Ah so, onto recovery. . . . . .
Day 1 (Thursday April 21): Not so bad. Gut painful, sore throat, sore neck, arms a bit sore, legs a bit sore, meds keeping the edge off.
Day 2 (Friday April 22): Much like day 1, pain still the same.
Day 3 (Saturday April 23: Easter Vigil Mass): I suppose right here I should note that we are members of RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) at our parish so this night is a BIG night. Brian had a reading to do, I had a reading to do, it was an important mass for us, plus we got to watch all of our Elect and Candidates finally receive the sacraments they've waited so long for. I wasn't missing this regardless of how much pain was in, and man, was that an ignorant outlook on my part! I got through my reading, even made it to the back of the parish to carry the offeratory lillies to the alter, then true to our catholic style: sit, stand, sit, stand, stand longer. . .wait! Longer still keep standing, now kneel- stay. . . .stay. . . stay. . .now stand again! I jest but I DO understand why we stand, kneel, and sit during mass and I was determined to PARTICIPATE in the mass. As the saying goes, "Seek quiet places for our Lord whispers and the world is loud." He'd been telling me all night, "Donna, sit down, stay down, in fact go home and go to bed! I won't love you any less for not being here, you need to heal." But in my typical Irish-Italian-catholic guilt kind of way, I tuned his quiet, gentle voice out telling myself that if My Lord could suffer as he did for me, I could suffer this little bit for him. Plus the music and distraction of the mass helped me not to listen too I suppose.
Day 4 (Easter Sunday): Uh no, not going to my husband's parents house, not getting up off the sofa to use the bathroom, or get a drink, or anything! This day was AWFUL!!! This was the day I realized I should have listened to God. . .stubborn as I am I knew He was right but I was determined to make it through last night. I did so with flying colors and was paying for it on Easter Sunday. I glued my butt to that sofa and slept most of the day, waiting for Brian and the kids to get home. The pain in my legs was unbearable, my arms felt as though they would fall off, my throat was so sore I was beginning to wonder of I had strep, and my neck hurt like holy hell! What did they do to me on that O.R. table? I had gut pain the first time around but not this arm, leg and neck garbage- eesh! It was just too much. I was downing 100mg Tramadol every 5 hours and pumping 1500mg Tylenol every couple and NOTHING was easing the pain- it was like I without pain meds at all! What a miserable day!
Day 5 (Monday April 25): My German Exchange Daughter Laura stayed home- no school today. I couldn't believe the way I felt when I woke up! I was glad my leg pain was gone, my throat pain was subsiding, my neck pain was tolerable, but my arms hurt from my shoulders all the way down to the backs of my hands and my gut, of course, still hurt significantly. I got up, slowly hobbled downstairs (every step felt like a hot poker in my gut and grabbing the handrail felt like I had IV needles still inserted in my hands), I walked into the kitchen and, "What in holy hell is this mess???" Yes, My kitchen was a disaster zone. So, of course instantly every suture point begins to throb painfully because of the boiling blood being pumped throughout my body (yet another downfall of being Irish-Italian: my temper). Grrrrrrrr!!!! So, after getting the kids off to school, there I was, standing cock-eyed, holding the counter for support while leaning sideways to empty the dishwasher, put the dirty ones in and start it up (because my gut was so sore, swollen and still filled with air to bend over). I was so pissed, I just knew I would soon be witness to blood spurting from my port incision.
Once done, I picked up the counter and the living room (to what degree I could) and went back to bed. I was back in bed by 8am and fell asleep till 1pm. Apparently, I needed it. I improved after the nap but not by a whole lot. That night, I took some Tylenol PM and slept hard, having a pillow to support my gut when I laid on my left side improved things immensely. Brian was attacked at random by me when he got home. I was mad at him for the kitchen, for having to get the kids off to school, for having to cook dinner, let's face it: I was pissed because I hurt so bad and he got the blunt end of the stick. Sorry, Dear.
