Surgery!

Jul 21, 2015

Well I finally got my VSG surgery on July 16th with Dr.Menezes at the Red Deer Hospital.   Everything went according to plan.  

     The day of surgery I went to the hospital with my husband and checked into the pre op unit.  I was given a gown and some heated wipes,  I had to follow the instruction on the sheet they gave me about how to wipe down my entire body with the wipes.  They are to help reduce the spread of MSRA and other nasties that live in hospitals.   Then I put on my gown which was very cool.  it was call Bair Paws, made by 3M.  it's a paper gown that has a plastic lining in it like a vacuum bag, they plug in a hose that blows warm air into it which keeps you nice and toasty and helps maintain your body temp during surgery, since it's pretty cold in the OR.  They brought me down to the OR waiting room and plugged me in to warm me up, super nice.   then they wheeled me into the OR and I climbed onto the table and before I knew it I was out (Also they had U2 playing in the background which made me super happy, it was pretty noisy so I couldn't make out what song it was.)

     Waking up in my Room was the next thing I remember, my nurse seemed to just be there and stayed with me the whole time, I was in a fair amount of pain since, well you know, I'd just been jabbed full of holes and pumped full of gas, and had the bulk of my stomach yanked out through a tiny hole in my belly.   The nurse had to go and get my meds, and then I was more comfortable.  after sleeping on and off for a few hours I remembered what my support group ladies said, Walk, walk, walk to help move the gas.  So that's what I did.  I got up and started walking about 4 hours after I woke up,  not for long times but man did it feel better to be walking.  The only down side is they used these crazy air filled compression leggings that massaged the muscles in your legs to help prevent blood clots, Which are great but every time you want to get up to walk or pee, you've got to page a nurse to unplug you and then plug you back in after.  That's a bit of a hassle.  the bed they have there is also filled with air to help reduce pressure points and blood clots.  which didn't help with my Nausea, it was like a water bed.  also it was all very noisy, air whooshing sounds.  for the most part I walked a bit and slept that day.

  Day 2 The surgeon came in early to tell me that everything had gone super well and they didn't think there was going to be any problems with my recovery.  the Next step was going to be an X-ray leak test and then I would be approved for liquids.   They came a little later to take me down for the X-ray.   This was the worse part, they gave me a barium drink, which I promptly barfed up, which meant I had to drink more.... so awful, the X-ray machine moved around all over them laid me down and moved some more.   After that it was back to my room for more walking and resting.  around 3 my surgeon came back and said everything was great with the leak test and that I was cleared for fluids.  I was brought ice water and apple juice, and they both kind of hurt to drink.  not the best.  they brought some jello which went down easier.   pain was much better only had to take morphine once.  My husband, Mom, and Little girl came to visit me a few times which was nice.

  Day 3 Discharged!  Doctor came and said all was good and they were going to send me home.  So we drove home, and my husband picked up my meds, and here I have stayed since.  Drinking as much as I can and keeping on top of my meds.  so far so good.   The plus side is I haven't really been hungry at all.  and that's a win because some people don't get the big dip in grehlin.

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