Surgery recap

Some of this may be a repeat of the past two posts, but I was on drugs for one and didn't write the other. I wanted to write a record of the past week as best I can remember it.

Surgery day:
We got the hospital at 5:15 to check-in. The whole family (mom, dad, sister) met us there. I got checked in and realized that I forgot the ID bracelet I had been given the day before. Kelly ran back to the hotel to get it which only took about 15 minutes then we were all set. I was taken back pretty quickly to get prepped. At 6:50, I got my "margarita" and that's the last thing I remember until they woke me up in the OR when it was all over. Apparently that was around 6PM. I was a little confused because it felt like I had just gone to sleep. Then the pain hit. I remember being in recovery with Dad, Marian & Kelly. Marian got in trouble for pushing my morphine button. Apparently I'm supposed to do that myself. The nurse asked what I had been given for pain in the past that worked for me. I said I didn't know because I had never been in that much pain before. (On a scale of 1-10, I think I said 9.) I think I was in recovery for a couple of hours before being moved to a holding room... still recovery, but not ICU... my bed just wasn't ready yet so I stayed the night there. They moved me to a hospital bed and that was no fun at all. Lots of flopping around and then they got me cleaned off and changed. That part is a bit fuzzy. I think it was midnight before I got settled in and Dad & Marian left.

Thursday:
I don't remember much through the night. They kept telling me that I had a room, but it wasn't ready yet. That seemed to take a long time, but what do I know! Mom came by in the morning just before I got moved. I still had the morphine button, but now my family members made sure it was constantly being pushed. For the most part I stayed in bed and doped up. The catheter was removed so that did require making it as far as my personal port-a-potty. Dad went home Thursday and then got sick. That caused a shuffle in the plan for my kids, but it all worked out thanks to dear friends & family!

Friday:
I woke up feeling better and Dr. Skoracki (plastics) came in to check on me. Said it was ok to shower. I thought that was a grand idea and jumped on it. Maybe not such a bright idea after all. I spent the rest of Friday trying to stop the pain. They juggled my meds a bit. Something they gave me made me nauseous. We finally settled on Dilaudid. My new friend. Occasionally morphine would have to make a comeback. I think this was the day the first neck drain came out.

Saturday:
My kids came to visit! They were making the hand-off to head to Dallas with Auntie M. It was so great to see them. Nathan was a bit cranky (found out later he had pink-eye. Great.) Ella was in a great mood and adjusted well to seeing mommy at less than her best (OK, at her worst.) I was sad to see them go, but knew it was best for everyone. It was really hard to tell Marian good-bye. I don't think I couldn't have gotten through those first 3 days without her! Saturday night my dear friend, Linda, came by. Great to see her. Mom & Kelly both got a break and she stayed with me for a couple of hours.

Sunday:
Mom sent Kelly home (i.e. hotel) in the morning (as she or Marian did every morning). I sleep off & on and she reads her book. We settled into a nice routine. I was feeling much better. Kelly needed to get some rest before our big Valentine's date. We always have pizza and rent a movie and this year was going to be no different. I did have another visitor in the afternoon -- Dr Alford and his wife. It was so great to see him and meet her. I was in the hall walking around and mom had gone to ask the nurse something when I saw him roll in. We said our greetings and then he started asking questions. He wanted to know about medications and what I was getting to prevent blood clots. The nurse walked up and we asked her. She looked at him like, just who do you think you are???? He explained that he was my referring physician and so she answered his questions. (I don't remember her name -- not my favorite nurse!) We made it to my room and chatted for a bit. Mary asked if there was anything we needed while in Houston and I told her we needed a recommendation for a great pizza place. Star Pizza. Awesome. Kelly missed the visit, but came back shortly after they left. We got our pizza and watched Paul Blart, Mall Cop. Funny. Dumb. As expected. Kelly brought me a special Valentine's dessert and we exchanged cards. Awww.

Monday:
I got to go home! They pulled the other neck drain, but said I'd have to go home with the leg drain so we received instruction on how to care for it. Mom headed out shortly before we did. Before she left she made sure to get a walker, potty seat & shower seat all lined up for me. Awesome! We decided to spend one more night in Houston...just in case. We had a nice lunch at La Madeline. My first appearance in the outside world. A little self-conscious. We went to our new hotel and I took a nice long nap. Uninterrupted. We ate in and played games. Didn't sleep too well that first night out.

We came home on Tuesday and I've only taken a few prescription pain meds. Pretty much on Advil now. The leg drain came out today. I didn't sleep great last night, but took a good nap this afternoon. We went to church this morning (Ash Wednesday). For the most part, people tell me I look good (my mother says I'm beautiful, but I can promise you this is a face only a mother could love!!). Then you have the one truth-teller (which I appreciate & find refreshing.) She told me that I looked good and then I pulled my hair back. She gasped and looked horrified. Thank you! To be clear, to look at me head-on with no expression on my face and my hair strategically placed, I don't look too bad. Mostly normal in fact. However, I am mostly paralyzed on the right side of my face. Half-smile. Talk funny. Dribble when I drink. You get the idea. I can close my right eye, but it doesn't voluntarily blink. There are indicators that this should definitely be short-term. Not sure exactly what that means. Then there are the scars and swelling. We measured the facial scars... 16 inches. The incision on my thigh is 11 inches. The swelling is rather extreme right now, although I'm told that it has gotten much better. Yikes! (I didn't look in the mirror until Saturday.) Honestly, it looks like I swallowed a cantaloupe and it is lodged in my throat. The bruising is nice too. Yellow bruise that goes from my face, down my neck to the front my chest.

I go back to the doctor(s) on Tuesday. I'll try to keep this updated with my progress.