Mom visits the doctor. He calls the cops after seeing the ultrasound. We want you to meet Katie Smith. She might have been an average girl in her 20s, but this is not your ordinary story. At the age of 24, something started to grow inside her body. However, the doctors could not figure out what was going on for the longest time.
Her stomach began to expand at such a fast rate that she assumed she was pregnant. The weirdest part, however, was that she was not expecting her pregnancy. Tests came out negative, but the doctors did not find it at all that concerning. Back then, Katie was mostly concerned about going to the Christmas party at her workplace. Since she had insecurities about the way she looked back then, she thought that she was just not skinny enough.
Katie and Jamie Gibbons had been boyfriend and girlfriend for a decade already. It was possible that she was pregnant. They might not have been ready for it, but they still had to check if it was the case. When the pregnancy test came out negative, the couple had been surprised. They thought that maybe it was an error, so she took another one right away.
Still, it only confirmed that she was not pregnant. They could not believe it. That’s when she decided to get checked. What else could possibly be going on? Maybe she was sick or had a miscarriage. These were dreadful thoughts and she felt scared. Even though her worries were dismissed by the doctors, she thought that this was not the case. She tried to ignore it since it did not make her daily routine impossible. Still, she was confused about it all. She could not help but wonder why she was not pregnant. That was the only explanation here.
So what was going on? She did not trust what the doctor said, but they should know better as professionals. Could it be that she just passed out from too much stress? Katie was not convinced. However, her doctor told her again that there was nothing big going on. On top of that, she was not pregnant either. It was not possible for her to avoid getting questions about her pregnancy. There was no way to hide her huge belly. So she could not just ignore it anymore. Katie needed to explain it time again. Repeatedly, Katy answered their inquiries with this answer.
The doctors say I’m just overweight. Even though it was an annoying situation, it did not seem like there was light at the end of the tunnel. She said that people always asked her about her due date. After some time, she started to tell them the answers. They wanted to avoid embarrassing others. She only told them she was overweight, since it was what the doctor said. Katie began to waddle around the place with her huge belly. She also began to get embarrassed about the way she looked.
Thanks to her belly, she could only buy clothes in the maternity sections. I remember trying to shop for clothes in December 2016, and nothing would fit. I was skin and bone on top, and then this massive lump and normal legs. The only thing that was going to fit was maternity wear, Katie said. Katie felt stubborn about seeking help, but suffered a couple of blackouts at her workplace. She also had issues breathing on top of the weight gain that was interfering with her life. It was time to get help. This would not have even happened if her colleagues did not insist on it. A lot of people wanted her to take better care of herself.
There was clearly something wrong. So why did she not get help right away? Katie was just trying to go about her life as usual. But she decided they were right after passing out a total of four times, the doctors then told her that the Acne medication she was taking caused her exhaustion. She knew that this was not right. It looked like the doctors did not take her condition, whatever it was, seriously. They tried to put the blame on other things in her life. At last, Katie decided that enough was enough. What was next for her? After stopping the Acne treatment for a few months, it was clear that it was not the issue.
She went to a new doctor who said she must be pregnant. Her blood test disproved that this was the case. However, the GP thought that the only thing that could explain it would be pregnancy. Even if the blood test came out negative, he decided to get a second ultrasound for her. At that point, Katie was having difficulties breathing. Even walking felt like a huge task for her. The doctors wanted to check for pregnancy right away. Were they getting close to solving the problem here?
Well, you can say that. However, it did open a new can of worms that Katie didn’t expect at all. Katie kept an eye on the doctor while they did the ultrasound. She saw the face of her doctor and knew that there was a problem. This patient did not miss the look of fear or the way her eyes popped. The doctor asked for a consultant, which only made Katie worry more. Her boyfriend was there to console her, but she was overcome with panic at that moment. What could it be that the doctor found? The ultrasound screen went blank, but it was clear that there was no baby in her belly. There was, however, something in her stomach.
The only thing clear at that moment was she was in danger. There are many possibilities here, but they had to get a CT scan to get to the bottom of things. Of course, Katie felt scared and worried about it. Her mind was full of dark thoughts. The blank ultrasound made her doctor request a CT scan. It was how they finally solved the mystery. The doctors had something to tell Katie as they waited for the news.
She and her boyfriend held hands in anticipation, in fear. No, she was not pregnant. So why was her belly so big? Well, there was a big ovarian mass in her body. She was shocked to hear that this was the case. But the doctor could not tell exactly what was going on. It was not a regular Assist either. No, it was 24 CM thick and clung to her stomach. That explained why she gained a lot of weight. With her life in danger, they had to do something about it right away. Assist is, in essence, a sack full of fluid that can grow on the ovary of the woman. They’re pretty common and do not always cause harm. Many go away with time.
But Katie was rather unlucky. The only moment when Assist can wreak havoc on your life is if it ruptures, prevents blood supply from going to the ovaries, or grows very huge. For Katie, it was the last one. It was extremely huge, in fact. Just a month later, she started to speak to a specialist who talked to her about the options she had. Katie could not erase the look on her consultant’s face.
She had been shocked to see the cyst. He was even able to talk to her calmly about the ovarian mass. She did not miss the fear on his face. He was in shock. Even the specialist did not expect to see a system of this size. The doctor explained that it was a possibility that there were many cysts that could have been attached to her organs. Katie could not believe it. However, she was aware that surgery was the way to go. Even though they ruled out other explanations, they still did not know the effect of the cyst on her body.
She clearly suffered side effects that in the end, did not have anything to do with pregnancy. While this doctor was not sure the details of the cyst, he knew that they had to do something about it. He was shocked to hear that other doctors just dismissed her concerns by telling her you’re fine. The doctor, at any rate, knew that Katie was definitely going to lose an ovary. On top of this, she might have to stay in the hospital for a longer period of time, depending on where the cyst was located. Katie’s mom had been living in Australia, which was why she chose to keep it a secret before they figured it out.
When the mystery was solved at last, she knew that she had to let her family know. At that point, things were too much for Katie to handle on her own. She wanted her family by her side. As she went through this, she did it on her own for the majority of the situation. But she even needed help. Two days later, her mom arrived. Sadly, her dad could not come with her. Even if the time difference is huge. He was only a phone call away, katie had the support that she needed for the day of the surgery. The doctor told her that she should be ready for surgery in four weeks.
At last, it was time to get it over with. During the span of time from her first consultation to the surgery, her belly grew five more inches. She was referred to as a high risk obstetrics consultant who said that she had to get surgery. She had to get cut open from the chest bone to the pelvic bone, not unlike an old school C section. How comforting. It is shocking to hear that the cyst took up a third of her body weight.
She realized just how much it had burdened her. She was unable to do a lot of things she wanted. Truly, it was a relief that it was over. After she lost the cyst and the excess weight that came with it, katie noticed just how much it made easy tasks seem like a chore. At long last, it was time for her to reclaim her life. She could not believe that she’d been carrying that much weight everywhere. After she saw the photos of it, katie said it looked like a massive pile of ice cream. So I called it Mr. Whippy. The doctors could not believe just how big the cyst had been either.
Truly, it was an incredible medical phenomenon. Together with the medical staff, Katie was blown away to arrive at the truth at last. Four days after that, Katie was released. Her mom and boyfriend were there to support her. While she dreaded at the start, the result was worth it. She could not remember what life was like before the cyst. Thanks to the surgery, Katie now carries a 30 centimeter scar extending from the sternum to the pelvis. She was able to walk normally again soon after the procedure.