As the World Turns-Up Side Down!

It all started last December. Trent bumped his hip on the corner of the wall in our house. He was playing nerf wars with the boys. He didn't think much of it until a couple of weeks later. He noticed his hip was sore and couldn't remember why. We finally figured it out and I wondered if he had chipped the bone in his hip or cracked it. By February I had decided it was bursitis and he just needed a cortisone shot and it would all be better. He went to the Health Center at UNL and saw Dr. Garrett who told him it was a hematoma and that it would get better by itself after several months.

A couple of weeks later it was getting worse so he went back to Dr. Garrett. He sent him to a surgeon because it would need to be surgically removed. So Trent went to see Dr. Benjamin Hung. He agreed that it was a hematoma and proceeded to remove 120 cc of blood to relieve some of the pressure until surgery was possible. We were waiting for insurance because the university insurance was insufficient because Trent was done with classes and was only working on his thesis. Trent was told to call when he had insurance and they would schedule a surgery.

We shopped around a little bit for insurance and found that most would not cover it because it was a pre-existing condition. During this time I had told my boss, Craig Larabee, about the bump on Trent's hip. He encouraged me to bump up my hours to 32/week so I could qualify for benefits. So in April I did this and would be eligible for benefits May 1.

Meanwhile Dr. Garrett had called to check up on Trent. He suggested that Trent have an MRI and blood test before he had any surgery. We thought that was pretty good advice.

So on Monday, May 3, Trent scheduled an MRI for Tuesday May 4. After the MRI he was supposed to go the next day to look at it and schedule surgery. Well, upon returning home he received a call from the nurse, Lisa, who said he should come the next day and bring me for support. That sent off all kinds of alarms! Trent called me at work and told me this. I literally felt my stomach drop to the floor. He was emotional and it was all I could do to keep it together.

That night was the longest of both of our lives. I think we probably got one hour of sleep between the two of us. We let our parents know about the MRI and told them we would call with any news.