Deep breath....here goes....we got up and I remember the advise of Dr O (aka Eoin Harty) of drinking as much as possible before my 9am nil by mouth. Excellent advice, so I drank at least 1 litre of h2o.
We were both feeling anxious on the way to the hospital and the traffic didn't help. Arriving at 9am, we checked in and waited for the porter to take my bags. Think of it as a hotel...one with a medical bias! I have to say at this point, I am extremely fortunate and grateful for the private healthcare I receive through work. This is something that I've never placed great emphasis on but I am so very thankful at the moment.
We were shown to my room (214) and given some time to get used to it. Then a flurry of people arrive, the wonderful Jenny who looked after me all day, a lady with the lunch menu (I had no idea what I would to eat - opted for a jacket potato with cheese on the side) and then the lovely Jane who came to talk me through the morning's proceedings. All of this took our mind off things but then Jenny came to apply the magic cream..yep I'm a child but to be honest I'd recommend this to anyone with a needle phobia as it's the little things that can make the bigger things more bearable. This was a sign that going to theatre wasn't far off. Miss Predolac came in for me to sign ('my life away' or so it felt) and to mark my shoulder to ensure the correct side was operated on. Between visits from various medics, we watched a Sarah Beenie house makeover type show, rather banal but something to focus on. The anaesthetist came in and spoke at a million miles an hour (Jane had forewarned this), no not pregnant, no loose teeth and yes allergic to penicillin in addition to what felt like a million other questions.
Photo no.15 - rocking the hospital gown and stocking look (complete with giant white paper knickers, thankfully out of sight!).
Finally, it was showtime and Jane came to walk me down to surgery. Leaving Daniel at that stage was so hard...time for a big hug and an I love you. Plus a kiss. I've just read a fantastic quote - 'One little kiss can contain the greatest love'. I certainly felt this.
Jane and I walked down the corridor to lift and met another patient going down. We had some small talk but we were both full of positive spirits. It felt like walking through treacle, walking into the anaesthetic room. I got onto the bed with a set of double doors in front of me, all too aware of that was my next step of the journey. The assistant then started to distract me with some questions whilst the anaesthetist did the relevant stuff. 'Any nice holidays planned for this year?'....not the best question given the circumstances. So we moved onto places that I had been too and we started talking about mine and Daniel's holiday to Bolivia. It turned out that the anaesthetist has been there and had ridden down the death rode on a bike. I remember a mask being put over my mouth and nose, not being able to respond properly and then the next thing I knew I was awake and looking at a clock an hour later. Wow...it was done! I was really alert and wanted to get back to my room as soon as possible to be with Daniel. I waited for what felt like a lifetime but in all reality was 10 minutes before they wheeled me back to my room. I could hear Daniel on the phone outside of the room. He had planned a call with someone to keep his mind off of things. Good plan batman! As I was wheeled in I spied something out of the corner of my eye....Little Miss Sunshine.....this made me smile so much and was courtesy of my number one person! From now on she's coming with me to keep those smiles coming.
Photo no.16 - Little Miss Sunshine
Shimmying from the trolley into my bed was interesting but I felt completely awake and absolutely fine. Perhaps a slightly odd colour, as the photo shows but otherwise good. I could also see the visible sigh of relief from Daniel. In these situations, I think it's so much harder for the person waiting than the person stuff is happening to. For the rest of the day, I stayed awake, no naps and I was so relieved that it had gone really well. I managed my to eat my bland potato (it tasted like heaven), drink lots more water and a precious cup of tea. As promised/ pre warned my pee had turned blue from the dye that had been injected into me, still a bit of a surprise though but kind of exciting! I called my parents for an update while Daniel went out to get some well needed sustenance. Following visits from various nurses/ physio/ Jane(s) and Miss Predolac, I was allowed to head home around 5pm. We drove home and I had to ask Daniel to tone down his Russian style driving! Some chill out time for the both of us on the sofa and we realised we needed some dinner. As technically I needed someone with me for the first 24 hours after surgery, we both ended up going to Waitrose. I felt well enough to head out and it was good to get some fresh air. Neither of us are ready meal fans but a lasagne was the comfort food needed that evening followed by some trashy TV.
As I finish writing this post this evening, I'm feeling calm ahead of my first chemotherapy treatment tomorrow morning. I intend to bring the story so far up to real time but I've had a good preparation week seeing many friends, celebrating my mum's 65th birthday, getting my wig cut, washed and styled and spending quality with the man I love. I don't know how I'm going to feel this time tomorrow...I hope, pray, cross my fingers, touch wood that I feel little from the potential side effects but that's the unknown challenge for the week ahead. Time for bed. Good night, sleep tight. xxx
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