The Road So Far

Survival isn't just a statistic; it's finding laughter in the shadows, savoring unexpected joys. So, let's dive into 'The Road So Far.' Subscribe to Spitefully Yours—where every twist, turn, and tale is more than a story. It's a celebration of resilience, spiced with a touch of spite.

In this episode, I discuss my surgery, what got me there, and how my life almost ended due to circumstances beyond my control. Don't worry, I'm okay now! Sort of. haha

Don't miss out on the wit, the wisdom, and the wickedly beautiful stories. Subscribe now to Spitefully Yours, where every story, including yours, matters.

***Note: I want to apologize for the audio in this episode. Background music levels will be corrected in future episodes.***

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c. 2024/Andrea Welker/Bad Doggie Productions

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Episode Transcript

Andrea (00:02):
There's a picture that was taken about 2 months after
my surgery. And in the picture,you'll see me. My hair's a mess.
I'm smiling, but I look a littletired. But this feeling of
relief is across my face.

(00:23):
In the photo with me, there'sAnnie, my dog. The 4 legged
promise that kept me going, whenI didn't think I had anything
else left to give. You see, Ihad been through something

(00:45):
immensely challenging and itwore me down to the point where
one thing that kept me going wasif I survive this, I'm gonna get
a dog. You see, I was in a raceagainst time. It was a year long

(01:06):
wait for a life saving surgeryto remove tumors, uterine
fibroids, that were so largethey were killing me.
The surgery to save my lifeincluded a hysterectomy, a liver
resection, a hernia repair.There was endometriosis in my

(01:31):
abdomen too that they had toremove as well. Four surgeries
that were performed at once.Copic or go home. Right?
My husband was initially againstthe idea of getting another pet.

(01:51):
He travelled a lot for work, andso did I, but when he saw my
energy draining, when he saw thecolour leaving my face and my
body showing signs of startingto shut down, he did his best to
distract me, to remind me thatsurgery could fix the problem,

(02:14):
that if I just hung in there alittle longer, things would get
better. And he begged me not todie. And there was a certain
point where I was beggingmyself. I literally felt like I

(02:35):
was about to implode on a dailybasis, but I fought through the
pain through the darkest momentsto make it to my surgery.
And trust me, I was way sickerthan anyone knew. Every day, it

(02:56):
felt like a countdown. Thetumors were growing. They were
crushing my organs, puttingpressure on my spine. According
to everyone around me, I lookedlike a walking corpse.
I was so weak, so tired. Icouldn't keep my eyes open. I

(03:19):
couldn't eat. I couldn't sleep.I couldn't even keep water down.
When they finally got me tosurgery, the liver cyst was so
large that I looked 7 monthspregnant. And there was so much

(03:44):
pressure in my body that myliver cyst ruptured in the
middle of surgery. My body justcouldn't take it anymore. They
removed a piece of my liver,about the size of the deck of
playing cards. And after thatfull year of waiting, The best

(04:12):
part was I found out my tumorswere not cancerous.
They suspected they weren't,but, you know, fibroid tumors
are rarely cancerous. However,cancer runs heavily in my
family, and I needed to know.Everything went as well as could

(04:37):
be expected, but I wondered asmuch as I had endured, as much
as I had been misdiagnosed,disregarded, and treated like I
was less than anything, if therewas any type of silver lining at
all, and after all of that, Iwas still standing, So now, it

(05:07):
gave me a new mission, a newfocus. Before I got sick, I had
been a life coach and had apractice and an old podcast,
like helping people get throughthings. But because I was sick,
I had to stop all of that Notreally hurt, but at the same

(05:31):
time I've learned that no matterwhat change will happen, so we
just have to go with it.
What kind of example would it beif I didn't focus on healing
myself? So I became a patientadvocate, And I used all the

(06:05):
anger I had about how I had beentreated to help myself and
others change their lives andnavigate a broken health care
system. And that's what the showis about, really. I'm inviting
you to join me in reflecting onsurvival and unexpected joys and

(06:30):
the power of embracing spite andthe spite that drives us, the
stories that inspires, and thepeople that we meet along the
way to just keep fighting. Youknow, the biggest thing we can

(07:00):
do is just keep going.

(07:22):
So join me every week as we tellmy story and where I help you
write yours. Where we learn howto go through all of the things
that we face with chronicillness and learning how to cope

(07:45):
with it and all of the aspectsthat go along with the health
care system in America andgetting the treatment and the
healing that we deserve. Learnwith me how to be your own best
advocate. Develop practices thathelp you get the treatment that

(08:08):
you need. I know it's a heavyjourney out there sometimes, but
together, we can do this.
We can make a difference. That'swhat Taggier taught me. This is

(08:31):
Andrea Walker, and I remainalways spitefully yours. Thanks
for listening. To hear moreepisodes of the spiteful yours
podcast, please like, subscribe,and share for more content And

(08:55):
behind the scenes, exclusivesneak peeks about what's
happening next.
I'll see you next week. Bye fornow.