Pain- 8/10 (10 being the most painful) Discomfort- 2/10 (10 being most uncomfortable) Weight- 122/122 (122 being my pre-op weight) Energy Level- 3/10 (10 being normal level) Hospital Arrival I arrived at the hospital at 6:45 this morning. I mentioned in the previous post I needed to be there by 6:30, but on Friday I was called by the hospital at told to be there anytime between 6:30 and 7:00 am. I had to check in and the receptionist took my Driver's License and about ten minutes later gave me a few sheets of stickers that have my name, date of birth, and other information. I was given a hospital band and directed to go the surgery waiting room. Surgery Prep After about ten minutes of waiting in a ridiculously comfortable recliner, a really nice woman came to get me. She told my mom and husband to wait while she took my back to get prepped. I was allowed to go to the bathroom one last time and then was taken to change into my hospital gown. It was a very nice shade of pink with a teddy bear on it and had connections so that heat could be connected if I got too cold. The bed was also really soft and comfortable! The lady asked me a few question about my health and whether or not I had eaten or drinken anything. I was given a pill to help with nausea and the tiniest bit of water. I was dying of thirst! Lastly, she took my blood to check for pregnancy and then hooked up my IV. The anesthesiologist came by to tell me about what he will be doing and the risks. Again, a super nice man! He had me blow out of each side of my nose to see which one I breathe the easiest out of. He said that will be the nostril they will put a tube down and gave me a nasal spray to open up my nasal passages. I told him that I never use these sprays and I'm not sure what to do. He saw me struggling with it and came around to the side to help me out! It was so sweet. I held one nostril shut and he counted to three and then I breathed in. The spray tasted disgusting and burned, buy man it really did open my sinuses up! I only encountered one rude nurse during my stay. If you know my husband, he is the sweetest person and his intentions are for the best of others (I'm not saying this just because I am biased!). He was paging through my chart when a nurse cam out of nowhere yelling, "Who are you?!" He explained he was my husband and she said, "No! You CANNOT look at her chart." I was not nervous or anything until she did this. She was really rude and a kind, "Sir, I'm sorry but you cannot look at that" would have sufficed. I was angry and felt bad for my husband because he does not deserve to be talked to that way. Thankfully this person was not my nurse! I was prepared to suggest a switch if she was. So lesson learned: Don't look at the chart because you may get your head chewed off by a grouchy nurse. My surgeon arrived and went over again what I should expect and what he will be doing. He said he was moving my jaw forward 3 centimeters! The incision sites will be about three inches long on each side. He said there would be tube down my nose for the surgery to breathe for me and not to be surprised if I bled out of my side. He said he will take the tube out before I even wake up and slide another tube down my stomach to pump out all the blood. His goal for me to not experience any nausea. The anesthesiologist's assistant came by and introduced herself to me and explained what her job in the OR will be. Again, super nice woman! I was blessed in the amount of lovely people who worked with me. She gave me a medicine and said it may burn, but thankfully it did not. She said it will calm my nerves and will make me drowsy. What it really did was knocked me out! Before, though, I kissed and hugged both my mom and husband and was wheeled away and was out cold not even 10 seconds later at 8:20 am. Post-Op I woke up and was told that everything went well. I only lost 75 mL of blood and was good to go home when ever I was ready. The surgery took just under 2 hours and was quicker and easier than expected, so that was good news to hear! The time was about 11:10 am. I did experience nausea after the nurse gave me some Sprite. Let me just pause and say I literally could not have asked for a sweeter and more compassionate nurse. She was amazing! My pain was a 6/10 when I first woke up and slowly escalated to a 8.5/10 over a 30 minute period. The nurse gave me an anti-nausea and then a couple of doses of Codine. I was pretty out of it at this point. My mom and husband were great support and I was grateful that they both could be there. There was only one instance in the hospital where I felt as if I was going to throw up. I got very emotional and cried. I think I was just in the regretting stage and I was asking myself why I did this to myself. The nurse, my husband, and mother gathered around me and rubbed my back and told me everything was okay. I became very tired about an hour later and fell asleep. During this time, my husband and mom went out for lunch. I woke up and the nurse told me this and that they should be back soon and asked me if I was ready to go home. I said sure! She escorted me to the bathroom and it was so hard to walk. It felt as if I had weights attached