Post - Op Update

Sep 09, 2012

 Hey folks, thought I would take a few minutes to share how my post-op is going. My surgery was on September 6, 2012 at Gwinnette Medical Center in Duluth GA. I have never encountered so many wonderful and professionally caring people. I was pampered from the first moment I walked in the door. I was told to be there at 7:30a.m. but was so excited that I got there shortly after 6. My Mom and Aunt went with me and it seemed like time stood still while we sat in the waiting room. The nurse came and got me early and helped me wipe of with special heated, antibacterial cloths and then dress in a gown, robe, and blanket that were fresh out of the warmer. The nurse then weighed me and took my vitals before she started an I.V. and went over the entire procedure with me again. Shortly after this, the O.R. team gave us the signal and I walked into the O.R. where freshly heated blankets where placed on me while the anesthesiologist gave me a shot through my I.V. and then had be talk about my favorite T.V. show (M*A*S*H*) until I fell asleep.

Only 45 minutes later I was in recovery and fighting the nurses to get a mask off my face. I was not fully awake yet and the mask was causing me to panic. They immediately switched to a nasal cannula and I calmed down. After 1 hour there they wheeled me up to my room where my Mom and Aunt were already waiting for me and had been updated by Dr. Richard on how the operation went. When I got to my room the nurse noticed that my blanket was wet and upon further examination, discovered that my catheter had leaked. Two of the sweetest women on the planet help me get up out of bed and gave me a quick sponge bath while a third made my bed with freshly warmed sheets. This was only 1hr and 45min after having had surgery so I was pretty sleepy but remember how patiently and gently they took care of me. Later that day I was up and walking laps around the floor. I was tired but not in pain, as they had me a strict schedule of rotating nausea and pain meds every hour. Dr. Richard stopped by to check on me around 4pm and told me he was proud of all the walking I had done and said he would be back first thing in the morning to check on me.

The next morning, true to his word,Dr. Richard came in to see me at 6am. He smiled and again encouraged me to continue walking as much as possible. He brought me a white teddy bear and told me that I would be going home that evening if I continued to improve at this rate. I passed my swallow test, had my catheter removed and then the drain removed, all before 3pm. Dr. Richard came back at 5pm and told me that hew as ok'ing me to go home if I felt comfortable with that. Mom & Aunt Micki told him that we would be spending the night in a local motel in case something happened and I needed to get back to the hospital immediately. I went to CVS pharmacy, got my prescriptions filled and went to the motel room. I slept much better that expected and made the 3 hour trip home with little pain.

I go for my post-op appointment on Wednesday the 12th and will let you all know how it goes. The only thing worth mentioning right now is THE GAS. Oh my lordy, I have never had this much gas in my life. Every sip I take, a burp follows. It is not pleasant but doesn't hurt either. The only times I truly felt pain where the removal of catheter and the drainage tube (neither of which should be feared!)

I weighed in at 328.3 before going into surgery and will post week one weight asap!
Thank you all for sharing my journey!

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