Thursday 18 April 2013

health issue update - and it's all good

A week ago today I went under the knife and had my gallbladder removed.  At lunchtime the day before, I got a phone call from my surgeon's office going "Surprise!!!! We can operate tomorrow".  They'd had a cancellation, so I told my supervisor I'd be heading home to prepare, pack and I'd see them in 2 weeks.

The work background is that the exec that I support had gone on 6 weeks leave from Easter, and is back mid-May.  So for work, it's the best timing ever that I'm away while she is, and I'll be recovered and back at work.

The surgery was problem free, although my blood pressure dropped too low, so I was in recovery a couple hours longer than I'd otherwise be. They couldn't move me on until my BP was at a better low.  I had zero nausea etc, which was fantastic. I could hear some unhappy people, but then again they didn't have cuffs on their calves alternately inflating to keep their circulation going. My left foot took until 4am or so the next day to not have that puce/salmon colour.

Visiting the bathroom was a protracted experience.  I was on bed rest due to the ridiculously low BP (85/49), so I'd have to buzz a nurse, have my BP checked to see if it was high enough to be allowed up.  then they'd manually check it as the automatic machine result is a bit lower and I'd be just that bit too low, and then I'd manouver myself out of bed and shuffle accompanied by the nurse and my drip.

So I couldn't risk waiting until I was certain I really needed the trip.  The nurses were really surprised that I had no dizzy spells, or the turning black for a second on standing.  Quite low BP used to be my normal, and I knew that if things went black to stop moving until it came right.  I've never fainted despite decades of it. 

My recovery's been pretty good, although one of the incisions got infected, so I'm on antibiotics for 10 days. 2 down, 8 to go.

Even though I wasn't comfortable after surgery, I already felt so much better. That constant ache of the inflammed, pissed off gallbladder just wasn't there.

I've already eaten most of the things I couldn't for 5 months. Vegetables, chicken, rice, egg, pork, gluten free cereal.   And in a week I can try the non low-fat things like bacon.  I hardly ever eat bacon, but it's one of the things I've missed the most.

So looking forward to a bacon+egg sandwich, with my gluten/soy/potato/yeast/dairy free bread. mmmmh

After the food intake returns to my normal variety, next on my happy dance list is returning to sewing and being able to do things.  I can't lift/carry more then 5kg for another 3 weeks, so am getting groceries delivered and having to limit things such as re-organising the grotto.

2 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. yes, it's awesomely good. Though I'm going to make the 5kg thing 4 weeks from when I started antibiotics, just to be smarter about it

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