It's been a very bumpy past 7 days. A week ago today I found out they had a donor and I would have surgery Friday. I rallied my troops and prepared for the big surgery. This was the biggest surgery I have ever had.
A nerve block? Umm Okay. I'm Not sure why but if you say so.
So when it wears off I will be okay? Maybe need a few narcotics?
The scar will be how long? Can you make it pretty?
No brace needed? Awesome?
8:30pm Friday night I awoke to major pain.
Leg in a brace and feeling like a truck hit me.
A few minutes later, my first experience with a bed pan. Which left me with wet underwear. Awesome.
A few minutes later they tell me it's time to go home.
My auntie manages to get me home. For a bit we stand outside as the keys seem lost. But hey I'm feeling no real pain, just tired.
That night my friend Lisa takes over as caretaker. Getting me up at 12:30, 4:30 and 8:30 for narcotics. I tell her at 4:30 that it hurts a bit more so the nerve block must have wore off.
The next morning I'm managing around the house in my crutches and Lisa says "I thought you would be out of it and need more help", to which I reply "it isn't too bad".
Speed up 3 hours.
Now... THE NERVE BLOCK WEARS OFF!
I start hugging the back of the couch and my leg is seizing up in pain. I've NEVER had pain like this. What do we do? The pills we have are doing nothing.
Lisa calls the hotline. They say "Advil" or "bring her to the ER"... Neither seemed doable as i laid there trying to catch my breath.
Finally she makes the call, we are going to the ER she calls Eddie for help. As I stand leaning on couch waiting, I start to black out and move myself to the kitchen sink where I throw up. This as Eddie walks in and I yell "don't come in here".... After all, a neighbor husband does not need to see that from anyone but his wife or child.
We get to the ER and it's packed. I couldn't believe it
Whilst in triage the nurse tells me I will need to go wait in the waiting room. I explain I will need to lay on the floor out there, as the wheel chair is horribly painful.
What's the scale of pain? She asks. Me: 10+ And cringe.
She disappears, coming back with her personal stuff and says she is changing work stations and she found an empty bed where she was going. She took me with her, had me in a gurney and with a doc with in 10 minutes.
I can't remember her name, but I'm hoping it's on paperwork somewhere so I can thank her.
After 5 bags of hyrdomorphine they have me a bag of Valium.... And oxygen. As apparently my oxygen levels dropped low and the cocktail I was on can be deadly.
WTF??
We finally were able to be discharged. There was talk of keeping me over night, but I fought them on that. Too scary.
Lisa took me home.
Tanya stood at Walgreens for 1.5 hrs waiting in new prescrips and eventually got to my house to take over nurse duties. I have very little memory of that night once the meds were put in me. But I'm sure of one thing, my friends are angels!!
May I never have to have this surgery again.
But I also don't lose sight that someone died long before they should have for me to get this new knee.
Are you a donor?
