any New Hampshire newbies?

[ZinNH 173]

One thing I wish I had brought is some baby wipes. The LNA offered to help me clean up yesterday, but at that point I was ok. I woke up this morning and just feel gross and smelly! I will take a shower as soon as I get home.

[breprih 96]

Almost! I live in Tyngsboro, MA right on the NH border! I'm like 3 minutes from Hudson, NH. I work in Salem, NH. I have my consultation tomorrow at Lahey.

[breprih 96]

On 10/30/2016 at 11:56 AM, Taking_back_my_life said:

Here is a before and after of me. My surgery was march 7th. I've had great results with CMC.

You look so familiar!

[HollieAyne 5]

14 hours ago, ZinNH said:

I'm here for two nights. I know they've just started letting some people go home after one. They didn't give me the drink, since I'm here for two. My surgery was in the afternoon yesterday, which was actually nice because I had time to run errands before I came!

the rooms are semi private. I didn't have a roommate at first, but then at 3 this morning, they moved someone in. She's had family visiting all day, but it hasn't bothered me at all, because there's a curtain between the bed. We share a bathroom though, which is weird, because the nurses will keep track of what you drink, and how much you pee. So you'll have to pee into a plastic thing (called a hat) and leave it there for them!

I've been hooked up to an IV since I got here, so I'm not technically dehydrated. I'm just super thirsty. It's such a strange feeling to have to go to the bathroom so much and still feel thirsty!

i haven't had any problems drinking the Water. It's just hard to sip it as slowly as they want me to! I'm looking forward to clear drinks in the morning

i packed my bag, but I didn't even touch it until this morning. Yesterday I mostly slept all day. They gave me a tube of moisturizing chap stick, so I didn't need my own. The drink you have to take before your X-ray is disgusting and leaves a horrible taste in your mouth, but brushing your teeth afterward will help. Today I tried to read a magazine hat I brought with me, but ended up falling asleep. I don't feel tired- I think I am just bored.

I loaded up some tv shows and movies on my iPad, but I've been watching the tv in the room more instead. Each bed has its own tv, and the speaker is in the remote control, so my roommate's tv doesn't bother me.

they will also give you a morphine drip, and you can push the button every ten minutes if you feel pain. The only pain I am feeling is from the IV injection site. When I get up out of the bed or chair, the incisions hurt a teeny bit, but that is to be expected.

I did feel like someone was coming in to my room all night long to get my vitals, but my blood pressure went up and has not been coming down, so that could just be for my situation.

Thanks for the info. I had my hysterectomy at CMC and had a really bad roommate experience so I just asked about private rooms and was told that we could pay out of pocket for a private room. I'm totally doing that. I got no rest after by hyst due to the roommate being basically crazy. I will def pack wipes! Great tip. When they said no deodorant before surgery I was freaked out. Thanks so much for all the tips and for sharing your experience. It helps to walk through it from your POV.

[ZinNH 173]

On 8/31/2017 at 5:31 PM, HollieAyne said:

I thought I remembered something about the post op group too but nothing confirmed. I'll do some digging to see what I can find.

There is a post op group- the info was in the packet I was given in the hospital. There are two in fact- one for people less than a year out, and one for people who are farther along

[HollieAyne 5]

19 hours ago, ZinNH said:

There is a post op group- the info was in the packet I was given in the hospital. There are two in fact- one for people less than a year out, and one for people who are farther along

That's probably where I noticed it. I have barely cracked that binder. I thought we would be using it more than we did so I've barely looked at it. Maybe I'll see you at one

[ZinNH 173]

3 hours ago, HollieAyne said:

That's probably where I noticed it. I have barely cracked that binder. I thought we would be using it more than we did so I've barely looked at it. Maybe I'll see you at one

How are you doing with the pre-op diet?

[HollieAyne 5]

14 minutes ago, ZinNH said:

How are you doing with the pre-op diet?

Easing into it now. I started a week early just to get it going. I'm easing into it now. I'm still very hungry at night. But I grab a handful of nuts. I'm so ready to not be hungry anymore. How are you feeling today?

[ZinNH 173]

Pretty good. I had some cream of wheat for dinner. It was so nice to be able to sit with the family and eat together. I only ate a few bites. I haven't had any interest in eating yet. I did reach my Protein and liquid goals, so that's good.

When I was discharged from the hospital, I was given a walking schedule. It suggested taking three walks of six minutes each. I had been running/walking on the treadmill for 45 minutes, so this feels like a huge step backward, but I don't want to overdo it.

[HollieAyne 5]

On 9/15/2017 at 7:36 PM, ZinNH said:

Pretty good. I had some cream of wheat for dinner. It was so nice to be able to sit with the family and eat together. I only ate a few bites. I haven't had any interest in eating yet. I did reach my Protein and liquid goals, so that's good.

When I was discharged from the hospital, I was given a walking schedule. It suggested taking three walks of six minutes each. I had been running/walking on the treadmill for 45 minutes, so this feels like a huge step backward, but I don't want to overdo it.

Ahh...good ol cream of wheat. Can't wait lol. After this liquid diet and not being able to partake in the family meals I will be more than happy to eat anything with them. I'm glad to hear you are able to meet the Protein and liquid goals. I think my biggest fear is the unknown of not being able to drink enough to feel hydrated.

So the walking is okay? No pains? How's your fatigue level. My friend said that for her fatigue was hard to deal with.

[ZinNH 173]

I went back to work n Monday and was fine until lunchtime. I ended up taking a two hour nap after work. No pain, but the fatigue is there! I walked the dog 1.5 miles on Sunday with no problem, but now I'm taking it easy since my job requires a lot more standing and walking than I realized.

[HollieAyne 5]

Good to know. I'll make sure to pay attention to my levels. I just had my preop surgeon appt today and I am following the ERAS protocol. It's Expedited Recovery After Surgery so I will only need to stay one night barring any complications. I'm pretty happy about that. I'll start Clear Liquids the day of surgery...small sips. Then released the next day.

[ZinNH 173]

You're getting so close! Very exciting! It sounds like they're going to be switching everyone over to ERAS. I'll be thinking of you on tuesday!