Day 6 (Tuesday April 26): My best friend Jenn came over to hang out and talk and watch movies. She'd had a different kind of surgery the week before mine so she was going to be off work for sometime. She was a life saver! It was good just to be around a friend for a while. It's just one of those things, ya know? I was doing better so I took her to lunch (my new favorite Thai restaurant) and we returned to my house to watch Dont' Mess with the Zohan. After alot of laughing and busting up (who doesn't love Adam Sandler), we'd decided it was a really good day- my leg, neck, throat, arm pain was GONE and only a slight bit of gut pain remained, albeit my suture sites were beginning to itch. I'll take itchy suture sites over the pain I'd been feeling up to then any day!
Day 7 (Wednesday April 27): Uh, yeah so I'm pretty much back to my old cantankerous self. Full of 'piss and vinegar' as my Mom liked to say. I still have some gut pain but more than anything I'd just like a brush with porcupine quills to scratch the crap out of these suture sights- they're driving me crazy!!!
What a beautiful day the Lord has blessed us with; the blue sky, the bright, warm sun shining down, the sweet birds singing away, and gentle smell of Sweet William wafting through the air. Hmmmmmmm, this is what I wake up for everyday, thank you, God! and yet I wonder. . . .will I be able to wear a bathing suit and not have an embarrassing body by this time next year? Now how does one go from thanking God for a beautiful day to wondering about their body in a bathing suit? I tell ya- only me! This thought makes me remember a remark by one of my dear friends only a few weeks earlier that we (meaning she and I) would be, "Hotties with hot bodies by summer." Well. . .I love her to death but I don't know what the hell she was thinking. I've lost 6 # since the surgery but that is only because I'm still pretty swollen- I currently only have 2cc's in my new band. I will see Dr. Owens on May 3rd and get a fill, probably 2 more cc's to take me to 4 and see how I do. I have to say I am so excited to start dropping this weight!
So here is the thought I leave you with today:
In trying to improve the way in which I view my body, I placed a note on my mirror that reads,
"Objects are smaller than they appear."
Day 1 (Thursday April 21): Not so bad. Gut painful, sore throat, sore neck, arms a bit sore, legs a bit sore, meds keeping the edge off.
Day 2 (Friday April 22): Much like day 1, pain still the same.
Day 3 (Saturday April 23: Easter Vigil Mass): I suppose right here I should note that we are members of RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) at our parish so this night is a BIG night. Brian had a reading to do, I had a reading to do, it was an important mass for us, plus we got to watch all of our Elect and Candidates finally receive the sacraments they've waited so long for. I wasn't missing this regardless of how much pain was in, and man, was that an ignorant outlook on my part! I got through my reading, even made it to the back of the parish to carry the offeratory lillies to the alter, then true to our catholic style: sit, stand, sit, stand, stand longer. . .wait! Longer still keep standing, now kneel- stay. . . .stay. . . stay. . .now stand again! I jest but I DO understand why we stand, kneel, and sit during mass and I was determined to PARTICIPATE in the mass. As the saying goes, "Seek quiet places for our Lord whispers and the world is loud." He'd been telling me all night, "Donna, sit down, stay down, in fact go home and go to bed! I won't love you any less for not being here, you need to heal." But in my typical Irish-Italian-catholic guilt kind of way, I tuned his quiet, gentle voice out telling myself that if My Lord could suffer as he did for me, I could suffer this little bit for him. Plus the music and distraction of the mass helped me not to listen too I suppose.
Day 4 (Easter Sunday): Uh no, not going to my husband's parents house, not getting up off the sofa to use the bathroom, or get a drink, or anything! This day was AWFUL!!! This was the day I realized I should have listened to God. . .stubborn as I am I knew He was right but I was determined to make it through last night. I did so with flying colors and was paying for it on Easter Sunday. I glued my butt to that sofa and slept most of the day, waiting for Brian and the kids to get home. The pain in my legs was unbearable, my arms felt as though they would fall off, my throat was so sore I was beginning to wonder of I had strep, and my neck hurt like holy hell! What did they do to me on that O.R. table? I had gut pain the first time around but not this arm, leg and neck garbage- eesh! It was just too much. I was downing 100mg Tramadol every 5 hours and pumping 1500mg Tylenol every couple and NOTHING was easing the pain- it was like I without pain meds at all! What a miserable day!
