God Never Left Me: Tasha’s Transformation Story

In the summer of 2012, my left ankle began to give me trouble by swelling and being very painful. The doctor ordered x-rays and MRI’s. I ended wearing an air cast for one year, because I refused to have any surgical intervention. I finally relented in 2013 and agreed to surgery. After surgery, I began to experience migraines and had to see a specialist for them. My ankle pain and swelling never got better. After a few weeks, the orthopedist referred me to a specialist that only specialized in lower legs, ankle, and feet. Once there, another x-ray was performed along with blood work. The doctor’s office called the next day to inform me that I had no vitamin D in my body and I needed to see a rheumatologist ASAP.

The rheumatologist drew more blood work to see if I had rheumatoid arthritis or some other autoimmune disorder. It took a few days for all the results to come back, but when they did, the doctor came in to give my results and told me that I had Lupus. I heard nothing else she told me that day.

All I remember thinking was who is going to take care of my son, how am I going to live with this, and again  who is going to take care of my son. There was so much I had to do and couldn’t do concerning this disorder. My cousin passed away at the age of 13 from Lupus. I was scared, nervous, anxious, worried, and blank. I had orders that had to be carried out before I could ever begin to take the prescribed medications. I had to talk with and explain to my husband and son what was going on. Before I ever had a chance to tell my family about my illness, I got sick.

At first I thought I was coming down with the flu. I was aching and in pain. I got shots of antibiotics and steroids. I made an appointment with my neurologist, who thought it may be associated with the Lupus. The next day, I had a full blown “flair”. I was hospitalized, and it was then that my family learned of my illness. I was in for a few days for IV fluids and IV pain management. Everything hurt, even the slightest touch. I was discharged and finished my pre-regimen for my medication.

In May 2014 my son experienced a bout with tachycardia. He had a temporary pacemaker placed at 10 months old and the Dr.’s never knew what caused his heart problems nor if he would experience them again. He was scheduled to have his procedure on his heart in June 2014. Once again, I was a nervous wreck, full of unknown emotions. Meanwhile, my GI doctor had previously referred me to a GI specialist in Jackson who could perform an upper GI endoscopy (EGD) with endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), meaning she could run a light down with a camera in order to place a banding because I struggled with nausea and vomiting for several years. Before being put to sleep, we explained to the anesthesiologist that I normally get sick from anesthesia.

So they gave me some medication to keep that from happening and I had an allergic reaction to the medication prior to the procedure. I had to be given IV Benadryl. Once the procedure was over and I was in recovery. The nurse came in with a solemn look and told me and my friend, Ashley who always went to my procedures with me, that once I left I should go straight home and get some rest. We looked at each other and were like, “no” because we had plans to eat and shop once we left. I’d been through this before with anesthesia, and I usually just shake it off. I had gotten sick and thrown up, but I was going to be ok. The doctor came in and sat on the bed with me. She said, “Mrs. Lane (my married name at the time), while doing your procedure, I was in the midst of doing the EUS and passed the light pass your pancreas and found a tumor.” Ashley immediately began to cry, but I was still a little out of it from the anesthesia, so I didn’t really comprehend.

She tells me that I have to see a surgeon ASAP because this is serious. I tell her that I can’t because my son had to have surgery on his heart that following week. She instantly broke down. She said, “ok, I’ll give you time to take care of your son, maybe three weeks. Then you have to see the surgeon. I’m making the appointment personally. You will be getting the call.” Ashley and I headed to leave. When she asked me if I wanted to go home, I told her no, we had plans.

However once we made it to Olive Gardens, what the doctor said really hit me. I began to cry. Who was going to care for my son? I was the one to take care of people not the other way around. Why was this happening to me?

I called my family in for a meeting, something I never do because I’m a very private person. I informed them of my son’s situation and my entire situation. Once my son was taken care of, the doctor called as promised with the appointment date and time. At the initial appointment, the surgeon scheduled a CT scan followed by another EGD with EUS. Upon the next appointment, it was shown that the tumor was mimicking my pancreas. The surgeon then wanted the GI doctor to see if she could tatoo the tumor so that it would show itself and whether it was in the tail or body of the pancreas.

In the process of all the procedures, I ended up admitted to the hospital with pancreatitis. The date of the surgery was finally scheduled. December 29, 2014 at 5:00 am we, (my husband, my friend, and myself) arrived at The Baptist (Hospital). Surgery was scheduled to last approximately three hours, and it took seven hours. The tumor was thought to be in the tail of my pancreas was actually in the body. I made it out of recovery and into my room. I got up and walked to the restroom just fine. The next morning I attempted to do the same thing. I sat on side of the bed and the next thing I remember was the doctor and nurses were standing over my head. My blood level dropped and I had to have two units of blood transfused. I was in for one week.

I was discharged home and was so happy. The next day, I noticed a small knot on the left side of my neck. I called the doctor, and he told me to come to his office in Hazlehurst the next morning. Once I made it to his office, he assessed me and sent me directly back to The Baptist where I was admitted. I now had a blood clot in my left jugular (neck) vein and in my abdomen. I ended up having to have IV heparin and being sent home on medications to take and having my blood levels checked weekly. I started to feel nauseated and couldn’t keep anything down. The doctor ordered another CT scan. It showed I had a pancreatic pseudo cyst. I was admitted again and had to have a drain inserted into the cyst along with a stent placed in my pancreas. I was discharged home with the drain.

A few days later, I became sick again and was readmitted. I ended up with pneumonia and pleurisy. I ended up with a chest tube along with my drain. My lung wouldn’t re-inflate. They tried several times to place the chest tube. I had to have medication inserted into the tube to try and re-inflate my lung. I had to have several stents placed and removed over the course of six months. I had a total of seven units of blood transfused. I almost gave up, BUT GOD!!!!

I know my test is still going, but this part of my testimony I have yet to fully share. In the midst of all this, I lost my baby 7/7/11, my mom 9/19/11, my dad 9/19/13, and my grandmother 9/22/14. My husband walked out and left us 9/30/15, BUT GOD!!!! I still give God all the praise and glory. In the midst of my trials and tribulations, God never left me.

All of these events gave me the courage to step out on faith and live my best life. God gave me another chance to do what it is that I love to do, and that is nursing. He gave me the faith to pursue my passion of being a travel nurse, as a single mom and still be able to see my son graduate college with his associate’s degree. I have now decided to go back and further my career in nursing, so I’m currently enrolled in school. Going through this life changing experience, it really made me take a look at my entire life, surroundings, and the people in my life. I became even more humble and grateful for everything God has blessed me with and continues to bless me with. I realize that everything I went through was not for me, but for someone else who needed to know of God’s wonderful grace, mercy, and healing powers. I have become a better Christian, mother, sister, friend, nurse, and person because of all I’ve gone through and continue to go through on a daily basis. I’m so much more empathetic to my patients and their families now, because I know what I’ve experienced and how it impacted my life. I’m now an advocate for the lupus foundation and try to reach out to others in my area that may have lupus to let them know they are not alone. We have to support one another and find ways to get through day to day living together. I am also an advocate for pancreatic cancer survivors as well.

-Tasha Wilson

Edited by Francheska “Fancy” Felder.