Brian1977
2 Week Post Op Visit
Oct 30, 2009
Well I had my first post op visit today with Dr Roye. I am down to 382. so my first official weight loss is 16 pounds. Not bad I suppose for two weeks, seeing as i seemed to be somewhat bloated for about 4 days after surgery. Anyway, I am happy with this and have another appointment on 12/4. He also cleared me today to drive...yippee!!!
1 comment
2 weeks Post Op
Oct 29, 2009
Well I am not 2 weeks Post-Op today as I had my surgery on 10/15. I was suppose to have surgery on 10/6 but the doctors wife had their baby so it was postponed for a good reason. Overall so far I have to say that I am very pleased. I wasnt so thrilled while in the hospital but that was mainly due to the ICU nursing staff and then a couple nursing crews on the regular floor. So basically the following is a summary of my past 2 weeks.
On 10/14 I got to be my bowel prep for the 2nd time in 2 weeks (my original surgery date was changed and I wasnt told prior to drinking my magnesium citrate, or as I like to call it, the Enema in a bottle. I found out on this day as well that I needed to be to Rhode Island Hospital (RIH) for 7:30am on 10/15. Surprisingly I slept very well the night before surgery, this was a pleasant surprise.
One 10/15 the alarm clock went off at about 5:45, snoozed till 6. At this point my wife and I got up. I took our dogs out to do their business and then took my shower. After sitting on the edge of the bed for a few and busting out in tears for fear of not coming out of surgery, my wife made me laugh and all was well in my world again. We left for RIH about 6:45am and got there about 7:20. We got valet parking as I was being admitted for surgery, so this was nice, didnt have to park a block or two away and pay to park this day, so that was good. We went to the surgery admission area and checked in. This room got to be a bit crowded and as they started calling people I was wondering when my turn would come. Finally my name was called, not sure what time it was, but it had to be around 8:15 or so. At this point my wife and I were brought to the actual pre-op holding area as we left my in-laws in the admission waiting room. When we got to the holding area, I was told to get naked and into my hospital gown (johnny). So this I did, then I managed to get onto the bed and under the blankets b/c man, I was FREEZING!!! While waiting here, I flipped on ESPN on the little bedside TV but ended up watching re-runs of Saved by the Bell b/c my wife isnt a big sports fan, so we comprimised. We were visited in this area by several people, a nurse, a student anesthesis, and one of the OR docs, Dr Barker. They all asked me pretty much the same questions and talked to me about what was going to happen, etc... The student anesthesis had a hard time getting my IV started as I appeared to be dehydrated (thanks to peeing out my butt the day before with the bowel prep!) So the regular anasthesiologist (sp?) had to get this going and whatta ya know, after 3 failed attempts by the student, he got it on try #1. A little while later Dr Roye came over to talk to me and make sure that I didnt have any questions and see how I was doing, This was the first time my wife got to meet him and when he left, she seemed happy with my decision in surgeons as Dr Roye defintiely has a great bedside manner and is very down to earth and nice. I was told that I would be wheeled to surgery about 10:45ish and whatta ya know, thats about the time they came to take me away. I said my goodbyes to my wife and then started to roll. As we were on the way to the OR, things started to look funny, thanks to some heavy duty drugs. In the OR all I remember is seeing alotta people and hearing alot of voices. I saw Dr Roye and he asked me if I was me, I told him yes and thats about the last thing I remember. The next this I know I woke up in recovery with my wife and my dad there. My wife says I was a bit nasty, I dont remember this, but then again, I was pretty stoned at that time still.
From the recovery room I was brought to the ICU unit, I want to say around 6 o'clock but again, not totally sure due to the drugs. When they got me to the ICU I got to see everyone again, my wife, my dad, and my in-laws. They all spent the day at RIH except my MIL but she had an appointment of her own and came home to let our dogs out for a bit, so that was totally OK. I seemed like everyone left that night about 7:30ish but that was fine, I was tired and falling in and out of sleep, still due to the drugs. I do remember asking my wife to turn on TBS for me though so that the NLCS was on if i woke up and wanted to watch some baseball. About all I remember of the game was Manny Ramirez hitting a HR, thats all i know I saw.
