10 day countdown til surgery

[Mtn Gal]

Hi Lisa,

The last few days before surgery can be the hardest, as you are trying to get everything done before you become "disabled".  As my husband informed me, "those things will get done whether you do them or not".  Remember to engage in some relaxing activities.  I asked my husband for a dinner date and then a small shopping trip for those last needed items.  We had a wonderful evening, even though I cried during dinner as we discussed the surgery.  He assured me that God had given him peace about it and I knew that I had that same peace if I just wouldn't let my mind run wild with all the "what if's".  The doctors even told my family that I was very calm going into the surgery.  The funny part is, I looked around in the operating room and I had five men working on me getting me prepared and I couldn't help but say "I've never had this many men working on me at the same time".  Well that was a good laugh anyway.

My surgery was retrosigmoid on May 31, 2006 and I was blessed with no complications; just the usual recovery from any surgery.  I was back at my office job in 23 days, cause I got bored sitting at home where my family would not let me do anything.  Boy when I returned to work, then I got all my other chores at home back too.  I still get tired easily and I just try to take it easy when I can.  My life has returned to my pre-surgery normal.  I was almost deaf in my AN ear before surgery and I did not lose my hearing in that ear as the nerves were not damaged, but I can't hear much with it anyhow.  You learn to adjust and you ask folks to repeat things a lot.  Life goes on and it is good.

My hospital stay was 5 days.  The first 2 days my mouth was so dry and I was nauseated and couldn't keep any liquids down.  On the 3rd thru 5th day my toothbrush, toothpaste and mouthwash (don't forget the mouthwash) were my best friends.  Most of the food and drinks left a bad taste in my mouth and I was glad to be able to brush my teeth and rinse my mouth.  My appetite was gone for probably 7 days before I really wanted anything much and gradually things began to taste good again.  I had new pj's with button fronts and on the 4th day I actually felt like putting a pair on.  I even wore pj's home from the hospital and we had a 2-hour drive.  I wore them the first couple of days at home too.

I truly wish you the best on your surgery and will be praying for you and your family as will others from our wonderful AN group.  Try not to think about it too much and just relax.  Give yourself plenty of time to prop your feet up before surgery and after.  Keep a positive attitude that things will be well and that you will get thru this, one day at a time.

-Mtn Gal

[cinnamon]

Wow Mtn Gal,

     I can't believe you went back to work after 23 days. You sound so much like me. I have never been away from work very long and i can't imagine it. I do want to try to give my body time to heal though. I realize this is a serious surgery so I don't want to push myself too hard. I am curious, do you have any headaches? I have so a big fear of them since my doctor scared me.

   You are an inspiration to me. I can only hope things will be good for me too. It is hard when you just don't know what to expect. Is your hair long? I work as an administrator in a dental office and I am concerned about seeing that hair is missing. My hair is long but it is hard to imagine what things will be like. I am ready to get this over with so I can share with you and everyone what this unusual experience is like. I will try to write more sometime. My husband will try to post for me as he is home. I am going to try to call Cheryl from the an group to let her know how I am doing. Maybe she can post for me. Anyways, thanks for the tips.Oh, I am doing some meditation with a life coach tomorrow and having a relexology massage. I have to see my brain surgeon first which is good that I get that out of the way. I am pretty much packed but I will go put my mouthwash in the bag. Funny, I work in a dental office but I almost forgot the mouthwash. Thanks again for your support. I am really looking forward to talking more with you.

              Lisa

[Obita]

Hi Lisa:

Best of luck to you on Thursday. 

I had translab surgery on a Thursday at 7:00 am and was home by Sunday noon and never had a headache.  I had muscle spasms in my neck instead which went away with a little valium. 

You gotta hear the good stuff!! 

