Dr. Mohammed...Iraq Street...Gall Bladder in a Jar???

Not long after we moved here Stacey began having a little stomach trouble. This is common for people who move to a new place so we just kept thinking she would get better. About 3 weeks ago she went to see a doctor and he said that she just needed to live here for 1 year and eat the food and then she would be fine. WRONG!!!

This past week Stacey had another stomach attack that was unbearable so we knew we had to do something. We contacted another doctor by the name of Mohammed and he told us to have an ultrasound and then come see him. The results showed gall stones, and Stacey was admitted into the hospital the next morning. We were given directions to the hospital so we could tell the taxi driver where to go. The final destination was on Iraq Street!!!!

We arrived at the hospital the next morning by taxi after we dropped off all of the children at school. We had several visitors keep us company while Stacey waited for surgery. THANKS, GUYS! Finally after a few hours of waiting it was time for surgery.

The nurses wheeled me (Stacey) into the surgery room where I was greeted by MANY Arabic speaking people. I said, “Hi, how are you?” in Arabic and they all crowded around my gurney to see what other words I knew. The nurses were so sweet saying things like, “You are so sweet! You are so beautiful! You are a sweetie!” Then the anesthesiologist told me to count backwards from 10 to 1, so I thought it would entertain them even more to count in Arabic. All I remember after that was the sound of laughter.

The next thing I remember was rolling back into my room and the nurses showing Matt my Gall Bladder in a Jar!!!! He was then presented with a DVD of my insides!! The rest of the stay was great in the hospital and I was released the next afternoon.

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that I would have surgery by a doctor named Mohammed, on a street called Iraq, have my gall bladder delivered to me in a jar and ride home in a non-air-conditioned, bumpy riding taxi in Africa! You just never know what a day will bring in this N. African life!