An outline of my day three, second day after surgery
I slept through the night just a touch better, but still woke up and found my night nurse, John, available to check on me and give me pain relief.
Sleeping on and off through the night with a drain attached and a support strap hugging is quite different and takes a lot of getting used to. I was smart enough to pack my oversized pj t-shirts so there was enough room to move and not feel caught up.
My squishy Sally was still by my side and helped me keep the space between my arm and area of surgery comfortable. Sometimes a gift like that can be the best kind. When looking back at it one day, I will still smile knowing I had the support from my best friend and a touch of Halloween to go with it!
Not long after I woke up, my day nurse Cassie took over and checked on my vitals. She mentioned that my cannula should come out today which made me super happy due to how weird it feels when I am trying to use my right arm. Mostly, it had more of an itchy sensation on and off but I have managed just fine with it so far.
My surgeon stopped in to check on me right before he was off to surgery and looked everything over. He was happy with how everything looked so far (minimal swelling, no signs of bruising and my drain is still collecting fluid). He had mentioned he would check back and revisit how I am doing and see if I would like to stay another night or go home later in the day. Honestly, I feel it would be best that I stay just one more night as my fatigue has hit me a bit hard with the heat and I know that when I go home it will be hard to not get up and move around. Even thou it would be good for me to move around, I also know my body wants rest and I am in the best place for that if there were any changes that should arise.
I got to take a shower after breakfast and this time I washed my hair. I felt it was a bit easier to manoeuvre around with the drain now that I have had it attached to me for a couple days. Nothing like a shower after a long warm night with on and off sleep.
Hubby arrived and hung out with me for a while. While sitting next to me and watching movies, he made a “recovery menu” for me to look at when I come home. This menu has a list of easy things I can chose from that he will prepare for me whenever I feel I need something and he will get it for me. One of the sweetest things ever, I truly am so lucky.
Hubby and I had chatted about going for a mild walk around the hospital but not long after I was hit with another wave of fatigue and weakness. Thou my blood pressure seems to be keeping steady and I am constantly drinking water, I decided to take a small nap instead of going for a walk just to be safe. So hubby went home for a while to do laundry and let me rest.
The small nap never happened as I had just zoned out and looked at the tv on the wall for a little while. When I had lunch, I felt a bit of a pain in my chest. I wasn’t sure if it was heartburn or something else. The hard part is when everything is still a bit numb from painkillers and surgical magic stuff, you don’t really feel things the same. It all comes back slowly.
When the nurses came to check on me I had mentioned the discomfort in my chest and one of the nurses went and got an ECG machine. They hooked me up, did the things and checked just to be safe. The results were good. I most likely had heartburn and my fatigue and all the other goodies along the way just made things a bit confusing in the feels.
Hubby arrived just as the ECG was being hooked up to me and I was happy he could be there, too. We sat and watched tv and best friend showed up a bit later.
Hubby and I decided to go for a wee walk to the family room and outdoor area not far from where my room is. We made some coffees and sat outside in the fresh air.
I had been working on a cross-stitch and got it to a point I am satisfied to finish when I return home. While tidying up the last bits for now, my surgeon stopped by as promised and checked on everything. He was still happy with how everything was going and how it all looked. He assured me everything I had been experiencing is quite normal and he would be back in the morning to check in again.
Since I hadn’t had a full sleep over the past couple of nights, my surgeon also made sure the nurses knew to give me something to help with sleep tonight. I am so grateful on how smoothly the communication goes between everyone here at the hospital.
My comfort has been secured in bed, playing board games online and listening to a crappy movie on the tv. Hubby came back after diner and brought me snacks. We continued to watch the crappy movie together and then he was off to play in a social basketball game. I am happy he gets to do something for himself because I know just how stressed out I would be if I were in his shoes. The few times I’ve gone to ER with him due to something he had happen was the worst.
Now that I have made notes outlining each day I have been here, I am going to put down my keyboard and kick back while I rest in hospital for the last night before I get to go home.
This journey has just begun.
Comments