As hospital experiences go, this one was fantastic. Everything about it was good: from the doctors and nurses in the ER, to my overnight stay at the hospital. Even my level of pain from the surgery has been better than expected.
When my surgeon came in to check on me before releasing me this morning, he said that after talking with the nurses, that I was his "poster child for appendectomies". He was very pleased with how well and quickly I was recovering.
My surgery was at 10:30am yesterday. I woke up from my anesthesia-induced sleep at 3:15pm. Dick and my parents came back at 4:00. After that, I was able to get up, and walk around the hallways of the hospital. I "ate" a liquid dinner consisting of broth, jello and a gingerale. I have surprisingly little pain - I'm sore where the incision is, but it's not bad at all. I mostly only notice it when I get up, or walk around. I didn't need to take the morphine that was offered to me. Instead, I took a lower level pain mediation twice yesterday, and today I'm on Extra Strength Tylenol.
Mmmmmmm....liquid dinner.
I've been told to take it easy for the next few days. I'll see my doctor again on Wednesday. I don't have any specific dietary restrictions - just eat "whatever feels right". I don't have much of an appetite yet - Jello is my friend. :)
It turns out that I was very lucky. During the surgery, my doctor found my appendix was tucked underneath the lower part of another organ. Because of this, my my pain from my inflamed appendix was actually cushioned, and the severity of the pain was lessoned. This is why the pain was not as terribly acute as one might normally expect. Likewise, even though the pain was not terrible, if I had not gone in to the ER when I did, the pain of the appendicitis would have been masked, and I may not have realized the severity of the situation until it was much worse.
Things that rock during an overnight hospital stay:
1.iPhone
I loved this little device from day one, but it seems that I keep finding new ways for it to amaze me. I used this non-stop (after I woke up) in my hospital room. Think about this: if I had my computer with me, I would not have had internet access. Since the iPhone can either work on WiFi or over AT&T's EDGE network, I had total internet/phone access! I wrote emails, surfed the web, used the phone, took pictures, and even blogged - right from my hospital room! It was the best thing ever! (and i should now be an iPhone commercial.)
2. Karen Neuberger Chenille Lounge Slippers.
After my telephone gig on the Home Shopping Network, I bought a couple pairs of Karen Neuberger's Chenille lounge slippers with grippers. I hadn't actually used them yet, but remembered them when Dick and I wrote a list of things for him to bring to the hospital for me. Okay, these things rock. They are SO soft and comfy, plus they have the grippers on the bottom to keep you from slipping on hardwood floors.
3. Jammies
There's nothing like having your own jammies, especially when you are away from home. SO much better than wearing a hospital gown. Extra bonus points if the jammies are by Karen Neuberger! (they should be paying me the mega bucks for this!)
4. A loving hubby (interchangeable with spouse/wife/SO/BFF/etc.,)
Dick outdid himself this weekend. He's been amazing. He was with me every step of the way, and was so calming and supportive. I'm so lucky to have him. I love my husband.
KN socks and KN hubby :)
So, that's my appendicitis story. It's still pretty surreal. It all went incredibly well, all things considered. I feel very, very grateful and lucky that it all turned out as well as it did. Thanks again to everyone for their emails, phone calls, and messages of well-wishes. I really appreciate it.
So, that was my weekend.
How was yours? :)
No comments:
Post a Comment