I had my post-op appt today and was given the thumbs-up to go home for the remainder of my recovery. I will be off for another 2 weeks and am looking forward to spending them with my nieces, nephews, and boat.
I also picked up my CPAP machine. So now I'm like every other middle-aged, overweight man. Let's just hope I don't terrify the kiddo's with the mask!
For the past 6 months or so I've been experiencing moderately to horribly painful abdominal pain. I had an ultrasound in October that showed gallstones but no infection, no thickening of the walls, no blockages, no reason to do anything now. So I kept taking handfuls of tylenol and ibuprofen, manipulating my diet and doing little more than eating, sleeping, and working. I finally gave up and saw my MD last Monday who referred me to a surgeon saying it may be time to take it out. My appointment was for yesterday.
Friday was my first off-orientation shift. All was going well, I didn't feel great and asked to go to an early lunch. Patient flow didn't cooperate and I finally went to dinner about 5pm (I'd been working since 10am). After a few bites of my salad the pain was too intense. I went back to the ER and asked my charge nurse if what she thought. Her suggestion, lay down. About 10 minutes later I was admitted to the ED for abdominal pain.
I was admitted to the hospital that night and scheduled to have my gallbladder removed on Saturday. The surgery was uneventful and I was planning on going home Sunday morning. Mom and Dad were planning on coming as soon as they could. My friend Michelle dropped by about 11pm on Saturday night and, after visiting for a bit, decided she'd stay with me. About 2am I started trying, unsuccessfully, to clear my throat. I couldn't cough, couldn't really talk. (I wish I had a recording as it was actually pretty funny sounding). It was really hard to get any air out. I called the nurse, who asked if I could wait until morning as my doctor wasn't on the unit. I told her that I couldn't breathe, it felt like my throat was closing and NO, I could not wait until morning. The resident was called, who called the senior resident, who didn't know what was going on. Respiratory came and gave me an epinephrine treatment, which helped some, and I rested until morning. Long story... ENT finally came and scoped my throat and found I had swelling just below the vocal cords. So I had 2 LARGE doses of prednisone and an extra night in the hospital.
Mom and Dad showed up Sunday night and I came home Monday. Since then I've just been resting. Each day is better than the last. My voice is still scratchy and comes and goes. My abs feel like I've done a few too many sit-ups. Otherwise, I'm doing well. I will not be able to go to Duck Beach this weekend (I can't be submerged yet) so I'm thinking of spending the rest of my recovery at home in CA. We'll see on Friday after my post-op appointment.
I appreciate all the calls, emails, and thoughts this week. It was a bit of adventure, but hey, this is me. I don't do anything the easy way.
1. First thing you wash in the shower? My face.
2. What color is your favorite hoodie? Grey.
3. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again? Absolutely NOT.
4. Do you plan outfits? Always.
5. How are you feeling RIGHT now? Cozy and sunkissed.
6. Whats the closest thing to you that is red? My dining room rug.
7. What was the last dream you remember having? Can't remember.
8. Did you meet anybody new today? Yes.
9. What are you craving right now? Milk.
10. Do you floss? Yes but not as regularly as I used to.
11. What comes to mind when I say cabbage? Gross.
12. Are you emotional? Oh yeah.
13. Have you ever counted to 1,000? Not as far back as I can remember. Never been into numbers.
14. Do you bite into your ice cream or just lick it? Both.
15. Do you like your hair? Kind of, I'm due for a new style.
16. Do you like yourself? Mostly.
17. Would you go out to eat with George W. Bush? Yes.
18. What are you listening to right now? Commercials, I'm watching Gossip Girl.
19. Are your parents strict? No. They taught us correct principles then let us govern ourselves.
20. Would you go sky diving? Yes.
21. Do you like cottage cheese? Yes. Knudsen's is my favorite.
22. Have you ever met a celebrity? Famous people but not celebrities.
23. Do you rent movies often? No.
24. Is there anything sparkly in the room you're in? No. Shocking.
25. How many countries have you visited? 3 - England, France, Mexico.
26. Have you made a prank phone call? Yes, but I was never very successful as I could never stop giggling.
27. Ever been on a train? Yes.
28. Brown or white eggs? White.
29.Do you have a cell-phone? Yes. Just got a new one today. My old one wouldn't stay charged.