Kathy

[nipanddale]

Hi Lisa,

I read your post and my heart and prayers go out to you. My husband and I just got back last week from Los Angeles where he had his 3.5 cm AN removed at House Ear Clinic on July 28th. I can tell you that the only thing that helped my husband and I through this was prayer. I don't know if your spiritual or have a religious affiliation and trust me I don't want to offend, but I can tell you our story. We don't have a church or religious home so to speak, and we don't practice a whole lot of anything, but none of that really mattered. The night before the surgery I literally spoke to God and handed this over to him, I cried a little and confessed how scared I was and amazingly I felt better. My husband woke up a little while later, he had been very restless, and I told him about my prayer and that I felt somehow it had already been answered. He hugged me and tried to sleep, he told me the next morning that as he laid there he did the same thing and a certain peace came over him as well. And God did answer our prayers, Dale is recuperating so well, I'm surprised to look at him sometimes because if you didn't know about the surgery you wouldn't guess that he had one. He has some facial weakness right now and a little dizziness now and then but that's really it.

Lisa, I know how difficult this is for you and your family, I will pray for you. It's the new thing I do.

As for the hospital, here is what I would suggest:

A thin robe if you have one is nice to have.
Definitely something that reminds you of your pet, we missed ours so much.
Soft Kleenex
Comfy underwear or loose pj shorts that you can wear without underwear
The squisshy neck pillow that they sell at places like bed, bath and beyond.

Other than that everyone is right, you will most likely wear the gowns, but after a couple of days you will want something on underneath.

Tell people no smelly flowers, they will bug you.
Your head and body will get hot from laying in bed so the squisshy pillow helps because you can support your neck and I think it's cooler than hospital pillows.

I would suggest slippers, but they usually want you to wear those socks that have the rubber on the bottom.

Typically you will want the room cold so tell others to dress in layers

That's really it. Good luck and God Bless,

nip

[Mtn Gal]

Hi Lisa,

Don't worry about your hair.  I have short hair and they pulled it up and only shaved a small section underneath.  The layers on the top and sides were long enough to fall back down over the incision.  I had to push my hair back away from my ear in order to see the scar.    The worst part is they don't want you to get the incision wet until the staples or stitches are removed, so it is a few days before you can shampoo your hair.  I had a family member take a wet wash cloth and soap and washed my hair that way while I was in the hospital.  When I got home and was able to get in the shower, my mom helped me by tying a gadget around my head above my ears (honestly it looked like a plastic shopping bag); I held it in place and placed a wash cloth over the incision to keep it dry and she washed my hair.  Necessity is the mother of invention.   

I haven't really had any headaches.  My head hurts a little from time to time, usually when I have turned my head too quickly or if I've bent over several times.  It sometimes throbs for a minute or two and then it subsides.  When I first got home from the hospital, I took a prescription pain pill the first and second night, thinking it would help me sleep better, and then a day or two after that I may have taken tylenol once or twice.   The steroids kept me awake at night and caused me to feel odd, so I was glad when I finished taking them.  Be sure to go off of the steroids gradually. 

Good luck on your surgery and your recovery.  I hope it will be as good as mine.  In a few short days you will be able to be back on here telling us your story.  Each day will bring an improvement; just be patient and take it one day at a time.  I will be thinking of you.

Hugs and prayers,
Mtn Gal

[staypoz]

You might want to take a picture of your pet to have by your bed in the hospital.  A friend gave me a small stuffed animal to take to the hospital and I can't tell you how that little stuffed puppy made me and the nurses smile!!  You may also want to get some of the dry or shampoo-without-water to make yourself more comfortable.  I used it every day until I got the go-ahead to wash my hair.  It cleaned my hair and made it smell nice.

Good luck!

staypoz

[cinnamon]

Thank you all for your such caring support. Mtn Gal, I do believe in God but I don't attend a church regularly. I have done my best to come to peace with god and that i have opened myself up for him to take control. I had some wonderful reflexology today and we talked about holistic healing. I also met with a life coach to help me have postive energy and to let the fear go. It practically took up my whole day. I am believing that everything will be fine therefore it will be fine. I can't wait to get it over with and tomorrow will be here soon enough. I will try to get back on soon, but meantime my husband will hopefully put in a post or two. I have my suitcase ready to go. I am finishing some laundry and then plan to take a nice long bath with my new energy salt. I am signing out so thanks again for everything and may god be with us all in this journey we call life.

               Lisa

[cookiesecond]

Lisa.
You are in my thoughts and prayers. I pray for wisdom and guidance for the doctors, peace for you and your family and a quick,complete recovery for you. I look forward to hearing your good report.
Lynn

[ppearl214]

Lisa,

HUGGLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hang in there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!