While in the ICU at some point during the night I got a sponge bath. It definitely felt good as I was warm and sweaty, but if I had any ounce or energy I probably would have "accidentally" flailed my arm backwards and smacked the damn nurses, They were mean! The way they talked to me and moved me, it was like reckless adandon. I think someone forgot to tell them I just had major abdominal surgery. Man was I happy when that was done with.
On 10/16 I woke up in the ICU and felt a bit better, but the morphine pump probably helped that out to, This morning I was visited by Dr Royes students and residents as well as Dr Barker again. Also Megan, the PT chick was there to help me get outta bed. This took quite awhile b/c the bed was a tad high and I am a tad short, so had a hard time getting my feet on the floor, not to mention I started to get very dizzy like I was gonna fall over. After finally figuring out how to get outta the bed, I was able to get to the chair with the help of a walker, as I felt unstable on my feet. At this point I also had a cool nurse named Nelly, at least she was cool for the time being.
At about 11:30ish I asked to get up and take a walk, as I couldnt do this myself due to the IV pole. They had pulled the catheter at about 11ish. When I asked Nelly, she told me in a few minutes. Well at this time my dad was also there visiting so he heard me ask her this. Well lets fast forward about 4 hrs or so later. I was still asking to get up and walk. Again, I was told in a few. Well Dr Royes students and residents were back again and asked me if I had walked, well I had no choice but to thell them no, but also told them why. Well shortly after they left, Nelly came back to take me for my walk. I was thinking "its about f'ing time!" Well after walking Dr Roye came in and saw me, asked how I felt, etc....told me he would see me the next day. Apparently at this time he also gave Nelly a good chewing, so I found out the next day.
Remember when I said that Nelly was cool, well this is when she got totally uncool. Not only did she make me wait about 4 to 4 and a half hours to walk when I was asking, while I was in the bathroom trying to learn to pee all over again by myself, my wife questioned her about why she took so long to get me up and walk when I had been asking for hours. Now keep in mind my wife is a physician assistant and knows a bit about what goes on with this type of stuff. Nelly had the gall to tell her that she was busy with other patients and had to take her lunch, etc... Ok so this I say fine, you had other patients other than me, BUT they didnt consume all 4 hours plus of her time. She had time to joke and laugh with another nurse in the hallway and check her text messages, but I couldnt fit into her busy schedule to walk to 5 minutes! Oh well. Later on that night she made the dumbest comment she could have made to me and she is lucky that my dad was there b/c I woulda given her an earful that woulda left her ears still ringing today. At this point I had been up 2-3 times walking when i should have been up about 5 times by then and she says to me, "its good you are finally walking b/c i would hate to see you go home and have a hard time, you'll say that you shoulda listened to Nelly and walked sooner." WTF????I had been asking since 11 freakin 30 in the morning! Whatever!
So finally about 9:30ish I was taken from ICU to the COOP floor. This was an interesting trip. I LOVED the crew that moved me. They were nice, funny and very careful (unlike the staff that transported me from recovery to ICU, i think they hit every bump just a bit harder than they should have). I got to the COOP and met my nursing staff that I had still 11 that night, very nice and attentive. Then 11 came and it seemed the nurses couldnt have given a flying you know what about anyone. oh well, the Yankees game ended, they were in the room with my roommate, i had them get me up to go to the bathroom b/c again, the bed wasnt something i could get in and out of myself, and then it was time for bed.
