I Survived!

 

I must have some mighty strong prayer warriors out there!

 

The surgery went fantastic and I'm feeling great! A little sore, of course, but I'm not in any pain. No need for any pain medication! You have no idea how relieved I am about this! I was so worried about nursing Thumper while taking pain meds. While I knew it was considered "safe", I was also still hesitant because, after all, it *is* a drug. And pain meds can make babies very drowsy.

 

I was able to nurse her right before going into surgery. And I could have nursed her immediately after, since she had not had a bottle yet, but I chose not to because I will still quite dizzy. My mom gave her a bottle of pumped milk instead.

 

As the nurse wheeled me from the prep area and into the operating room, she told me that she would inform me of when she was giving me the anesthesia via my IV. She told me to move from the rolling bed and onto the operating table. So I did. I laid back and looked around, looked at everyone gathering surgical instruments, noticed the huge lights they would turn on above me when they began operating......and then I heard someone calling my name and I opened my eyes. It was over!

 

What the heck? She didn't even tell me she was giving it to me! Since I had never been put under anesthesia, I just figured that I would be able to feel myself getting drowsy and slipping off to sleep.

 

Ummm....no. You just sort of drop off the face of the Earth. It's very weird.

 

In recovery and all drugged up.

 

All in all, I was at the facility for a little over 6 hours. They had me arrive at 7:30 in order to be into the operating room by 9. Well, they were running a little late, so they didn't actually begin surgery till around 9:45. I woke up at 10:45 and they needed to monitor me for an additional three hours. So that left me walking out at 1:45. It was pretty quick and easy! We even went to my parents house for dinner tonight.

 

My fashionable socks and leg compression thingies. They are to prevent blood clots. And actually, they are oddly relaxing...it's like getting a leg massage or something.

 

My only "rough patch" was in the car on the way home. Since I hadn't eaten in 15 hours, I was getting extremely shaky, light headed, and nauseous. Combine that with the fact that I was sitting in the back seat, where I get car sick, and it was a warm Florida day, I nearly upchucked in the car....not that there was anything on my stomach to actually upchuck. But  still, I just knew that the heaving would do things to my abdomen that I certainly did not want done at that moment. I knew that there's no way on this earth that I could allow puke at that moment. I mustered all my stregnth and managed to keep it at bay (I also moved into the front passenger seat and turned the air on full blast). Once I got some food into my belly, I felt 100% better.

 

I was able to nurse Thumper when I got into the car before we drove home and she seems to have had no effects from the sedation I received. I probably drove the nurses crazy....I had them write down a list of every medicine that was used on me.

 

But I'm home, minus one body organ. Hopefullyy I can get a good night's rest and continue to be on the road to recovery!

 

Battle scars....the belly button one slightly freaks me out.

Thank you SOOOO much to all who prayed for me!

 

Comments

[Christy]

Ansley, I'm just amazed at how in the world they get the gallbladder out of the tiny incision that they make!

[Ansley Hickox]

Christy~

The day I read this entry I had been in the OR observing surgeries all day. Guess what my first surgery was...yep, gallbladder! I am glad yours went well. It is amazing what doctors can do to your body and how quickly you can bounce back.

Hope everyone is doing well. Tell Jonathan and the girls hello from me!

Ansley

[Aunt Teressa]

Great to hear...PTL for sure!