Can Ya Believe It ???

Well .. when I had my appt with the surgeon on august 11th, we tenatively scheduled the surgery for October 6th at 1230 pm.  Well I got a phone call and the paper notices last week that the insurance company has approved the surgery and the inpatient stay at the hospital. Today at 1015 am i have the pre surgical testing at the hospital that is expected to last for up to 2 hours.  Not entirely sure what that entails but i got a call and was told that i do not have to fast for the appt ..
The surgery itself is scheduled for two weeks from today .. the only presurgical diet i have been given is starting at 6 am on the day prior to surgery, clear liquids only, and nothing after Midnite on the day of surgery.  I think that may harder than the clear liquids.  12 hours of nothing before surgery .. (shudders)
Not sure if this was a good idea or not but in the last month or so i have taken this opportunity to eat a few of the things that i may not ever be able to have in their original forms .. I may find sugar free types of equivalents for somethings but they won't be completely the same if you know what i mean.

Any whoo .. having a combination of nervousness and excited about the whole thing and it is going to get more intense as it gets closer to the surgery date. 

My mom has said that she was concerned about the surgery and the amount of food that i would be consuming afterwards and i  told her that that was what the visits with the dietician were all about how to eat with the little pouch .. and she also said that at first she was worried about how i would do to get around and function after the surgery but then she remembered that I had to have an emergency c-section with my son.. I was up the day of that and managed quite well and that eased her mind a bit.  plus after they let me out of the hospital they actually kept my son for an additional 5 days in special care nursery ( he was jaundiced ) and the day they sent me home with my mom, she left I hopped into my car and drove back up to the hospital.  which i wasn't supposed to drive and after i had been there a while the nurses and such pointed out that since i had a c-section I wasn't supposed to be driving for 2 weeks (ooops).  So the following days my mom dropped me off at the hospital on her way to work and picked me up after. 

Needless to say .. they slice you completely for the c-section so my mom said you should be fine with just five little one inch cuts ..

I was reading thru the previous posts got a few ideas of what may or may not happen during the hospital stay .. they always give you an idea at the doctors but i would like a few examples from those who have experienced it. I read about the posibility of fluid weight gain,  and have been warned about the nasty taste of the lortab liquid.  I know when i had my son i had a morphine pump for a day or so and that worked well after the c-section.  Is the pain comparable to that or worse ??? 
Any thoughts or opinions would be welcome.

Thanks for listening(reading) my early morning rambling and for any words of wisdom that are directed my way.

Blessings to all

Jenn

WOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOO... so Oct 5th? Ohhh the time is going to fly by faster than you can imagine! We all have to be without anything by mouth 12 hrs prior to surgery. It is to help prevent vomitting and aspiration during and after surgery. You will make it through this fine. If you are able to sleep the night before, you will be sleeping much of the time away.

I never had a c-section, so can't compare the two for you on a personal level. But an open procedure is almost always harder to recvoer from than a laproscopic one. I seriously doubt the pain will be worse than with the section, but again, I don't know this for sure.

The post op pain management is different with different surgeons. I had a pain pump after mine. Was sent home with vicodin tabs and told to split them before taking. Never had to deal with the liquid pain meds. The pain was worst the first 2 days post-op. after about 4 days it was quite tolotrable for me and I used no pain meds after that. (I do NOT like pain meds...they make me nauseated) I did take tylenol prior to bed time for about the first week, as i got sore after being in bed allnight and trying to lay down and sit up are a bit painful.

When you get out of surgery, at the first sign of nausea ask for nausea meds right away and spare yourself the pain of the dry heaves! It is miserable postop to dry heave! Or even to vomit at all. So don't try to tough it out...ask for the anti nausea meds as soon as you feel it coming on, if you do.

Get up and take several short walks daily as soon as they will let you. It helps prevent clots but also helps get rid of the air they will put in you during surgery, which is uncomfortable, and it will help move the excess fluids out. Just take em slow and short and don't walk alone at first until you know how you will do. At first you could experience dizziness etc.

Have some slip on slippers so you don't have to bend to put them on or have others help you. Have a robe for walks (or use a second hospital gown put on the opposite way for coverage), and some chap stick. Your lips will get dry and chapped most likely. Pack loose fitting comfy clothes for the ride home. You don't want pressure on your belly. I brought my own meds in my suitcase as well, just in case they didn't get ordered at the hospital. One of mine didn't until the following day when i mentioned it to the nurses, then had to wait for DR to order it, so was glad I had them handy.

Try to have everything you will need your first week home before you go, so you do not have to run around for them after surgery right away. Supplements, protein, food items (probably liquids), etc. Have some extra pillows for your bed to help with positioning, as your behind and back will get sore from laying flat and not having an adjustable bed at home. I know it was almost 2 weeks before I could actually lay on my side, so I positioned pillows under one side, then the other, and under my feet, and changed them as I needed to reposition.

Hope this helps! Congratulations!!!!!!!!!! Keep us updated!!!!
Hugs

Congrats on getting a date Jenn, I was thinking of you about a week ago, wondering how things were going.  I can't compare the surgeries either, no c-section here.  But I can tell you that the liquid pain meds work well, and are not too bad in taste.  Adult liquid tylenol was a worse taste.  You will not be needing the pain meds for long.  I had a pain pump for the first few hours after surgery and transitioned to oral pain meds on day 1 after surgery.

I didn't bring the slip on slippers, asking for help getting the hospital slippers on was a first for me.  The distance between my hands and feet felt like miles when my abdomen was a bit tender.  By the third day, I could reach my feet.  I spent 2 nights in the hospital, got up every few hours and took a stroll in the hallways.

You will need little at home other than the liquids, protein supplements and a couple of pillows for positioning.  Arrange any heavy lifting, major house cleaning for before surgery.  The time will just fly by at this time.  You are ready to be a loser with us.  Hugs

It sort of funny .. you guys are telling me when i get home that i will be able to do nothing but lay around ... wonder how that is going to work out with having a 6 year old to get moving and to do the things i need to do to take care of him?