10/17 was a good day. I felt as good as I guess I could. My wife, dad and father in lawcame to visit and were there from about 11ish to 7ish, so it was nice having the company. I also had the best nurse I could have asked for in Mel, she was fantastic. Had a great personality and was very attentive not only to me but also my roommate who was there with a few problems. She was great with him and I am happy for that as he was an elderly man and the other staff seemed like they couldnt care less for him. This day I spent most of in a chair. I did get up and walk quite a bit and without the walker, I asked Mel to take it away and not let me see it. She did and from there I was good. Dr Roye came in and talked to me and told me I would probably be going home the next day.
That night at 7 the nurses switched over and I cant remember the nurses name, it was a guy that looked like a Harley riding cigar smoking (could smell it) kinda guy, all except some funky glasses he was wearing, but he was great! He was only there till 11:30 but made sure to make his rounds and check on me and Frank (my roommate) at least every hour he was there. Well 11:30 came and once again, bring on the nurses that dont care. Well the Yankees played 13 innings this night and didnt end till 2 am. I watched every inning but by the time the game was over, had to pee really bad. I called for the nurse b/c they need to remove a piece of the bed and get the side bars down. well it took a good 30 minutes to finally get one there. Well I was able to get up and let them know to give me 5 minutes to pee and take a quick walk before bed. they said OK. Well lets see, this was about 2:30 in the morning. when I got back to my room, the nurse was gone, thats fine. I waited about 5 min or so and then rang the call button b/c again, I needed help getting back into bed. 20 minutes, no response, go figure. Well I was able to get myself back into bed but still needed to get the side rail up and the foot of the bed put back on. Oh not to mention the compression boots on my feet and the cpap moved to where i could reach it...etc....finally 3 am, the nurse finally strolls in ad says i look like i am all set and turns around to walk away, UMMM NOOOO!!! I need a few things...well huffing and puffing they did what i needed and i was off to dreamland.
10/18 is the day I got to go home. I was discharged about 5ish when my wife got there after work. Very happy to be going home.
Well since then I have gone out with my wife and my dad. Taken walks up the driveway, walks up the street, walks at the gorcery store and walks at the mall. I am doing ok, still have some pain and the pain meds are gone. Still have some fatigue but I read this is normal
I have an appointment tomorrow with Dr Roye. I will post my first official weight loss later
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On 10/14 I got to be my bowel prep for the 2nd time in 2 weeks (my original surgery date was changed and I wasnt told prior to drinking my magnesium citrate, or as I like to call it, the Enema in a bottle. I found out on this day as well that I needed to be to Rhode Island Hospital (RIH) for 7:30am on 10/15. Surprisingly I slept very well the night before surgery, this was a pleasant surprise.
One 10/15 the alarm clock went off at about 5:45, snoozed till 6. At this point my wife and I got up. I took our dogs out to do their business and then took my shower. After sitting on the edge of the bed for a few and busting out in tears for fear of not coming out of surgery, my wife made me laugh and all was well in my world again. We left for RIH about 6:45am and got there about 7:20. We got valet parking as I was being admitted for surgery, so this was nice, didnt have to park a block or two away and pay to park this day, so that was good. We went to the surgery admission area and checked in. This room got to be a bit crowded and as they started calling people I was wondering when my turn would come. Finally my name was called, not sure what time it was, but it had to be around 8:15 or so. At this point my wife and I were brought to the actual pre-op holding area as we left my in-laws in the admission waiting room. When we got to the holding area, I was told to get naked and into my hospital gown (johnny). So this I did, then I managed to get onto the bed and under the blankets b/c man, I was FREEZING!!! While waiting here, I flipped on ESPN on the little bedside TV but ended up watching re-runs of Saved by the Bell b/c my wife isnt a big sports fan, so we comprimised. We were visited in this area by several people, a nurse, a student anesthesis, and one of the OR docs, Dr Barker. They all asked me pretty much the same questions and talked to me about what was going to happen, etc... The student anesthesis had a hard time getting my IV started as I appeared to be dehydrated (thanks to peeing out my butt the day before with the bowel prep!) So the regular anasthesiologist (sp?) had to get this going and whatta ya know, after 3 failed attempts by the student, he got it on try #1. A little while later Dr Roye came over to talk to me and make sure that I didnt have any questions and see how I was doing, This was the first time my wife got to meet him and when he left, she seemed happy with my decision in surgeons as Dr Roye defintiely has a great bedside manner and is very down to earth and nice. I was told that I would be wheeled to surgery about 10:45ish and whatta ya know, thats about the time they came to take me away. I said my goodbyes to my wife and then started to roll. As we were on the way to the OR, things started to look funny, thanks to some heavy duty drugs. In the OR all I remember is seeing alotta people and hearing alot of voices. I saw Dr Roye and he asked me if I was me, I told him yes and thats about the last thing I remember. The next this I know I woke up in recovery with my wife and my dad there. My wife says I was a bit nasty, I dont remember this, but then again, I was pretty stoned at that time still.
