i'm home
i'm very sore, very thirsty, and still rather shakey, despite the saltines i'm eating right now.
we got there 6:45 or so. it wasn't until nearly 7:30 that i was signed in and what not. they weighed me (124! of course i was completely empty, but it was nice to see that number again), and told me to put on the hospital gown. the first of many nurses came in to set up the iv... turns out my veins are blood-giving friendly, but not iv-friendly. she tried on the right arm, but there was something about a valve? i don't know. the left arm was successful. and i don't know the girl's name who did it, but she didn't cause me any pain, and i made sure to tell her that i appreciated it. and that she got two points for it. :) (i'm such a dork)
dr. branson came in, met dave, and asked if i had any more questions. i met her intern, whose name i can't remember, but she was nice. her hair-covering thingie was bright pink with frogs - something i can appreciate (so says the girl who wore multicolored striped socks today) i met the anasthesiologist and her nurse (yep, all my main doctors were girls). they gave me something that would 'take the edge' off since i was starting to get nervousy. in about five minutes, i said, "oh yeah, i'm feeling the mellow". lol
they wheeled me into the OR where i slid from my bed onto the operating table. i remember the blood pressure cuff on my right arm, which they had out on a table-wing, i guess you'd call it, and the left arm on another wing, with monitors attached to my fingertips. then there was the oxygen mask, and....
i woke up facing a wall and covered in blankets, which had recently been warmed. (i have GOT to get me one of those towel warmers!) there was a nurse there, but i don't remember much of what went on, outside of removing the finger monitor thingies. it gets kinda blurry in here. she had me slide over to a very nice padded, reclining wheelchair, to move into the discharge area, where, again, i kept going kind of in and out.
i think we left there around noon? the drive home was uneventful, i think i must've slept for a good portion of it. got home, got into bed and slept for about three hours, off and on. dave's mom stopped by, but she couldn't get the door to close correctly, so i wound up getting up and doing that. figured i'd pee while i was up, which was kinda scary, because i COULDN'T go at first. i could feel it there, all ready to exit, but it just wouldn't go. but thank gods, it finally got over being shy.
i was in the room with dave when dr. branson came in, but i have no memory of that whatsoever. it's now officially that i have endometriosis (the only full way to diagnose is with surgery). she removed a few small adhesions, and there was a larger, very ugly one on my right ovary (i guess the doctor said it was one of the ugliest scar tissue that she's ever seen. she thinks because it was right on top of the ovary that it might've been an egg), which is currently being tested to see what's going on. i'll know more details at my next appointment, the check-up appointment, which she said she'll call and schedule with me.
i'm currently sporting three bandaids, one just under the belly button, and two pretty much where the ovaries are. i have valium and motrin for the pain, which so far hasn't been too bad, but just a little bit ago, i had a sharp stabbing pain on the right side. and i'm starting to feel the shoulder pain, too. (while they emptied out most of the gas they pumped into it, there's still going to be some left, and for some reason, it'll get caught under the diaphragm and cause pain in the shoulder/arm.) right now, there's a tightness in my left arm, between shoulder and elbow.
walking is a slow process. i can stand at least now. getting into the apartment was difficult because my legs were all spaghetti-like. i feel... kinda sloshy inside when i walk. it feels so good to drink water again. i've had a few saltines, which doesn't help the whole 'extreme dry mouth' thing. (have you eaten saltines when there's no moisture in your mouth? not fun.)
oh yeah. my voice is so froggy and hoarse right now from having the breathing tube!
dave was very good, calling so_carpediem and stonefoxmomma, and a few people at work. my mom's on the phone right now, and she said he called multiple times. he did well. i knew he was worried, more so than he would let on to.
thank you all for the well wishes and good vibes. i don't know what my plans are for the rest of the day or tomorrow. just taking it slow most likely. thank you again, guys. you're the best. :)
we got there 6:45 or so. it wasn't until nearly 7:30 that i was signed in and what not. they weighed me (124! of course i was completely empty, but it was nice to see that number again), and told me to put on the hospital gown. the first of many nurses came in to set up the iv... turns out my veins are blood-giving friendly, but not iv-friendly. she tried on the right arm, but there was something about a valve? i don't know. the left arm was successful. and i don't know the girl's name who did it, but she didn't cause me any pain, and i made sure to tell her that i appreciated it. and that she got two points for it. :) (i'm such a dork)
dr. branson came in, met dave, and asked if i had any more questions. i met her intern, whose name i can't remember, but she was nice. her hair-covering thingie was bright pink with frogs - something i can appreciate (so says the girl who wore multicolored striped socks today) i met the anasthesiologist and her nurse (yep, all my main doctors were girls). they gave me something that would 'take the edge' off since i was starting to get nervousy. in about five minutes, i said, "oh yeah, i'm feeling the mellow". lol
they wheeled me into the OR where i slid from my bed onto the operating table. i remember the blood pressure cuff on my right arm, which they had out on a table-wing, i guess you'd call it, and the left arm on another wing, with monitors attached to my fingertips. then there was the oxygen mask, and....
i woke up facing a wall and covered in blankets, which had recently been warmed. (i have GOT to get me one of those towel warmers!) there was a nurse there, but i don't remember much of what went on, outside of removing the finger monitor thingies. it gets kinda blurry in here. she had me slide over to a very nice padded, reclining wheelchair, to move into the discharge area, where, again, i kept going kind of in and out.
i think we left there around noon? the drive home was uneventful, i think i must've slept for a good portion of it. got home, got into bed and slept for about three hours, off and on. dave's mom stopped by, but she couldn't get the door to close correctly, so i wound up getting up and doing that. figured i'd pee while i was up, which was kinda scary, because i COULDN'T go at first. i could feel it there, all ready to exit, but it just wouldn't go. but thank gods, it finally got over being shy.
i was in the room with dave when dr. branson came in, but i have no memory of that whatsoever. it's now officially that i have endometriosis (the only full way to diagnose is with surgery). she removed a few small adhesions, and there was a larger, very ugly one on my right ovary (i guess the doctor said it was one of the ugliest scar tissue that she's ever seen. she thinks because it was right on top of the ovary that it might've been an egg), which is currently being tested to see what's going on. i'll know more details at my next appointment, the check-up appointment, which she said she'll call and schedule with me.
i'm currently sporting three bandaids, one just under the belly button, and two pretty much where the ovaries are. i have valium and motrin for the pain, which so far hasn't been too bad, but just a little bit ago, i had a sharp stabbing pain on the right side. and i'm starting to feel the shoulder pain, too. (while they emptied out most of the gas they pumped into it, there's still going to be some left, and for some reason, it'll get caught under the diaphragm and cause pain in the shoulder/arm.) right now, there's a tightness in my left arm, between shoulder and elbow.
walking is a slow process. i can stand at least now. getting into the apartment was difficult because my legs were all spaghetti-like. i feel... kinda sloshy inside when i walk. it feels so good to drink water again. i've had a few saltines, which doesn't help the whole 'extreme dry mouth' thing. (have you eaten saltines when there's no moisture in your mouth? not fun.)
oh yeah. my voice is so froggy and hoarse right now from having the breathing tube!
dave was very good, calling so_carpediem and stonefoxmomma, and a few people at work. my mom's on the phone right now, and she said he called multiple times. he did well. i knew he was worried, more so than he would let on to.
thank you all for the well wishes and good vibes. i don't know what my plans are for the rest of the day or tomorrow. just taking it slow most likely. thank you again, guys. you're the best. :)