When Parents Are Ill: Explaining Serious Health Problems To A Child With Special Needs

On 10/25/13 after several mammograms I was diagnosed with suspicious cluster of calcifications in my right breast and two breast biopsies were recommended. MONK does not like change and to minimize the stress and anxiety for him, we have found that it is best to preview and prepare for all new situations and transitions in advance. Hubby and I explained to MONK what was going on and when my biopies would happen. We answered his questions and outwardly he seemed oblivious to what is going on, but since he doesn’t show his emotions we think our explanations probably calmed him somewhat and he knows what to expect.

As for my breast biopsies, Hubby describes it as a “long day”. He waited in a small room while my breast was trapped (I think they did that so I couldn’t run away) and the radiologist numbed it with a shot of some kind of anesthetic. She then inserted a hollow needle into my breast while x-rays helped her guide it to the suspicious area (she did this twice). Next she put a very thin wire through the center of each needle and a small hook at the end of the wire kept it in place. The radiologist then removed the hollow needle and the wire was left to guide the surgeon to the abnormal areas. The infamous time finally arrived and I was wheeled away to an operating room where I hopped onto a table that looked exactly like the ones they use at prison for lethal injections and was put under. While I was out the surgeon removed two ping pong size amounts of tissue from the areas that were marked and they were sent to the lab. I woke up in the Recovery Room and stayed there for a bit. Later Hubby took me home where I watched a “Game of Thrones” (Season 1 & 2) DVD marathon.

Now the waiting game begins.