POST-SURGERY

I spoke with Janny yesterday evening, Th 8/1, about the arrival change from 830am  to 845am, and that she was authorized to make a pickup at County Market Pharmacy, Fairhills.

She arrived at eight on the dot, and we got to the clinic about 815am. Waited about a half hour in the second floor lobby, and then nearly an hour in the pre-op waiting room. I was dressed in backless dressing gown, booties, and shower cap. A male nurse took the vital signs, and a female nurse set up the intravenous drip. No sedatives yet, just a neutral solution. I downplayed the fact that I had about the equivalent
of two large cups of coffee before 7am, but thiswas OK's by what the clinic's office told me yesterday even though it contradicted what was written in Dr. Ellison's material. It seemed that we were locked in, and had I confessed to having Thanksgiving dinner that morning, I think they would have still been good to go.

They had me walk from the pre-op area to surgery, and I held the drips in my left hand and clenched the gown shut with the right hand. I walked into the room that looked like the scene for a 'lethal injection' drama. The male nurse had picked up some blankets, and these actually had come from some kind of a heated chamber. Felt nice. I was only conscious for a couple of minutes, and didn't wake until the procedure was complete.

The next recollection was back in the pre-op room, and I vaguely remember that Janny was present with the male nurse. I told him the I wanted to take a leak, and this probably sped up the process, and I got dressed and then hit the john. A completely normal urination, and no pain or blood, so everything seemed ok. He wheeled me downstairs and Janny brought the car around. He almost loaded me into the wrong vehicle. I remember that his name was Bob, and the first male nurse was Regis. Can't remember name of the female nurse.

Janny drove to Fairhills, and I had to remove the booties and put on the flip-flops in the parking lot. No problem walking into the store, but I stood because the chairs seemed far too low to comfortably sit upon. Got the prescriptions filled with a minimum of hassle, and the stool softeners and downers cost a whopping ten bucks! I'll see if I can check at a later date if my deductible had been met and whether or not the insurance paid and how much.

She dropped me off without coming inside, and I spent the afternoon skimming through books and listening to music. I knew that I would retain very little, so I just looked at an Utne Review, a bio of Marianne Faithful, and TRANSFORMER about Lou Reed.

Janny called about 330pm and told me that Joe and her were out checking out garage sales, and she had neglected to leave my 'post-op instructions' with me. I told her to drop them by whenever it was convenient, and I was reading in the living-room. She showed up about 6pm and Buddy greeted her at the screen door. She didn't come in, and Joe was in the car on the drive.

At 615pm I put CONTEMPT by Jean-Luc Goddard on the Blu-ray, and started watching. I had taken a few of Dr. Floyd's pain pills, and decided that beer might be better than the pills. The downers seem to promote constipation, and this is the last thing I need. So the beers  will act as a stool softener, and will keep me hydrated better than diet soda. Part of the prescription was for a stool softener, and I took one when I got back from the pharmacy.

When I finished the first beer, I walked down to the mail box and mailed Jamie's RSVP for the wedding.  I wanted to make sure that the beer would not induce any nausea, or any odd symptoms. It did not,  so I think that I will save the pills for daytime use for as long as necessary. The beer will also act as a diuretic and give a better relief to the discomfort. However, the only pain seems to be in my shoulders, and no where did I read about this odd complication. I wonder how they went about securing my head and upper body when they inserted the breathing tube for anesthesia. The anesthesia doctor mentioned that later this evening I might feel a tenderness where they inserted the drip for the morphine. I feel nothing so far.

When Janny called about stopping over with the post-op materials, she suggested that I schedule the post-op office visit with Dr. Ellison. I'm booked for Monday, 8/12 at 930am.