Surgery

[SamGirl50]

Hello everyone,

Well, I report to the hospital at 5:30am for my surgery. Im having the RUL removed and a wedge resection on the RML. Hopefully it will be a quick healing process. I dont want to be in the hospital too long. So nervous and scared. All prayers welcomed.  I will do my best to keep you updated. Everyone have a blessed night.

[Rower Michelle]

We’re all pulling for you!  

[Sabacat]

Will keep you in our thoughts and prayers!!!

Susan 

[TJM]

You got this. The surgery should be considered a blessing, and, it will be much easier than you fear.

Have your check list. Check it twice and don't check out of the hospital too soon. I made that mistake.

That time is waaayyyy to early for me.. 😁

In my thoughts

Peace

Tom

[SamGirl50]

Greetings from the hospital.

I had the surgery. The surgeon said it took ablot longerbthan he expected because I had a lot of inflammation but says he got it all. As I lay here with 2 tubes, I am in a lot of pain. They've given me garbeton (sorry for the spelling), dilaudid, ibuprophen and tylenol. it helps with the excrutiation but still in pain. They had me sitting in the chair for about 1.5 hours too. Now when I try to sleep, my breathing seems to jump to my stomach. It almost feels like I stop breathing. I'm wondering if I have sleep apnea now. I spoke to the nurse. She increased my oxygen to see if that helps. Is it normal for the amount of pain I'm in as well as all the, what feels like mucus rumbling when I breath all in the upper right chest and shoulder which is the side of the surgery? 

Everyone have a good evening. I'll do my best to have one as well!

Sam

BTW...Sorry if my words are rambled, I'm attempting this without my glasses. I cant see the letters but I'm an awesome typist. LOL

[LexieCat]

Hi, Sam,

Yeah, I was pretty mucous-y after surgery. They will give you breathing exercises that will encourage you to cough. That might be kinda painful at first, but most of us recover from the pain quickly. If I remember right, you had VATS surgery, right? I was discharged the next day, though I had to go back in for a complication most people don't have--I was re-admitted for another 3 days or so. But two weeks after surgery I was out to dinner and a concert with friends, so I bounced back fairly fast. The breathing exercises will help and the pain should diminish pretty fast. I think by the third day I was taking only Tylenol. 

[Rower Michelle]

Your post.  All post surgery, heavily medicated AND without glasses....well that’s a special form of AWESOMENESS!!!

[GaryG]

Hopefully you had a good sleep and less pain by now. At least the surgery is behind you. Hang in there.

[TJM]

You should not be in pain. They can control that. Demand it.

I have heard screaming like a lunatic can be very effective.

Hoping you are feeling better soon. The body is incredibly good at healing.

[BridgetO]

I'm glad to hear your surgery is done, but sorry that you're in pain. I only had one lobe removed, plus lymph nodes. I didn't have a lot of pain. After the first day or so, my pain was mostly from the chest tube, which gave me a severe jab when I moved in certain ways. I quickly learned how NOT to move. I had a persistent air leak so was sent home with a tube. When you're able to have your tube out, I'll bet you'll feel better. Do you have the head of your bed elevated? That helped me with breathing. 

Keep us posted. I agree with Michelle--it's amazing you can write while on an opiate and with no glasses! You're one determined woman!

Bridget O

[Judy M2]

Tell them your pain is at least an 8 and if the dilaudid isn't working, they will give you something else. Tylenol and Advil aren't going to cut it. Gabapentin never worked for me. Hope you're feeling better soon. 

[Tom Galli]

Sam,

You are a real trooper to even attempt a post so soon after major surgery. Everything you report I experienced during my surgeries. Do report you are still in pain. You should not feel anything.

Stay the course.

Tom

[LouT]

Sam,

Glad you're through the surgery, but sorry that the pain lingers.  It can take a bit of time to get that under control, but please keep on your doctor about it as needed.  We're pulling for you here.

Lou

[SamGirl50]

Hey guys,

Here I am, Thurs morning. To answer your question @LexieCat, yes it was vats. They did get the pain under control with oxy and now most of my pain was from the tube sites as I had 2. Yesterday was okay, it started out good but then my bp dropped and they were giving me fluids to bring it back up, but I did ended up going into AFib yesterday evening about 7p. They gave me an amioderone bolus and then the rest on regular drip IV. Went back into normal sinus rhythm about midnight they say. When I woke up this morning, I'm feeling as tho my breathing is worse than yesterday as I'm more short of breath. They took one of the tubes out this morning and man did I cuss like a sailor. They may be sending me home today around 4 or 5 pm with the other tube and follow up in the surgeons office tomorrow.  Have a blessed day!

[LouT]

SamGirl50

Boy, those chest tubes are the worst and really do account for more than half the pain we're feeling after surgery (and thoracic surgery has its own level of pain).  It sounds like you had a challenging day, but I'm glad you got through it.  The breathing may have been from the pain...I can only say that I had a fight with a chest tube and the chest tube won...and wow it was painful and I felt like I couldn't take more than a shallow breath.  I hope you continue to improve and please let us know what you can one you are comfortable.  (I'm already impressed that you were posting while in the hospital).  Stay strong...

Lou

[LexieCat]

It's funny, the difference in people's experience with the tubes. I had very little problem/pain (and my complication required insertion of another when I was readmitted) and several others here were similar. Other folks, like you and Lou, do have more pain--maybe one person's nerves are more impacted by the incisions or something. In any event, sounds like you're doing well generally if they are talking about cutting you loose. Hopefully you'll get discharged in another day or so. 

Hang in there--it WILL get better. Do those breathing exercises! And get up and move around as you feel up to it--all those things will help. 

[Judy M2]

I can relate, because I had a similar reaction when my abdominal tube was removed. I yelled and my blood pressure dropped so low they had to give me a bolus of something. Your blood pressure may stay low for a while, so be careful when you get up. 

Glad your pain is under control and that you're able to go home. Hope you recover quickly. 

[BridgetO]

My chest tube gave me an occasional jolt of pain while it was in (10 days). There was no pain when it was taken out. I had heard "stories" about tube removal and was prepared for pain. The doc was messing around with my dressing and all and I didn't even realize he'd pulled out the tube!. I guess we're all different.

Bridget O