I survived Surgery (April 4, 2008)

Surgery Day: Well, this day was interesting. I was scheduled to be at the hospital at 10am with surgery scheduled at 11:30. When I got there, they put me in my own bed, separated by curtains, and told me to undress,etc. So, I sat in the bed for about a half an hour before someone finally came in to talk to me, get final permission slips signed (again). Eventually, they gave me an IV. At this point in time, I was feeling quite grumpy and unfriendly. I hadn’t eaten in 36 hours (jello does NOT count as real food) and my stomach and head were killing me. I was also having pain in my back because I hadn’t taken the pain killers or muscle relaxant for the fibromyalgia.

At around noon, the surgery nurse came to get me. She was awesome and was eleven months out herself from having the surgery and looked great. She was very reassuring and a nice person to talk to right before going in to the operating room. Of course, as usual with me, the bed hadn’t been plugged in so she had to have my hubby, Lou, help her push the bed to the operating center. That was cool because he got to stay with me longer than he normally would have.

They finally took me in at 1pm. They scooted me over to the operating table and told me they were going to give me something to make me drowsy. And that’s the last thing I remember. I woke up when it was done and don’t really remember anything from that time. I remember saying I was in pain and then sometime, hours later, my husband kissed me goodbye and then I woke up to David Archuleta from American Idol singing on the television.

The first thing I noticed when I woke up and was coherant was that it felt like someone had dried my mouth out with a cotton towel and there was lint on my tongue. My breath was awful and if I scraped my tongue, there was an actual brownish film on it. It was disgusting. I would also do little coughs that would bring up little particles of the stuff. I really wasn’t in too much pain from the surgery. The following morning they allowed me to sip water and that felt like heaven. The only problem was, none of the drinks they brought me were cold so I had to continually ask for ice, which I felt was kind of bothersome, but I needed it.

Second day post op was a day of realization and adjustment. I could now eat (jello, broth) and sip liquids. They started measuring how much of my liquid I was getting in. So, they brought me the Isopure liquid and I would have two cups at my bedside, which I sipped continuously. One of the protein drink and the other of bottled water. With each sip of one, I’d have a sip of the other. This worked very well for me, as the protein drink was kind of nasty and the water quickly washed the taste away. Every four hours or so, the nurses would come in and do a blood sugar test. I hate having my finger pricked, but I didn’t feel a thing because of the morphine coursing through my veins. So, with east test, I’d then get a shot of insulin. They also gave me a shot of heparin in the morning and evening, which is a blood thinner. Since you’re lying in bed, they want to make sure you don’t get any blood clots. The other thing you wear is a contraption on both legs that continuously squeezes your legs to keep the circulation going. I, personally, liked it. I thought it felt like a massage. One other thing you have to do is breathing exercises. Although these are a bit painful in your rib area, they are very important to do every hour. They keep you from getting pneumonia and from crap going into your lungs. They’re very simple to do, just a bit painful at times because your ribs are sore.

Walk! and when you don’t feel like it anymore, walk some more. It really does help to move the build up of gas that is coming and helps to keep your insides from sticking in one place too long. I didn’t realize how much it helped until day three when my stomach blew up to twice it’s size from all the gasses that were backing up. That, which is where I’m at right now, is more uncomfortable than anything so far.

So, there will be times during your hospital stay that you may wonder what you have gotten yourself into. You may feel sad, but it will quickly pass. Try to stay focused on what brought you to this place in the first place. I’m only four days out and I’m in that spot of feeling crappy and fat and like the whole thing was “anti-climactic”. But, I’m focusing on the end result, when the healing is done and the weight loss will begin. Talk to you soon! ~~Cyndie