Day 8: Hospital recap

My trip to the surgeon's office yesterday really tuckered me out! And today I've been feeling tired again. After my surgeon suggested that I may be anemic from blood loss and it can take up to 1 month for the body to replenish red blood cells, I've been looking for tasty ways of getting more iron in my diet. I've been blending spinach into soups, and today I made a fairly yummy molasses coffee drink: 1 cup whole milk, 1 tbsp blackstrap molasses, 1 tbsp peanut butter, 2 tsp Nutella, and 1/4 cup coffee.

I decided that the bulk of today's post will be a recap of my stay in the hospital. I found this topic to be one of the most interesting ones to read about on other people's blogs, and I want to write down what I remember about my own hospital experience before I forget!

I arrived at the hospital at 8:30am on the day of surgery and found out that my surgery was booked for 11:25am. They gave me a gown to change into, and once a bed in the pre-surgery room was available they got me hooked up to an IV (this was actually the part I dreaded the most!).

Waiting for a bed

IV line put in (this is after I recovered from my near-fainting episode!)

Once it was time for surgery a porter wheeled me to another "holding" room where I said my goodbyes and I waited to go into the OR. The room was really cold and it didn't help that I was nervous too, so a nurse brought me a warmed up blanket which felt really nice! While waiting, I signed some consent forms, put a hair cap on, and met the OR nurse and the anesthesiologist who were both very nice. The anesthesiologist explained about having to put a breathing tube through the nose and when I woke up my throat would be a little sore. He also asked if I had one nostril that was easier to breathe through. I answered the right one, and he said he'd probably use that one if it was larger, but he would see which was easier to get the tube down once in the OR. I asked the nurse if I could use the washroom one last time before surgery and she said I could, but I'd have a catheter put in anyways because the surgery was too long to go without one. I thought I could escape that part! But I guess not.

I wasn't wheeled to the OR until about 12:30pm because they were running behind, and on my way I met the surgeon in the hall. He said the anesthesiologist for my surgery was really good and I had nothing to worry about. He also said some other things, and some words of encouragement, but I honestly can't remember any details because nothing was registering! I was so nervous!

Once in the OR I was asked to transfer from the gurney to the operating table, making sure my robe wasn't tied in the back or caught under my body. This was slightly awkward because I was completely naked underneath. I was introduced to another nurse who was going to be attending the surgery, and then the anesthesiologist said he was going to give me some IV drugs to make me relaxed. I instantly had blurry vision and my brain went fuzzy, and I was getting all ready to count backwards once he said he was administering the anesthetic, but I never had a chance! I was out.

Surgery was over at 4:30pm, and I woke up in the recovery room some time before 5pm. My surgeon appeared and said everything went well and that he ended up doing double jaw surgery. I think I nodded and tried to smile and then he said some more things that I didn't fully comprehend in my drugged stupor. I was wheeled to my room at 5:30pm and I remember feeling very dizzy in the elevator and thinking "now I know why the hospital elevators move so slowly!" I shared a room with three other people during my stay, one of which was a young guy who broke his jaw in a fight and required surgery to fix it. I overheard his surgeon advising him not to take any street drugs or marijuana during recovery because it would slow the healing process, haha.

My parents and some relatives came to see me after I was more fully awake. I don't think the nurse was too pleased with them taking pictures but she didn't know I had asked for them!

I wore an ice wrap on my head (which felt awesome!), a mask with humidified oxygen, a blood pressure cuff and pulse oximeter, and later the nurse put compression stockings on my legs to prevent blood clots. I had access to a suction tube to get rid of drool and blood in my mouth, a nurse's call button, and a push button for morphine. Needless to say it was quite the ordeal going to the washroom for the first time. I needed help to get unhooked from everything (later I learned to do it myself) and I was rather dizzy so I clutched my IV pole like an invalid. This may be way too much information, but I didn't know how much having a catheter affects your ability to go to the washroom! It burned for the first day and a half whenever I went, and it trickled so slowly that it took ages to finish!

Even though I was given antinausea meds, I threw up twice the first night after surgery...all blood. Thankfully I didn't actually feel sick until a few seconds before it happened, and it was over with relatively quickly. The first time it happened though I couldn't find the nurse's call button right away because I was sitting on it, so there I was leaning over a bowl that I was clutching with one hand, letting the blood slowly drain through my teeth, and searching desperately with the other hand to find the call button. It was a good thirty seconds before I found it, but after that the nurse came quickly and cleaned me up. To add to the amusement, as I was leaning over the bowl the ice wrap slipped off my head and fell in, and then I puked on it. It really takes a special person to be a nurse!

By the next day I was feeling much better, despite a few nosebleeds (just blood draining from my sinuses), and had more visits from relatives. My surgeon came to see me in the morning and told me everything looked good. I also learned how to properly feed myself and rinse my mouth. The nurse kept asking when I wanted to have a shower. Apparently it's good to get moving as soon as possible after surgery, and a shower also helps to clear your airway, but I had absolutely no desire for showering. It took enough effort just to get to the washroom! And I could breathe quite well already, so I just asked for a towel to wash my face instead.

Day 1

Learning how to eat with a syringe

The second day after surgery I was discharged after another visit from my surgeon, getting a steroid shot in my hip to limit the swelling, and collecting some supplies (ice wraps, syringes, nasal decongestant, and saline solution). I was happy to go home and finally move around without dragging an IV pole, though I was sad to see the morphine pump go. It had become my friend. :) On the way home my parents picked up my prescriptions (liquid Tylenol with codeine, antibiotic (this later became my enemy), antibacterial mouth rinse, and Dimetapp) and I looked forward to getting a good night's sleep. And that ends my hospital adventure! (until the ER on day 4, but that's another story).

Going home!