Girl Talk: Living with PCOS #04
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| Image Source: Pinterest |
So in my last post, I was waiting for my referral for a Laparoscopy. However this came around preeettttyyyy quickly as on 12th June I received a letter advising that I was needed to attend a pre-operation assessment on 16th June and I would then be having my operation on the 24th June - eeekk I was so scared now!
I know I may sound like a HUGE wimp right now, but I really was so nervous. I mean, I hadn't had an operation since I was 11 and I have possibly THE worst threshold ever. So, as you do, I took my mum with me to the pre-operation assessment to make sure everything was all hunky-dory before I had my operation.
Sorry for the details, but for those who maybe going through this it may be helpful to know what to expect. So I arrived around 2pm (not that the time matters) and the first thing I had to do was fill out this pretty big booklet with all my personal information, medical history, medical allergies, previous operation details, dietary requirements (for the after op sarnie) and they also ask you to confirm what operation you are having - bizarre I know, but make sure you get it right as they used this document in my surgery haha. Come to think of it, I should have put down liposuction and a boob job whilst I am at it - DAMN! Don't worry, this is a joke. Maybe.
I asked a lot of the questions that are probably running through your mind right now but in case you don't already know, the reason you are asked not to wear nail polish on the day of the operation is that if for some reason something happens and you loose oxygen then your nails will go bluey/grey and this is the quickest way that the surgeons will be able to check this and it's also to check your vitals. If you have acrylic nails, you are also asked to remove at least 2 which I think is weird as they know you'd just remove them all haha!
The make-up part is apparently because you don't have a blink reflex so make-up particles can injure your eyes, I don't really understand this as the sellotape your eyes but hey ho. It's also really important to make sure you use the body wash that they provide, even to wash your hair, but you can you normal products afterwards although it's not recommended. Surprisingly it does make your hair feel squeaky clean! The only way I can describe the smell of this is "clean" as weird as this sounds, but it just smells clean so it's not unbearable, albeit its not very sexy!
Quick tip, make sure you leave any valuables and jewellery at home, especially if you're on an open ward as there is no where to store them and you wouldn't want your beautiful diamond engagement ring going walkabouts. No no. So just leave it somewhere safe at home :-)
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| Pre-Surgery Preparation Shower Wash |
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| Before Surgery |
On the day of surgery, I arrived at the hospital at 7:30am and as you could guess I was NOT a happy bunny. Not only had I had the worst nights sleep ever, I had been forced to wake up early to leave for the hospital of all things and I was nil by mouth from 5am. All I was thinking about was how much I had missed my morning coffee. And the more I thought about it, the moodier I got.
A little tip for you, don't wear your pretty underwear (yano' as you do to make yourself feel prettier when going under the knife) as you will be stripped from your modesty as they ask you to remove everything, completely everything and you are left wearing nothing but that - oh so sexy and oh so classic - hospital gown. Thankfully mine covered up at the back, phew! Now all I had to do was wait, wait until 11:40am when I finally got took down to surgery. I was one moody patient right now. Still dreaming about coffee.
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| Before Surgery - The sexy socks help prevent blood clots as I have a high risk of DVT. |
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| Day After - Side Photo |
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| Day After - Front Photo |
Before you ask, no I am not pregnant! Although I did very much look it and it felt like I was carrying a baby too. This is a common side effect after having keyhole surgery, as they basically pump you full of gas to blow your tummy up so they can see all your insides.
I don't remember what time I came out of surgery but I didn't come round until about 2:30/3:00pm. I was confused, scared and wondering what the heck had happened to me as I didn't remember a thing. I had woken up with an oxygen mask on and all these tubes attached to me as apparently my oxygen levels had rapidly dropped. I don't remember much but all I remember was the nurse handing me some water and rubbing my hand. Cute little woman.
They asked me to tell them how much pain I was in. A LOT. My answer was a lot. Thankfully she pushed the button on my morphine drip and bye bye went the pain. When I was a little more human, they removed the tubes and eventually moved me back to the ward around 3:40pm. I was literally the only one on the ward as everyone else had gone home, damn. I didn't care though. All I wanted to do was sleep.
I went home around 5:30pm, albeit I don't remember much of going home as I was in and out of conciousness. Damn that morphine knocks you out! Thank you. My fiancé was amazing and had fetched me some homemade soup and set up the bed with all the cushions around so I could rest. And back to sleep I went.
The next day is when I was in the worst amount of pain, and all I had to been prescribed from the hospital was some cocodamol. Damn. I was a little shaky on my feet and I was dizzy when standing. The day after was the same but all I wanted to do was have a nice hot bath (you're not allowed to shower or bath for 48 hours after) and clean my bandages. God knows what happened but when stood in the bathroom removing my bandages, I had passed out and smashed my face on the floor causing me to have a nose bleed. All I remember was waking up with my fiancé shouting my name having a seizure like fit and hysterically crying whilst covered in blood.
Pre-Operation Tip: Sit down when removing your bandages, preferably on a bed or soft furniture. As without realising, your body can feel queezy and when the blood rushes from your head this makes you pass out. Hence me being covered in bruises for the following week.
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| After 48hrs - Side Photo |
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| After 48 hrs - Side Photo |
Okay, enough of my sympathy story and me waffling on. It took me around 3 weeks to feel myself again and for me not to feel dizzy or have pains when moving about. Usually after a laparoscopy, you will have a post-operation appointment with your surgeon around 6 weeks after to discuss the "findings". My next appointment is 1st October as that was the earliest appointment, how annoying!
My only worry was that I may need another operation or this maybe a surprise "pre-op" like the first time, which I definitely didn't want as my wedding is three weeks after this appointment. I called the nurse as I wanted to check, and to also be nosy about what exactly they did. When I called, thankfully they confirmed this isn't a pre-operation appointment. This time. But there is a high chance that I would need to go through this all over again. Are you fricking kidding me?
Basically ladies, if you're hoping to cure any lady pains with one laparoscopy. Then I really would't get your hopes up. Long story short is, the Doctors or Surgeons do this procedure to confirm what they think they saw on the ultra sound and to take more detailed photos for when they do the actual operation next time round. Because of course, that makes complete sense. Please note the strong sarcastic tone.
So at the minute, I can't really tell you what is exactly wrong with me. Because I don't know, they wouldn't tell me over the phone nor would they tell me when I came out of surgery. They could have done anything and I would be non the wiser.
If you're still reading now, then I applaud you. I know this is an extremely long post but I wanted to share as much of my experience as possible in case this helps you. Someone. Anyone. I will be happy if my story will help at least one reader.
My next post will be after my follow up appointment on 1st October, so I'll be able to share what the surgeon's have found and what they did in my operation (you remember, the one back in June?) In the meantime, if you have any questions or want to ask anything please leave a comment or feel free to email me personally at charlotteelizabethblog@outlook.com as I'll always respond :-)
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