From the recovery room I was brought to the ICU unit, I want to say around 6 o'clock but again, not totally sure due to the drugs. When they got me to the ICU I got to see everyone again, my wife, my dad, and my in-laws. They all spent the day at RIH except my MIL but she had an appointment of her own and came home to let our dogs out for a bit, so that was totally OK. I seemed like everyone left that night about 7:30ish but that was fine, I was tired and falling in and out of sleep, still due to the drugs. I do remember asking my wife to turn on TBS for me though so that the NLCS was on if i woke up and wanted to watch some baseball. About all I remember of the game was Manny Ramirez hitting a HR, thats all i know I saw.
While in the ICU at some point during the night I got a sponge bath. It definitely felt good as I was warm and sweaty, but if I had any ounce or energy I probably would have "accidentally" flailed my arm backwards and smacked the damn nurses, They were mean! The way they talked to me and moved me, it was like reckless adandon. I think someone forgot to tell them I just had major abdominal surgery. Man was I happy when that was done with.
On 10/16 I woke up in the ICU and felt a bit better, but the morphine pump probably helped that out to, This morning I was visited by Dr Royes students and residents as well as Dr Barker again. Also Megan, the PT chick was there to help me get outta bed. This took quite awhile b/c the bed was a tad high and I am a tad short, so had a hard time getting my feet on the floor, not to mention I started to get very dizzy like I was gonna fall over. After finally figuring out how to get outta the bed, I was able to get to the chair with the help of a walker, as I felt unstable on my feet. At this point I also had a cool nurse named Nelly, at least she was cool for the time being.
At about 11:30ish I asked to get up and take a walk, as I couldnt do this myself due to the IV pole. They had pulled the catheter at about 11ish. When I asked Nelly, she told me in a few minutes. Well at this time my dad was also there visiting so he heard me ask her this. Well lets fast forward about 4 hrs or so later. I was still asking to get up and walk. Again, I was told in a few. Well Dr Royes students and residents were back again and asked me if I had walked, well I had no choice but to thell them no, but also told them why. Well shortly after they left, Nelly came back to take me for my walk. I was thinking "its about f'ing time!" Well after walking Dr Roye came in and saw me, asked how I felt, etc....told me he would see me the next day. Apparently at this time he also gave Nelly a good chewing, so I found out the next day.
Remember when I said that Nelly was cool, well this is when she got totally uncool. Not only did she make me wait about 4 to 4 and a half hours to walk when I was asking, while I was in the bathroom trying to learn to pee all over again by myself, my wife questioned her about why she took so long to get me up and walk when I had been asking for hours. Now keep in mind my wife is a physician assistant and knows a bit about what goes on with this type of stuff. Nelly had the gall to tell her that she was busy with other patients and had to take her lunch, etc... Ok so this I say fine, you had other patients other than me, BUT they didnt consume all 4 hours plus of her time. She had time to joke and laugh with another nurse in the hallway and check her text messages, but I couldnt fit into her busy schedule to walk to 5 minutes! Oh well. Later on that night she made the dumbest comment she could have made to me and she is lucky that my dad was there b/c I woulda given her an earful that woulda left her ears still ringing today. At this point I had been up 2-3 times walking when i should have been up about 5 times by then and she says to me, "its good you are finally walking b/c i would hate to see you go home and have a hard time, you'll say that you shoulda listened to Nelly and walked sooner." WTF????I had been asking since 11 freakin 30 in the morning! Whatever!
