it's super-tough. I am excited to finally have patients in the summer, but there's a LOT to learn before then. I'm thinking about Pediatrics as a specialty, but I won't really know for sure until I have shadowed within the different specialties. Drew is thinking about opthalmology or ENT (Ear Nose Throat), but again he'll know more after experiencing the specialties first hand.

Well, that's it for now. Since I don't start school back until January 5th, I may blog again... assuming I don't forget about it again ;-)

Wedding

2008-05-28T21:59:00.000-07:00

Well, I've decided to create a blog as a means of relaying the ins and outs of our daily lives to all of our friends and family members, wherever they may be. Enjoy!

There is, of course, a lot going on right now as our wedding is only 10 days (okay 9 days, 13 hours, 58 minutes) away! We have been working a lot this week at The Cheese. We both work double shifts tomorrow, and then we're off for three days to move in to OUR apartment! SO EXCITING!!