April 24 surgery Report

[NJDad 173]

Good evening,

I am typing this on my iPad sitting in my chair in my hospital room. My surgery was this morning at 10:45. I am writing this to try and share a few things about my surgery so far.

Let's work backwards. I already told you I am out of bed and in a chair in my hospital room. I did a few laps of my ward about an hour ago. The first lap I felt some tightness in my gut. The second lap I was standing upright and walking better. By the third lap I was walking almost normal. Still taking short steps, but felt pretty good. Getting out of the bed was the best thing I did all day.

I was in the bed for a few hours after surgery in my room. The staff didn't force me out of bed, it was my wife who asked when I was getting out of bed. She and a nurse spotted me as I got out of bed. I was waiting for some sharp pain that never came. It is more of a stiffness.....not too bad. I got up, my wife helped me put some shorts on under my gown and led me to the loo. That first time after surgery was wonderful.........my bladder was pretty full.

Waking up in the recovery room I was a bit foggy for about thirty minutes. I was tired, but I was able to joke with the staff. I spent from around 12:30 - 2:45 in recovery.

The biggest issue I had in the OR is that I am 6'4" tall and the table was too short for me. They had to find some extension so my legs didn't hang over the edge. I recall waking up a bit after the surgery as they were moving me to the gurney for the trip to recovery. I asked if they wanted to help....they seemed surprised by my question, but said if you feel,up to it, sure. I fell back asleep because I don't remember the journey to recovery.

I stopped writing for a few hours as I had a few visitors.......it is now just about 9:00 PM. I am still in my chair. I took one more lap around the ward, and one more visit to the loo. I feel a bit sore, I am burping a bit, but nothing outrageous. My doctors and lots of others warned me of the worst case scenarios......I haven't seen any big issues yet.

I am going to finish watching the Yankee game. My wife just went home after a long day beside me.

I have to say that the staff here at Mountainside Hospital in NJ has been nothing but superb. Everyone has been friendly and courteous. I have been treated extremely well. I am so glad I chose this facility for my surgery.

I'll try and post over the next few days as I recover from surgery. I spent a long time lingering and monitoring these boards.....now it is my turn to share my experiences.

Have a great night everyone,

Ron

[suzannetex 100]

Great news!!! Your doing very good !!! Keep up the walking!! My surg was outpatient. Went in at noon was home by 3. My hubby made me walk,,I griped ALOT!! He was just being a good nurse and I was the BAD patient!!! Sounds like your a good patient !!! Congrats. Keep up the good work!!

Sent from my iPad using LapBandTalk

[KAATNS 1,473]

Congrats on your surgery!

[Jennifer Hodge 41]

Congrats on starting a new chapter in your life. Thanks for sharing your story.

[Banjo257 920]

Welcome Ron. Glad your first day has gone smoothly. Love your screen name, sums up what is important to you and probably a major factor why you chose surgery. Way to go!!!

[Banjo257 920]

Geez, I don't think I've ever complimented a yankee fan before!!!! : )

[GingerAnn 15]

Thanks for sharing!

[lisacaron 5,075]

_{Hi Ron,}

_{Thank you for sharing! I know I worry about how well I am going to do when I come out of the surgery and even though I have had a few different surgeries over the years each experience is different. Keep up the great work and those positive vibes! They really help not just you but the people that you share them with.}

[NJDad 173]

It's 2:00 AM Friday morning. About 40 hours after my surgery Wednesday morning. I was discharged from the hospital Thursday morning after my X-Ray to ensure the band was in the right place and there were no leaks.

Let me say this first.....my wife is a saint. She has been at my side almost the entire time since i had the surgery. The only time she wasn't there, she was filling in for me at a function for our daughter's high school music booster club. If you are going to have this type of surgery, you need strong backup. She has had me up walking, made sure I had Water near me constantly, and been my private nurse throughout. There is no way I could have tolerated yesterday on my own.

I was given some water, clear broth, and Jell-O at the hospital before I was discharged. They wanted to ensure I was able to take in fluids before I was sent on my way. I found out from my doctor that I had a hiatial hernia and that they repaired it when they were inside. I guess I got a 2-1 deal on surgeries Wednesday :-). That explains the 6 holes on my belly when I woke up.....I thought there would only be 3-4.

Pain went up a notch when I got home, but not from where I expected. I had an umbillical hernia repaired a decade ago, and I thought my gut would be sore as hell. It was not. I have some serious gas discomfort most of yesterday and last night. My left shoulder has been the most sore. From what I read online, it is caused by the CO2 gas they inject in my abdomen causing pressure on a nerve that makes it feel like my shoulder hurts. It is normal. A couple of times I felt like I was going to vomit....you know that feeling, it is coming up but then it stops? I panicked those first few times, as I rarely vomit. I would say I have gotten sick about 2 times over the last 20 years.......I am not used to that feeling at all. After a few false alarms I realized if I waited it out, the feeling would pass. I found that by sitting upright on a hard chair, lean forward a bit, the feeling would pass quicker. I found my desk in my home office worked best, so that is why you find me here at 2:00AM :-)

I took a pair of naps during the day yesterday. I normally sleep on my back, but I found I felt more comfortable on my side.......I fell asleep that way, but woke up on my back each time. I went to bed last night around 8:00PM. I was trying to stay up for the NFL draft on ESPN last night, but that was impossible. My body needed sleep.

My doctor prescribed Tylenol 3 for pain. That is a mixture of Tylenol and codeine for those who are unaware. My wife saw the size of the pills and decided that she was going to crush them for me, she was afraid they were too big for me right now. That, was an unwise decision. She crushed the pill and served it to me in a teaspoon. First, the taste is awful. It took a while for the bad taste to go away. Second, when you crush a pill like that, it seems to reach your bloodstream much faster than normal. I got hit with what I can only describe as a headrush about 10 minutes after swallowing the pill dust. I will never do that again. While some people might like that feeling, I am not one of them. WOW, is all I can say. I took the next pill before I went to bed cut in half in a pill splitter. It worked just fine.

My walking started yesterday when I got home. We walked up and down the driveway a few times, then gradually lengthened my walks to down the street and around the corner. I just used Google Maps to determine the distance and it seems I am walking about 750' one way at the end of my longest walk. About a 1/4" mile round trip. Not bad for the first day. I did get a little winded by the end of that walk. Tomorrow we will lengthen that distance.

I took a half shower last night. We have one of those hand shower thingies in the shower, so you can hold the showerhead in your hand and aim the water where you need it. We kept the water off my chest and stomach, but washed the rest of me, including my hair. Ahhh, a shower never felt so good. My doctor told me I can take a real shower later this morning.

I didn't tell many people before of my surgery. First, I didn't want to tell people about it if I never went through with it. Second, i was afraid how people would react. I saw some good friends who live on our street and they asked me why I was walking so "carefully." I explained about the surgery, and they were quite positive about it. They thought it was good for me, that I was doing something about my weight issue. One was surprised, he didn't think I needed it. He thought I weighed a lot less that I actually was. I guess I carried it well? Their reactions made me feel a lot better about my decision.

I was concerned over why I was doing all this. Was I doing it for my vanity? Health? My wife and daughter? I have come to the conclusion that it is all of the above. I want to look better, I don't want to deal with health problems down the road caused by my weight, and I want to be around a long time to drive my wife and daughter crazy.

Well, thanks for listening to me this evening. If I don't talk to you again before, have a nice weekend.

Ron