So finally about 9:30ish I was taken from ICU to the COOP floor. This was an interesting trip. I LOVED the crew that moved me. They were nice, funny and very careful (unlike the staff that transported me from recovery to ICU, i think they hit every bump just a bit harder than they should have). I got to the COOP and met my nursing staff that I had still 11 that night, very nice and attentive. Then 11 came and it seemed the nurses couldnt have given a flying you know what about anyone. oh well, the Yankees game ended, they were in the room with my roommate, i had them get me up to go to the bathroom b/c again, the bed wasnt something i could get in and out of myself, and then it was time for bed.
10/17 was a good day. I felt as good as I guess I could. My wife, dad and father in lawcame to visit and were there from about 11ish to 7ish, so it was nice having the company. I also had the best nurse I could have asked for in Mel, she was fantastic. Had a great personality and was very attentive not only to me but also my roommate who was there with a few problems. She was great with him and I am happy for that as he was an elderly man and the other staff seemed like they couldnt care less for him. This day I spent most of in a chair. I did get up and walk quite a bit and without the walker, I asked Mel to take it away and not let me see it. She did and from there I was good. Dr Roye came in and talked to me and told me I would probably be going home the next day.
That night at 7 the nurses switched over and I cant remember the nurses name, it was a guy that looked like a Harley riding cigar smoking (could smell it) kinda guy, all except some funky glasses he was wearing, but he was great! He was only there till 11:30 but made sure to make his rounds and check on me and Frank (my roommate) at least every hour he was there. Well 11:30 came and once again, bring on the nurses that dont care. Well the Yankees played 13 innings this night and didnt end till 2 am. I watched every inning but by the time the game was over, had to pee really bad. I called for the nurse b/c they need to remove a piece of the bed and get the side bars down. well it took a good 30 minutes to finally get one there. Well I was able to get up and let them know to give me 5 minutes to pee and take a quick walk before bed. they said OK. Well lets see, this was about 2:30 in the morning. when I got back to my room, the nurse was gone, thats fine. I waited about 5 min or so and then rang the call button b/c again, I needed help getting back into bed. 20 minutes, no response, go figure. Well I was able to get myself back into bed but still needed to get the side rail up and the foot of the bed put back on. Oh not to mention the compression boots on my feet and the cpap moved to where i could reach it...etc....finally 3 am, the nurse finally strolls in ad says i look like i am all set and turns around to walk away, UMMM NOOOO!!! I need a few things...well huffing and puffing they did what i needed and i was off to dreamland.
10/18 is the day I got to go home. I was discharged about 5ish when my wife got there after work. Very happy to be going home.
Well since then I have gone out with my wife and my dad. Taken walks up the driveway, walks up the street, walks at the gorcery store and walks at the mall. I am doing ok, still have some pain and the pain meds are gone. Still have some fatigue but I read this is normal
I have an appointment tomorrow with Dr Roye. I will post my first official weight loss later
Pre Op Appointments
Jul 21, 2009
Well I recieved my info packet from Dr Royes office last Monday and on Tuesday called around to get my apointments rescheduled. I have to do 7 different things and plan to have them all out of the way by August 3 so that I can call the office and schedule my next appointment with the doctor. My goal is to get in to see Dr Roye on August 27 or 28 seeing as getting time off of work is like pulling teeth and I am already scheduled off those days. My wish would be to get a surgery date sometime in October. I guess time will tell!!
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