What Am I in For???

AnnissaP said:

That is funny about the socks

That is funny about the socks lol!!! I am glad it all went well for you!

I was pretty upset about them.  They came off right after the air socks came off the next morning after surgery and I used my own.  THey said my feet would get cold.  I was like "dude I am naked!"

I had a robotic partial in June, 2016.  The procedure took about three hours, including the time for the fire alarm that I'm told went off.  The procedure started around 3PM and I was in a regular room at about 8PM, with 2 hours in recovery.  The first sound I recall was my niece (who stayed with my wife) screaming in my ear and me telling her to shut up.  LOL.  The second thing I remember was the nurse getting me to stand up and me meekly complying.  (Yes, they do get you up almost immediately.)

I recall having four tiny incisions, plus a fifth for the drain.  I had little to no pain and actually, other than being thirsty all night (and I was able to drink water immediately), I slept very well.  I ate the next morning and things started to happen very rapidly after that.

The surgical team (minus the surgeon) came to tell me everything went very well and that they got it all.  They told me that I could go home as soon as I could handle the pain (which I told them I had none of) and pee.  And they told me the surgeon would be in to visit me around lunch time.  I asked if I could walk and they said yes.

Not long after that, the nurse came in to remove the catheter.  It's funny, I've had a couple of other surgeries in my life (two big abdominal surgeries) and the only thing I was dreading for this one was the catheter.  I am convinced that the urinary catheter for a male wa developed by the Marquis deSade.  Anyway, that came out and I proposed to the nurse that took it out I was so happy.

After that came walking and walking and walking.  About 45 minutes into the walk, the floodgates opened and I peed.  I durifully reported that to my fiance nurse and we were both very happy about that.  So I walked some more.

I had a little lunch and at that time the surgeon came in and said everything looked very, very good.  His guess was chromophobe RCC (a guess that was verified about three days later) and he explained what kind of cancer that was and that I was quite fortunate because it rarely returns, rarely spreads and was one that grew vey slowly.  He also described folow-up (scans and chest x-rays every six months for a year).  He said I was free to go once the nurse practitioner took out the drain, which she did about ten minutes later.  That feeling was unusual, but there, again, wa no pain at all.  She explained what was needed in terms of dressing the wound and off she went.

My fiance nurse took out the IV line, even though nothing had gone into it since the end of the operation.  And that was it.  From the time I got to the hospital at 12 noon and June 22nd, it was a grand total of 25-1/2 hours in the hospital.  I got out on June 23rd at 1:30PM.

Results were available, as I said, in about three days as I recall.  My first follow-up with the surgeon was at about the four week mark and that took about 10 minutes.  He was very pleased.  Subsequent scans have shown nothing in there and the follow-up appointments have been with a nurs practitioner.

And, no, I've not seen my fiance nurse since then.  LOL.  I remain very happily married to my wife of, now, 38 years.

Almost 4 years ago I had full, hand-assisted laparascopic nephrectomy. It took 5 1/2 hours (not including recovery)--not that it mattered to me, but my wife was quite worried during the lengthy procedure, especially when the nurses walked out during a shift change. Thankfully, we had friends from our church to wait with her.

I was in hospital for three days. I ended up with the hiccups shortly after the surgery which were brutally painful. But my wife was there, on top of it, she never let up; she really worked the system to ensure I got the right care and meds in a timely fashion. Otherwise I would have just laid there in agony (I don't complain much).

The moral of the story is to ensure your loved ones are cared for during your surgery, and to make sure you have a health care advocate to fight for you while you're recovering.

Annissa. I got my pathology report the second day I was at the hospital. And also ask if you need chemo. I didn’t know this but my doctor told me on occasion some patients need to do a slight bout of chemo. In my case if I needed it I would take the chemo pill Per doctors recommendation. Before I have my next surgery I’m going to buy more ice packs for my belly because it felt good. And also keep up on the coLace they give you. It helps....scary when you first have to poo. Don’t strain it really hurts. Wish you well! I’ll be thinking of you. 

I was diagnosed in ER and admitted on a Thursday afternoon. There was no time to prepare at all; it all went down pretty quickly. I had the surgery the next day, though I had to wait (while fasting) all day for the surgery which eventually happened in the late afternoon. Not sure how long I was under - I didn't even ask, come to think of it. When I was awake, they got me up, and later that night - or early Saturday morning - they removed the catheter. That was pretty tough, as Bay Area Guy mentioned. But I chalk that up to the gender thing. No drains, thankfully. I started walking as soon as I could after the catheter was removed. I walked as much as i could, sometimes in the middle of the night - just did laps around the hallways of the hospital. I was off the morphine and on oral pain meds by Saturday night, and was eating more or less normally by Sunday morning. So, they sent me home on that Sunday. 

I was out of work for six weeks for recovery. The biggest problem was the gas. That took a while to go away - Gax-X is your friend. And I was very happy to take the pain meds (Percocet) while I needed them. Eventually, I decided I was good and didn't need them any more. But I probably took them for most of the six weeks - albeit less and less as the weeks wore on. I still have a fairly full bottle of them that I never touch, so I know I didn't get hooked. But for me, the pain pills also helped me relax and sleep. It did take a while to get full night's sleep. When I finally did go back to work after six weeks, I assumed I had rested a lot so I'd be good to go. Not so much! First day, I had to leave work around lunchtime, because I was so fatigued. In fact, I worked from home the next day. By the second week, I was back to full days and the whole commuting thing. (I was living in NJ at the time and commuting 90 min each way into NYC.)

Now, I almost forget I had the surgery. But getting to that point took time. I encourage you to be patient with yourself and don't push yourself too hard - especially when it comes to bending and picking things up. (My little dog was a challenge at first.) You'll get there with time, as long as you work at it at a pace that works for you.

Best of luck with everything!

Gary

AnnissaP said:

I really appreciate you

I really appreciate you taking the time to write. You took your time to heal and that is the hardest part for me.... It is very diffcult to accept my body needs to rest and that I cannot just rush back into things!

Anissa, I suspect your body will be more than willing to remind you that you need to rest and cannot just rush back into things. At least mine was !