Home from Hospital

Wow, alot has happened in the past few days. As scheduled, I went for my pre-op paperwork and testing on Friday - it ended up being from 2pm - 7pm as they were fitting me in at the dr office and at the hospital. My mom was with the boys at home, and when I got home we went out back. David came home soon after and joined us outside. He immediately noticed that my eyes were yellow (he jokes that I can't say that he doens't still gaze into my eyes :) and from our early experiences with the boys, we both knew it was jaundice and liver-related. At that point, I knew my stones were affecting my liver function, so I called my doctor back - she was paged since it was after hours at this point. She requested that I come to the ER immediately (she was already at the hospital finishing up a surgery). So, David and I were back off to the ER just as his parents were arriving with dinner.

Once settled in a room in the ER, Dr Jordan came in and explained that a stone(s) were lodged and affecting my liver function, and that I would now have to undergo an additional procedure called an ERCP to remove the stones prior to having my gallbladder removed. She said they would be admitting me and that I would likely have the ERCP the next day. After several hours in the ER, I was finally admitted to a shared room in the Short-Stay ward at around midnight. Once I got settled in, David headed home to get some rest and came back the next morning as soon as my mom got there to take care of the boys. Of course, I couldn't sleep much in the hospital between the noises (I know the people that are working are awake, but they would yell to each other and throw things around out in the hall and would never leave our door closed), and I was also had some mild pain and nausea and was anxious about all that was to come. It was a long night until David got there - and then we were both just bored waiting!

Finally, in the late morning, the GI doctor came in to talk to us about the procedure - I would be sedated, and they would use a camera-guided instrument to go down my throat and past my stomach to attempt to clear the stones. A little while later,they came to get me for the procedure which wasn't too bad. After being hooked up to alot of monitors, I was positioned on a table on my side and belly, and that is all I remember until I woke up and felt something in my mouth - it was one of the stones that had come back up - so they put it in a container and let me keep it! They took me back to my room, and I immediately felt a little better, but was bummed because I knew it was probably too late for them to try to do the gallbladder surgery that day.

My roommate had been a young lady who had had gallbladder removal early the morning that I arrived that night, so she was discharged that morning before I even had my procedure, so I was hoping for a night of rest. The Dr that would do my procedure the next day, Dr. Henry (which I rememberd his name by thinking of Henry the Octopus from the wiggles), he came in and told us they would do my gallbladder the next day. Dr Henry had been around when they performed the first laprescopic procedure for GB removal in the early 80's, of all places, right there at Kennestone, and he had taught it as well, so I was in excellent hands.

David came home to be with the boys, and I settled in for bed. I slept well from 7pm - 10pm, but woke up in pain and nauseous, so I asked my nurse if I could have something 'small' for the pain - thinking a tylenol or advil. He looked at my chart and said that I had orders written for .5 of something via IV and assured me it was 'small', so he gave me that with Zofran for nausea...as soon as it went into my IV, I was out of it - felt loopy and sleepy...so, I went to sleep...woke up again a around midnight when they were bringing an elderly lady (87 I think) as my roommate - they were LOUD. Turned on all the lights, TV, were talking, etc. I was still pretty out of it, and when I lifted my head the room was spinning and I felt sick. I was so thankful when my nurse came in and suggested she might be better off in another room with a 95 year old woman, so they moved her and I was able to rest again.

David came back on Sunday am, and they soon gave us word that they were on their way to get me to go to the OR. In a few minutes, they come with the gurney to take me, David goes with us to the Surgery waiting room, they take me back to the surgery area, and someone comes over ( a very loud, pompous man that I later find out is an anesthesiologist) - takes one look at me and says, that isn't my patient - go back to your room - and starts yelling at the nurses there about what a screw up they are...I ask him if he wants me to just walk back to my room, and he laughs and says that my dr is still at home in the shower....turns out he was waiting for a 6'5" man with kidney stones, so I am thankful it was clear that I was not the right patient!!! So, we head back to my room and wait another few hours, and they call to let me know they are coming to get me again - do the same thing again, but this time I am the right patient! With a different anesthesiologist! After some questions and some prep, they take me in an OR room, have me move over to the table, hook me up, and the anesthesiologist tells me to relax and rest and it will be over soon - then the world went black and (what seems like) a few minutes later I wake up in agonizing pain, and a nurse gives me stuff in my IV but nothing seems to work, and finally relief and back to sleep...then somehow, I wake up back in my room with nurses and David talking to me, I smile and think I am talking but can't will my eyes to open - I try so hard because I know if I can wake up and eat something then they will let me go home that day. Finally, later I do manage to wake up and have some ice and later they bring me soup and jello for dinner, I am not too hungry, but I don't feel sick either, so I eat and keep it down, and ask when I can go home - they say whenever I want. so we start that process, finally get discharged around 8:30pm and David takes me home - it is a nice cool evening, and I am thankful to have the fresh cool air after days of hospital confinement. I am a little achy and sore, but already feel better now that all the 'bad' is out of my body - YEAH, I am on the road to recovery.

I am in my 2nd day at home now, doing well, eating, and resting, but feeling good. Glad it is all behind me! My mom is with me to help with the boys...Kerry is coming tomorrow to help for a few hours so my mom can work, and we have a sitter coming Friday am. David just can't get time away from work right now, so we are so thankful for all the help. I can't wait to get back to our boring weekly routines! I have four small incisions on my tummy with the lowest and deepest being in my belly button. I think they should heal well, and I am thankful they didn't have to do a full open surgery. Between these four and my c-section scar, I am starting to look like a war zone - no more bikini for me HAHA!! As if I ever would wear one to begin with.