Home From Surgery

Hi everyone! I'm home from the hospital, minus a thyroid, hurtin' every time I swallow but very thankful to have made it through this experience with fairly minimal issues. I was really nervous when I arrived at the hospital early yesterday morning, but everyone was so kind to me and helped keep me calm. I remember being wheeled into the operating room but I don't remember an absolute thing after that until I woke up in recovery. I am super drug sensitive and they had given me a really strong pain med post surgery, so I was really nauseous after waking up and almost threw up twice. It took awhile for the effects of that to wear off, and when it did, I was in a tremendous amount of pain. The issue with this surgery is that they put the breathing tube down your throat while they operate. So the back of your throat hurts from that, but the front of your throat/neck hurts because it's been sliced open and pieces cut out, etc. Combine the two together, and I'll let you imagine how painful it is to swallow. I toughed it out as long as I could because I didn't want to feel sick again, but by 6:30 last night, I couldn't handle it anymore. So I asked for some medication and they gave me vicodin. It worked for the pain, but not so much for me. Remember the super drug sensitive part? Yeah. At midnight they gave me half of a pill to see if that would help the pain but not give such bad side effects as the whole pill did. About 20 minutes later, I was jittery, shaky, my arms and hands were numb and tingly, I was nauseous and I felt like I was floating to the ceiling. Not really a good combination. So I am home from the hospital armed with nothing but extra strength tylenol and attempting to manage my pain with that. To this point, it's going okay. I'm in a pretty good amount of pain, but I'd rather deal with that and feel normal than deal with the side effects of the drugs. I am able to eat whatever I want, and I'm trying to eat softer foods for now as I slowly reintroduce stuff to my stomach.

The surgery went really well and all my levels looked great, which is why I surprisingly got to come home so early today. I'm not complaining as I'm much more comfortable at home, it's much quieter here, and while I can't really lay my head back much, I'm hoping all of that means I'll be able to get more than the 3 hours of sleep I got last night in the hospital. Plus I am now wire and tube free, which is fantastic. So many of you prayed for me, and it truly made a difference. God has been so gracious to me through my first surgery/anesthesia experience, and I'm truly grateful for your support.

When they first took me back to get me prepped for surgery, I was sitting on my little bed waiting for my nurse to come back, and I could hear the nurse talking to the lady in the cubicle next to me. That woman was there to have a double mastectomy because she had cancer in one of her breasts. She was a little bit older and they were having to talk kind of loud for her to hear them, so I could hear what they were saying to her, and it was so heartbreaking. It really put things into perspective for me as I sat there waiting for my own surgery. I know it's okay for me to be nervous and that my surgery was a big deal for me, but here was this woman about to go through something I think every woman dreads, and to be able to hear some of the last conversations before she went to the OR was sobering. Her nurse was so sweet to her, and the lady asked the nurse if they did a lot of surgeries like that at the hospital. The nurse said, "Yes, but that doesn't matter. Today is YOUR surgery day, and we're here to take care of you. This day is about you."

One of the things God has been teaching me repeatedly in these last months through school and life is the importance of listening to other people's stories. No matter the similarities between people, each person's story is unique, and it deserves honor and dignity and the chance to be told and heard. People tell us so much if we'll only stop and listen and pay attention. The nurse yesterday reminded me of that as she dealt with a type of woman that she sees come through the operating room often. But no matter how many women have that same surgery, they're each different and they each deserve to be treated with honor and dignity and respect. So it will be with my clients, and so it is with people in general. I don't know this woman's name, but somewhere tonight is a lady who is having to come to terms with losing both of her breasts, dealing with incredible pain from an invasive surgery, facing cancer and upcoming treatment for that, and not knowing if she'll survive. Pray for her if you will.

And continue to pray for me and my roommate, who had surgery this afternoon. These next few days will be tough as we have to fight through the most painful days of healing in this process. Pray that there will be no complications, healing will occur quickly and with as minimal pain as possible and that we will all be able to get some sleep and have fun together in the process. Thank you for sharing this journey with me - I am truly grateful.