"Still waiting. Is it a good sign or a bad sign that your surgeon is 2 hours behind schedule?"
Thursday 12:21pm
- So at this point I am starting to freak out. I've been laid up in a hospital gown for a few hours and my doctor is running about 2 hours late. My mind is racing with all the horrible things that can go wrong that will make a doctor late. Now, obviously as I type this it all seemed silly but panic was starting to set in.
"This is Jean-Paul's mom, he is out of surgery, in recovery and doing well. He want me to tell you all that Tom is in control of his pain meds and doing a great job :) I just got to visit him and he looks great considering."
Thursday 4:
- I remember very little, if anything, from this point in the day. There was a man named Tom who was giving me really really good drugs in recovery and I remember cussing up a storm because I was in so much pain. The chest tube really was the culprit, but it felt like I was having chest pains, pains inside my lungs, everything. Once they got me on enough drugs I calmed down and was that guy you see in the movies that is super nice to everyone and tells the doctors "I love you, man". Yes, really.
"JP here. Ouch. Pain sucks but I am alive. PS- don't have a biopsy if you don't have to. — with Hilary Houlette and 3 others."
Thursday 6:24pm
-So they moved me
from the Recovery Room straight to a hospital room instead of to the
ICU, which was a good sign. If I was having problems with my lungs or
if something had gotten accidentally left in there I would have been
sent to Intensive Care. I was in a lot of pain since the cool drugs
from recovery aren't used except RIGHT after surgery.
"Pain still at about a 6 but I hear love heals all wounds. Let's make it happen, then"
Thursday 10:11pm
My Mom has been with me all day (she is amazing), and Ashley was there most of the day except when she had to leave during a meeting. Vicki (my step mother) and Hilary (my younger sister) came after I was let out and hung out with me for awhile. Still in quite a bit of pain, most from the chest tube. Finally kicked Ashley out around 10pm so she could get some sleep (she tried to sleep on the couch).
"Lung slight deflated. Starting a procedure to stop it from collapsing. Pain down to about 4.5. So very ready for sleep."
Thursday 11:03pm
Had my 1st X-ray which showed that my lung was starting to collapse which meant I had to keep the chest tube in for another day, and they had to use "suction" to blow it back up. Pain was not really managed this night and I slept a total of 2-3 hours
"is amazed what a few hours sleep (and Valium, Percocet, IV Motrin, and Darvocer in conjunction with a hot pad and a device inflating my lung) can make me feel so much better. Pain at 2-3; back to sleep."
Friday 12:50am
-They finally got it right and basically it was the perfect storm of drugs. I was actually given Dilaudid not Darvocet. The Valium, Percocet, and HIGH doses of some kind of IV version of ibuprofen.
"Woke up in pain (6) again. Time for some Morphine. *fingers crossed*"
Friday 4:01am
Worked for about 3 hours and then I was in a crazy amount of pain. Felt life my insides were trying to come out and and they wanted to come through the 3 holes the doctor put in my side. They had to give me emergency Morphine because I had already taken too much of everything else. Seemed to work for awhile and I got a few hours of sleep.
"Good Morning, World. Eating pancakes and watching Sex and the City. They had to put suction on my lung because it was dropping. They've pretty much got ahold of my pain."
Friday 8:15am
-Ashley came to see me bright and early and we ate hospital breakfast (I didn't eat much) and just talked. Lots of nurses came in to talk to me about my chest tube, going home, oxygen, etc. I was so loopy from everything that they had been giving me that to be honest I don't remember much. I took a nap this day (finally some sleep).
"Just took a couple of laps (with the help of oxygen, a walker and Ashley). My lunch had Haagen Daas ice cream; so if you have to be in immense pain at a hospital this is the one. X-ray soon to make sure my lung is staying inflated and then a long drug-induced nap. — with Ashley Fern."
Friday 1:18pm
So, my nurse (Nikki) told me that I needed to walk 3 laps around the floor of the hospital wing to get my strength back up. Ashley and I did 2 because I was really out of breath and needed to lay back down. The food in the hospital was actually pretty good and I got as much of it as I wanted; I kinda want to go back when I am less sick because I barely ate anything. Lots of chocolate milk and PB&J sandwiches.
"had his chest tube removed!! As long as my lungs stay inflated I will be outta here tomorrow afternoon!"
Friday 6:53pm
So, the Doc (do not know her name but I didn't like her very much) comes in and tells me x-rays look good and I can take the chest tube out. She has me take a deep breath in and essentially just pulls it out. It was kinda gross, but having it out was like night and day. As soon as I was free from it my pain went from 6-7 to 3-4 almost immediately. That may not seem like a huge jump, but it is. Also, Vicki came back to visit me and brought me a bag of Clementine Oranges (for my health) and a CRAZY amount of candy (I think for my spirit). Did I mention that she is the best step-mother ever?
"Hospitals wake you up early. I am ready to sleep in. Moved to OxyCodone for pain; not quite as good so we'll see. Should go home later today."
Saturday 7:14am
Lots of tests and "going home" prep. Nurses talking to me about what I will need, etc. I kept telling everyone that would listen to me that I was going to need supplemental oxygen for home when I left. They ALL kept arguing with me that I was "young and healthy" and shouldn't. So, I finally get a doctor to do a test on me and my resting Pulse Ox is 89 and as soon as I start walking it drops to around 85; within 100 feet I'm down to 83 and my fingers are blue. I wish doctors listened better.
Saturday 4:12pm
-Ashley drove me home from the hospital and was amazing. I was half asleep, and half back-seat driving and she never even raised her voice. She was very sweet to me and made sure not to get too excited, or rattle my oxygen tank. She really is an amazing woman. Vicki, Hilary and Ashley made sure I was set-up in my parents room and comfortable. I took a long nap, had some dinner with the family and then went straight back to bed. I was very tired and very ready for a night of uninteruppted sleept.
"Evil"
Saturday 8:54pm
I am sure this device has a name, but I don't know it nor do I care to learn. I am supposed to "work out" my lungs with this thing 10 times an hour. It is awful. It hurts, it makes me cough, and worst of all... it seems like I was getting better results when I first started it. Evil.
Muppets Christmas Carol. I don't want to say its better on Percocet, but... :)
Sunday 12:12pm
- Ashley left me this morning to go see her parents for Christmas in Las Cruces, NM. :( So after she left I slept a few more hours and made my way (with the help of 2 liters of oxygen) down the stairs to have some breakfast and hang out with Vicki. We watched some Muppets Christmas Carol and I dozed in and out of sleep. I had a few friends stop by today, as well, but that is for another post. That was my post-op facebook information. Is this blog boring and redundant yet?
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