Day 5 (Monday April 25): My German Exchange Daughter Laura stayed home- no school today. I couldn't believe the way I felt when I woke up! I was glad my leg pain was gone, my throat pain was subsiding, my neck pain was tolerable, but my arms hurt from my shoulders all the way down to the backs of my hands and my gut, of course, still hurt significantly. I got up, slowly hobbled downstairs (every step felt like a hot poker in my gut and grabbing the handrail felt like I had IV needles still inserted in my hands), I walked into the kitchen and, "What in holy hell is this mess???" Yes, My kitchen was a disaster zone. So, of course instantly every suture point begins to throb painfully because of the boiling blood being pumped throughout my body (yet another downfall of being Irish-Italian: my temper). Grrrrrrrr!!!! So, after getting the kids off to school, there I was, standing cock-eyed, holding the counter for support while leaning sideways to empty the dishwasher, put the dirty ones in and start it up (because my gut was so sore, swollen and still filled with air to bend over). I was so pissed, I just knew I would soon be witness to blood spurting from my port incision.
Once done, I picked up the counter and the living room (to what degree I could) and went back to bed. I was back in bed by 8am and fell asleep till 1pm. Apparently, I needed it. I improved after the nap but not by a whole lot. That night, I took some Tylenol PM and slept hard, having a pillow to support my gut when I laid on my left side improved things immensely. Brian was attacked at random by me when he got home. I was mad at him for the kitchen, for having to get the kids off to school, for having to cook dinner, let's face it: I was pissed because I hurt so bad and he got the blunt end of the stick. Sorry, Dear.
Day 6 (Tuesday April 26): My best friend Jenn came over to hang out and talk and watch movies. She'd had a different kind of surgery the week before mine so she was going to be off work for sometime. She was a life saver! It was good just to be around a friend for a while. It's just one of those things, ya know? I was doing better so I took her to lunch (my new favorite Thai restaurant) and we returned to my house to watch Dont' Mess with the Zohan. After alot of laughing and busting up (who doesn't love Adam Sandler), we'd decided it was a really good day- my leg, neck, throat, arm pain was GONE and only a slight bit of gut pain remained, albeit my suture sites were beginning to itch. I'll take itchy suture sites over the pain I'd been feeling up to then any day!
Day 7 (Wednesday April 27): Uh, yeah so I'm pretty much back to my old cantankerous self. Full of 'piss and vinegar' as my Mom liked to say. I still have some gut pain but more than anything I'd just like a brush with porcupine quills to scratch the crap out of these suture sights- they're driving me crazy!!!
What a beautiful day the Lord has blessed us with; the blue sky, the bright, warm sun shining down, the sweet birds singing away, and gentle smell of Sweet William wafting through the air. Hmmmmmmm, this is what I wake up for everyday, thank you, God! and yet I wonder. . . .will I be able to wear a bathing suit and not have an embarrassing body by this time next year? Now how does one go from thanking God for a beautiful day to wondering about their body in a bathing suit? I tell ya- only me! This thought makes me remember a remark by one of my dear friends only a few weeks earlier that we (meaning she and I) would be, "Hotties with hot bodies by summer." Well. . .I love her to death but I don't know what the hell she was thinking. I've lost 6 # since the surgery but that is only because I'm still pretty swollen- I currently only have 2cc's in my new band. I will see Dr. Owens on May 3rd and get a fill, probably 2 more cc's to take me to 4 and see how I do. I have to say I am so excited to start dropping this weight!
So here is the thought I leave you with today:
In trying to improve the way in which I view my body, I placed a note on my mirror that reads,
"Objects are smaller than they appear."
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