This is where the story begins. Dan & I had concert tickets to see k.flay in SF at the Regency Ballroom. As we walked out the door, it occurred to us, that even though it's a two hour drive, we may want to grab a hotel and drive home in the morning instead of after the concert. We grabbed a last minute room at the very cool Music Museum, just blocks away from the venue and next to a secure, less expensive, parking garage. On drive down, my abdomen started to hurt. Like I ate something funny or was grappling with gas, or something else... Hoping it would pass, I drank plenty of water and looked for pain meds in the car....

Incidentally, Dan and I were in San Diego the weekend prior for a fun weekend trip (plane tickets were $29 each way!) and there I had too little water to drink and too many adult beverages. By the time we were flying home, I decided to try and drink ALL the water we had purchased and not finished before boarding the plane. SD is not a far trip by plane so I figured I could hold my bladder the whole way home. Introducing one way to get a bladder infection. Wasn't sure if it was a full blown infection or not, I self medicated through the week and figured by Friday I would go in to the clinic and see if I indeed was suffering from a mild bladder and/or ear infection. Results were negative :( So off I went with the advice of "if you have low back pain, a fever or vomiting, seek help right away." That never happens...

So we get to the concert and settle in our chairs for the opener (yes, we're old enough to want to sit in the chairs on the balcony instead of standing around for hours in the GA pit). My tummy is starting to hurt a bit more and I'm starting to get a little nauseous. I chalk it up to not eating much during the day. I try a Dorito and on the second bite I'm hit with overwhelming nausea. Perfect timing because the first set just ended (read with sarcasm as this is the worst time to go to the ladies room with an urgent matter). I found a private bathroom by luck and well, it didn't go so well. As I made my way upstairs to catch the second act, I hoped I would feel better now that my guts were emptied. Nope. As the second act started up, I started Googling the closest ER because the pain in my abdomen is starting to go into my low back. I see myself practicing Lamaze breathing (the one used in childbirth to handle the pain) and realize, I need to go to the ER - this is not getting better. I lean over to Dan and say "I'm really not doing well, there's a Sutter (our medical network) ER two blocks away. I'm going to walk over and see if they'll take me." Dan had no idea that the pain was getting this bad. He got ready to go with me but I insisted that he sit tight and catch as much of the show as possible. Rationale being we were in the middle of the Tenderloin on a Saturday night- the wait in the ER could be hours! And what if they didn't think I needed to be seen? Also, two blocks, Dan could jog over in a jiffy if something was up AND we had the ability to text each other.

I walk into an empty ER and am immediately admitted. By this time, the walk was a bad idea because it just amplified the pain, I'm doubled over and starting to cry. Last time I had this much pain, I had pancreatitis and got my gallbladder removed. Pain and anti-nausea meds on board with a bag of saline and I finally start feeling better. The suspicion is kidney stones. CT scan ordered to take a look. Nothing found regarding stones except a VERY angry bladder and kidneys. Did the whole pee in a cup thing and come to find out, I have off the charts bacterial infection (plus some evidence of passed stones). Surprise. I am released with anti-biotics and anti-nausea meds. Next day I feel great and we head home.

So, after an ER visit, the medical team advises you follow up with primary care physician. Saw my doctor as a follow up and asked about a notation on the CT findings mentioning a partial image of my lung and some nodule finding. He ordered a CT scan of the lung to follow up as the findings suggested. I left town to visit my sister and got the first available CT appointment when I returned to town.

Exactly one month after that fateful ER trip (March 12th), on April 12th the results of my CT scan came back.