30. Do you use chap stick? Yes.
31. Do you own a gun? No, but I'm not opposed to them either.
32. Can you use chop sticks? Not really.
33. Who are you going to be with tonight? My roommates are home.
34. Are you too forgiving? I don't think so.
35. Ever been in love? Not really, loved, yes, been in love, no.
36. What is your best friend(s) doing tomorrow? Working, I assume.
37. Ever have cream puffs? Yes, but their not my favorite.
38. Last time you cried? Saturday at the Vietnam Memorial.
39. What was the last question you asked? "So how was your day?"
40. Favorite time of the year? Fall, Winter, Spring
41. Do you have any tattoos? No.
42. Are you sarcastic? Yes.
43. Have you ever seen The Butterfly Effect? No.
44. Ever walked into a wall? If you don't know the answer to this question you haven't walked with me much. Yes.
45. Favorite color? It changes, currently, orange.
46. Have you ever slapped someone? I don't think so.
47. Is your hair curly? No, except lately it kind of does. Humidity?
48. What was the last CD you bought? It's been so long, I don't remember.
49. Do looks matter? Yes. Sad but true.
50. Could you ever forgive a cheater? Probably not.
51. Is your phone bill sky high? No. Pretty average cell phone bill.
52. Do you like your life right now? Yes.
53. Do you sleep with the TV on? No.
54. Can you handle the truth? That's a good question, depends on how it's delivered.
55. Do you have good vision? I wear glasses so obviously it's not perfect.
56. Do you hate or dislike more than 3 people? I don't know that I hate anyone but there are those I dislike.
57. How often do you talk on the phone? More than I like.
58. The last person you held hands with? A boy who's just a friend.
59. What are you wearing? PJ shorts, sweatshirt.
60. What is your favorite animal? I don't know. Not really an animal person.
61. Where was your default picture taken? The National Mall after the Inauguration.
62. Can you hula hoop? No. Never have.
63. Do you have a job? Yes. I'm an ER nurse and I love it!
64. What was the most recent thing you bought? My new cell phone.
65. Have you ever crawled through a window? Yes.
This past weekend my friend Andrea came for a visit and I had to opportunity to see more of my new city. Saturday was a whirlwind day of monuments. We started at Roosevelt Island, a beautiful nature preserve in the Potomac river. We wandered around, found the beautiful outdoor memorial, then discovered some enormous webs that had captured a startling number of caterpillars. From there we went to the Lincoln. It was raining and I had a bit of a hard time figuring out where to park and there were a lot of middle schoolers but it was still beautiful. Next we went on to the Vietnam Memorial, or "the Wall". "The Wall" is the most heartbreaking of all I have seen so far. There is something so powerful in witnessing the individual loss of so many lives. I tried so hard not to cry it made my face hurt. After Vietnam we walked over to the Korean where one of my favorite quotes is carved in stone, "Freedom is not free". Next was the WWII. Then WWI. We've lost so many in defense of liberty, I hope those sacrifices are never wasted. I often worry we take the freedoms we have for granted and aren't doing enough to protect them. If we don't protect the liberty of all we each lose some of our own. I'm stepping off my soapbox now.
After all the monuments we trekked down to Old Towne Alexandria for our Ghost Tour. We skipped the official tour and went with some ghost hunter dressed in Colonial garb. Turns out it was us and one other lady. Perfect, as all the other groups we saw had loads of middle schoolers being obnoxious! His approach was to tell the history and throw in the ghost story. I would love to go again - very interesting.
Sunday we slept in then headed over to the Museum of Natural History. The dinosaur exhibit made me miss my nephews more than ever! They would have been beside themselves... My favorite was the forensic anthropology exhibit. I'm going to have to head back to see the rest. Last stop, we went to the Jefferson Memorial, my personal favorite, mostly for all the reasons I talked about before. Without the inspired Decarlation of Indepence (based on George Mason's Virginia Bill of Rights and Constitution) we wouldn't have had the freedom that allowed for the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we may still have slavery, and my parents may have been allowed to marry me off to the highest bidder (maybe they would have had better luck).
Enjoy the photos. Sorry for the soapbox.
