My Hospital Stay

May 07, 2010

 I thought that, since I have some spare time, I'd tell what my hospital experience was like. Mind you, it wasn't fun. It wasn't lovely. It wasn't painless. But I won't lie. This is how it really went.

First thing's first: the patient scheduled to have RNY before me cancelled, so I had to be at the hospital by six in the morning. Six! I live two hours away! So, I got up early, washed with my hospital soap, and headed out the door with my mom. When I got there, they took some blood, then eventually took me back to the surgical ward to prep. I sat for a loooong while, and eventually a nurse came in, hooked me up to an IV, I got into my big comfy gown and waited. This is a little gross, but, I was on my period and had been nervous about what to do. She just gave me some (admittedly very comfortable) mesh undies to wear into surgery. The nurse was totally nice and personable, and the IV hardly hurt at all. After a bit more waiting, I got a shot of happy-juice and that chased my jitters right away. I talked to the anesthesiologist and off I went-- somebody (I can't quite remember who) wheeled me into surgery. I crawled onto the table, glanced around at all of the quite unpleasant-looking surgical instruments, and... that's all I remember before I woke up.

I woke up in the recovery room with an oxygen mask on. It was a strange experience. The person there was quite nice-- I don't know what she looked like, but her voice was surprisingly calm and comforting. All I really remember is the grogginess and the excruciating pain. I started crying out, and she said to me, "Honey, it's okay. For some reason, your IV isn't working but we're going to get you some pain relief." I'm not sure what happened, but the pain ceased and I fell back to sleep.

Just so you know, I had four "things" hanging out of me: A catheter for obvious reasons, a tube going through my nose into my pouch for (I'm guessing) drainage of blood, bile, etc., a drain in my abdomen that pressed (painfully) against my diaphragm, and my G-Tube, which is like a feeding tube and I'll have until six weeks after surgery.

I honestly am not sure when I woke up in my room, but my mom was there and the tube through my nose into my stomach was absolutely disgusting. Just thinking about it makes me gag. My first day was mostly spent trying to speak through the plastic jammed down my throat, sleeping, and ice chips. Lots and lots of ice chips. I don't remember much, but what I do remember is that night.

This was probably totally preventable, just so you know. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but the tape on my nose holding my tube in place came off, and the tube started slipping out of my nose. This is when the true pain set in. I'm fairly sure that the tube was rubbing against/pushing on my pouch, and I was getting mixed solutions from my nurses.One was telling me to swallow it back down (I won't even describe how truly awful that was) and the other was saying not to touch it. I would get pain medication, falling asleep, and wake up twenty minutes later in horrifying pain, waiting for another three hours until I could get my next dose of relief. If you are reading this, DO WHAT YOU CAN TO KEEP THIS TUBE IN PLACE CORRECTLY. Before it slipped, I was having virtually no pain, except minor soreness in my throat where the tube was rubbing.

Finally, around 5 the next morning, my angel of a nurse came in and pulled out the tube. I slept for two straight, blissful hours. The next day consisted of my leak test (I had to drink some water with ink in it. Then, they checked a drain in my abdomen to see if there was any blue in it. There wasn't, so I was home free!), finally getting to drink (I drank Fuze Slenderize. It's this amazing, nearly-sugar-free drink that does wonders as a pick-me-up), trying to breathe through the pain of the drain in my stomach, walking, getting that drain removed, talking to my wonderful surgeon, and heading home. Needless to say, the removal of the tube in my nose was the biggest relief of pain I've ever felt, and made the next day much more bearable. The car ride home wasn't even too bad. It was a little nauseating, but It was incredible to be back home.

I slept in the arm chair for, honestly, nearly a week. I eventually worked out a wonderfully comfy chair-like setup in my bed and that's where I currently reside at night. The pain has completely gone-- the only sore thing is my G-Tube, which I clean three times a day for the first two weeks post-op, then once a day for the remaining four weeks. It isn't bad at ALL.

It was a lot to go through. It was. But having lost over 22 pounds already, it was worth it. Just take care of yourselves, tell your nurse if something isn't right, and ask questions! That's what the hospital staff is there for. There is no such thing as a stupid question for the hospital staff. Don't forget that.

Good luck, everybody! I am doing fabulously and I hope that this blog doesn't put anybody off. I wanted to be truthful, and the pain, while excruciating, passes. It passes and you will be crazy excited to start your new life, as I am. Have a good week!

Alex

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