Posts for Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Written on Wednesday June 04, 2008 at around 1 PM
So it's been since Tax Day that I've written, a lot of things have happened since then. I have gone in and had my surgery and now recovering from it.
I went in on May 6, 2008 to have my colon removed and as that was being done I also had my tubes lasered apart, colon removed, J-Pouch constructed with a temporary Ileostomy put in just for grins and giggles. BTW, the Ileostomy sucks but will be getting rid of it sometime in August.
So I had the procedure done and it took longer than expected, it took seven hours instead of five to six and they almost couldn't finish it because my torso was longer then my small intestines. Luckily he was able to make it work and all went well. The recovery area SUCKED because I was in a lot of pain and this stupid old guy was next to me and he kept saying, "I have to PEE!" The nurses kept telling him that he has a catheter and he can just use that. I kept passing out but woke up to five men and women holding the guy down. I was nice, I just kept asking for my husband and drugs.
I think the nurse was tired of me asking and finally gave me a pump full of Morphine. It's not your friend after 10 hours because you just are so hot and itchy that they had to give me Fentanyl for the rest of the time. I had really nice people taking care of me and one really not so smart one. It happens so I just let it slide because I just really didn't care.
So I was able to go to my room about four hours after surgery and that was a sucky ride up. We get to my room and I hear them say, "Do you think we should ask her to move to the other bed?" I remember yelling, "NO" because it was too painful so they brought out the crane to lift me from one bed to the other, which that was painful too. A lot things I don't remember because of being on the pain medicines but I remember all of the Heparin they gave me, the blood draws, being woke up every couple of hours for vitals and the surgeons coming to check on me all the time.
I saw the kids a few times for a little while I was there and I made sure that they didn't see all the tubes and IV's that were going in and out. They had me on oxygen for a little while and then also for one night because my level was a little to low.
So coming here to present day.
I am still losing a little bit of weight. I'm down to about 123lbs. My diet is now a Low Fiber/Low Residue diet for the rest of my life. I cannot eat anything with seeds, corn, popcorn, or any of the things I loved to eat. Well, I guess it's better than having colon cancer in a year right?
I am on a lifting restriction, can't lift anything over 10lbs. I was on Percocet a lot until about a week or two ago. I think I started driving again about two and a half weeks ago. I am now able to sort of clean the house, no mopping because of the water bucket, do dishes, the laundry and finally able to go up and down the stairs. Slowly I'm starting to get my life back except that I have fallen to some sort of virus that now has me back on Percocet (no more than twice a day about every other day or so) because of the pain I have in my abdomen. I was told that if I can't eat to at least stay hydrated. Believe me I'm trying. I don't think I am because I another I have to increase is one thing I absolutely hate the taste of salt. But just so you know, when you lose your colon, your absorption goes down the drain so some how the salt helps increase your absorption rate. Like all things, eat that stuff in moderation.
Today I took the kids to Harkins Theaters to see "TMNT" SMF (Summer Movie Fun) for this week. I haven't taken the kids to the movies in a long time, so today I decided to let B play hookie from school so we could go. Plus I didn't want to keep spending money on the gas driving there since it's so far away. It was fun and we are learning about how to be a family and together because I really rely on them because of my non-ability for lifting things so I have B to lift G to the toilet when we're in public and things like that.
I still am short tempered but I really am trying to work on it. To help decrease stress, I moved the kids toothbrushes to the downstairs bathroom so I don't have to keep running up and down the stairs. Luckily when we move that we will be moving to a one story place just so I can keep a little calmer eye on them. It frustrating because they know the routine, we wake up, they get dressed while I shower and they pick up their rooms and bring down their dirty clothes and by the time I'm done, their ready to eat and that's how the day goes.
Of course it was a little easier when G was in Michigan for a few weeks. The three of us for the most part did pretty good in the mornings and stuff. Now with G home that it takes that much longer to do morning stuff, breakfast because they screw around and things like that. It's just the same stuff but a different day.
So I have to leave here in a few minutes for my checkup so I'll leave you to pontificate life for a little while.
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