Week two of pre-op…
Week two of pre-op…
As the surgery date nears and there are less than two days until I am in an operating room, my nerves are getting the best of me. I have had several surgeries in my life. A tonsillectomy and myringotomy (tubes in my ears) at age 6, major reconstructive surgery on my jaws in high school, a burst appendix for several days caused an exploratory surgery at 19 yrs. old, knee surgery as a young adult, four children, and my hysterectomy about 10 years ago have made me no stranger to the operating room. I have never feared hospitals and will sit with someone in a hospital room as long as needed. I usually don’t get panicked in crisis or with bad news and will rationalize most situations. But here’s the issue, I like to talk to people. I like to talk through my thoughts and fears. My mind has to be occupied at all times. The worst time of day for me is those few minutes before falling asleep when my mind goes to the far corners and comes up with every version of every scenario. I know I am not the only one that does this, but it drives me crazy! How does this relate to my upcoming surgery, you may ask? Well, with no visitors allowed in the hospital it means that I am alone once I leave the car until I get back in a few days later. No one will be there as I am doing the surgery prep to keep my thoughts from wandering. No one will be there as an advocate while I am unconscious. No one will be there when I get to a room or when I wake up to tell me everything went well (yes I know the doctor will tell me, but they usually take a while before coming in). None of my kids or my husband can come to see me during my stay. All of these things make this experience just a little scarier than at any other time. I will have my phone and my tablet. I am taking my portable charger which can serve as an extension cord for 2 USB devices. I will be spending time on those devices for sure. I know I won’t feel well after the surgery and I will most likely just want to sleep, but I have to be prepared for everything since, oh yeah, no one can bring me anything! I honestly feel for the individuals going through illnesses like COVID in the hospital right now.
Let’s get back on track here and down to the stuff everyone wants to know about. How’s the pre-op stuff going? I am still on the same diet restrictions as the last post, a full liquid diet. I have as of this morning lost over 15lbs since starting the diet. I feel great! I thought I would be tired and have no energy, but just the opposite actually. I am full most of the time. There is a little period at night that I am hungry because I stay up a little late. Generally, I am not hungry. Today was my COVID test. It was a drive-up situation geared only to pre-op clearance. They did the swab in the back of my throat which wasn’t comfortable, but tolerable. Results should be in about 24 hours and they will call if it’s positive only. They do put the results immediately on the myscripps app, so I can get confirmation on there which is nice. I really don’t think I have COVID, because if I do it’s completely asymptomatic. I have been pretty isolated for the last week or so just to be safe. The hospital called today to get my pre-op questions taken care of and verify my arrival time to the hospital on Friday. She also told me the process of taking in my tech with me. It’s all going in an unlocked locker while in surgery. That’s a little nerve-racking, but oh well.
That’s where everything stands right now. The next time I write will be after my surgery. Maybe not right after my surgery, but this is my way of taking to people. It keeps my thoughts organized. It’s more for me than anything, but I really do hope that at least one person that reads this can either relate in some way or learns something new. For now just keep me in your thoughts as you are all in mine. See ya on the flip side!