to my limbs. Thankfully, the nurse was able to support me and I tried to pee. It was very difficult to pee and I could not get out what I needed to. This lasted all day until about 12:30 in the morning (a little more than 12 hours post-op). The nurse then helped me get dressed and by the time I was ready for my shirt to go on, my mom and husband were back and they helped the nurse finish dressing me. A really nice man came in with a wheel chair and I asked to go pee one more time. The nurse went in with me to make sure I was okay. Seriously, she has the BEST bedside manner I have ever encountered. I am so grateful for the staff there. I got into the wheel chair and my husband left when I went pee to get the car. The man wheeled me out and was giving my mom some tips with the ice packs (leave them on as much as you can and with as thin of fabric as possible. The more direct the ice is, the better). I was discharged at about 3pm the same day as surgery. Eating I was told to remain on a clear liquid diet all day (something I did not really comprehend for some reason). We stopped my Sonic for a banana milk shake, which is my favorite). This made me very sick and this was when I was the closest to throwing up. This thick shake combined with my narcotics was very nauseating. I got very emotional again and cried. I was so scared to throw up and I didn't want to. Thankfully, I was exhausted enough to fall asleep and I woke up feeling great! My throat is the most painful. Once I got home pain from the surgery was not really an issue, but my throat was really sore! I bought broth concentrates from Knorr and drank a cup and a half of warm broth. It was so soothing and set so well in my stomach. I have not had any nausea and my throat feels almost back to normal after slowly drinking that broth. Other than broth, I have mostly been drinking water and Gatorade. I plan to drink the broth anytime I am taking the narcotic to help prevent nausea. Numbness I am 100% numb on the entire lower half of my face under my nose and extending up to my ears. My lips are dry so I have been keeping Aquafor on them. I cannot tell they hurt or anything, but they are really dry and peeling, so I want to prevent as much damage to my lips as possible. Sleeping I have surprisingly been sleeping very well! I am a "fetal position" type of sleeper and was worried about what it would be like to sleep on my back, but it has not been a problem so far. Breathing I am having no trouble breathing. I'm not sure if this was a good idea, but I cleaned out my nose from all the dried blood and this made a huge difference. My nose did not bleed at all when I did this. I can breathe perfectly out of my mouth as well. I was panicing for awhile because My nose was clogged with blood and when I was drinking, my airway was blocked. Medicine The liquid narcotic tastes so disgusting that I gagged and almost threw up while taking it. So, my husband diluted it in about 4 ounces of water and some sugar. This made a huge difference and I have not had anymore problems getting it down and no more gagging. I begin mouth rinses and antibiotics tomorrow. I also have a liquid Ibuprofen. I bought the Great Value (off brand) for children in the flavor grape and I think it tastes really good for being medicine. When I was at the pharmacy (I went to CVS), I asked the pharmacist if he had any syringes and he gave me the cutest and tiniest ones (5 mL)! These have helped immensely in getting the medicine in my mouth. My anti-nausea is a tablet that dissolves on your tongue, but I had a difficult time getting it to dissolve. So my husband dissolved in a little bit of water and put it into the syringe (just enough to fill the syringe). Any time you are using a syringe, use a mirror too because you won't be able to keep where it is in your mouth. It makes it easier and you know its going down your throat and not down your chin. Conclusion The hardest part so far is getting to the point where the anesthesia has worn off. Once it did I felt like I was almost back to myself. The ratings I gave at the beginning of this post were me after surgery. Here it is again with how I feel right now at 14-15 hours post-op: Pain- 1.5/10 Discomfort- 1/10 Weight- 122/122 Energy Level- 8/10
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
WelcomeThis blog documents my journey through lower jaw surgery in hope of providing help and insight involving the experience. Archives
October 2015
Posts
Other People's Journeys
1 Year Post-Op 9 Months Post-Op 6 Months Post-Op Paying for Jaw Surgery 5 Months Post-Op Retainers Braces Off 4 Months Post-Op Fear vs. Reality 3 Months Post-Op 12 Weeks Day 81- Ortho. Apt. 2 11 Weeks 10 Weeks 9 Weeks Day 59: Surgeon Apt. 4 8 Weeks 7 Weeks 6 Weeks 1 Month Post-Op Day 27: Ortho. Apt. 1 Day 25: Surgeon Apt. 3 3 Weeks Day 17 Day 12: Surgeon Apt. 2 Day 10 Day 9 Day 8 Day 7 Day 6: Surgeon Apt. 1 Day 5 Day 4 Day 3 Day 2 Surgery Day (Day 1) Pretesting Appointment Surgical Hooks 1 Week Pre-Op Insurance is Complicated Caution with Insurance Pre-Op Appointment Planning and Preparing Orthodontist Apt. My Fears Pre-Op Date Surgery Date Phases of My Journey Life with Braces The Operation 3 Months Pre-Op |