One Week Out

Happy Halloween!! 

Today is exactly one week until my surgery and the nerves are starting to mount a little bit. Today, during one of my classes, a student asked me when my surgery is scheduled and I had the realization that it was almost exactly a week, even down to the minute. Definitely freaked me out a bit!

Overall, I am becoming more and more hesitant about surgery. I keep running through the "what if's" in  my head. What if the pathology comes back better? What if it comes back worse? What if I don't really need the surgery? What if there are complications? What if, what if, what if...!!! I know it's not helpful to divulge into the "what if's", but it's hard not to when undergoing such a big surgery.

I have my pre-op appointment tomorrow, so hopefully I will know a little bit more about surgery and the hospital. I'm also supposed to get my stoma site marked!

Telling My Kids

Today was the day I've been dreading for months... I finally told all my students that I will be gone for 4 or 5 weeks. Luckily, I didn't loose it in front of the kids like it thought I might and all went very well. I did have a few kids get emotional, which honestly surprised me a little bit, but I guess it's nice to know they care as much about me as I care about them!

Also, I have started feeling better because of the steroids and antibiotics (in spite of the upset stomach thanks to the drugs). I finally got my voice back too (not totally, but mostly).

Now, I am enjoying my first Friday night without 220 High School students since August 31st, and it is pretty nice! Tomorrow is our last band competition, and then that ever elusive "free time" returns! Can't wait to see the kids perform tomorrow, but also can't wait to leave school at 4:15 on Monday and not have to worry about marching band!

Two Weeks Out...

I'm exactly two weeks out and have been feeling better since the last time I posted.

Dr. Nesmith checked my blood work when I went in and said that everything was stable. I think I may have had a little stomach virus of some sort... I had a fever when I went in for my appointment, so this may be the reason I felt so bad. Also, I got PLENTY of rest the week I saw Dr. Nesmith because of our fall break. Definitely much needed and very helpful!

My appointment with Dr. Liberman went well and he let me ask as many questions as I had. He is very patient and even drew a few diagrams to answer some questions. He also mentioned the possibility of me using epidural analgesia (pain medication) post-surgery. This would be instead of having a typical morphine pump (PCA). The PCA works well, but comes with a lot of side effects that can delay recovery (nausea, vomiting, grogginess, etc). The epidural will hopefully help me have no pain without the side effects of the PCA Pump. I did a little research and discovered that the epidural analgesia is very beneficial and speeds recovery time because there is less trauma to your body (because of fewer side effects). I am going to ask the anesthesiologist about it during my Pre-Op appointment and see if it is a viable option for my surgery.

I also got the date of my Pre-Op at the last appointment. I will go in next week on Nov. 1st to do all my Pre-Surgery testing and training. They will mark my stoma site and perform bloodwork (along with numerous other things I'm sure). Still not really sure what to expect this day, but hopefully it will help calm my nerves a little(?).

Also, I started feeling sick again at the end of last week. At first, I thought it was just my fall allergies kicking in, but I lost my voice very quickly (within only a few hours it seemed like) and still haven't quite recovered all the way. I went to an urgent care center thinking I might have bronchitis (because of a cough that won't go away). However, I was diagnosed with a pretty decent sinus infection and was given a dose of antibiotics and some steroids to help kick this infection before surgery.

I am getting more anxious the closer the surgery date gets. I have one more busy weekend this week, then next weekend, I will be in full prep mode for surgery. I need to get my act together and make sure I am ready for recovery at home after surgery.

One Month 'til Surgery

It's been almost 2 months since I updated last and a lot has happened since then:

- School is in FULL swing and it is starting to wear me down a bit. We are finally in the competitive part of Marching Band season and long hours are definitely catching up with me. We competed yesterday for the first time and had a great show. Now we have a couple of weeks until our next competition. 

- I spoke with the surgeons office regarding my FMLA leave paperwork. The nurse who was completing my paperwork asked me the dates I was planning to take off, so I told her that I was planning on taking leave from Nov. 6 (the day before surgery) through the last week of November. She  sounded surprised and asked me to plan on taking a full 6 weeks off after surgery, which puts me back to work on Dec. 19th (only 3 days prior to leaving for winter break). She said that since I'm young, I may not need the full 6 weeks, but it is good to have if needed. I REALLY hope that I don't need the full 6 weeks and can get back sooner. 

- Finally, I have a few appointments scheduled for this week. One tomorrow with Dr. Nesmith (my GI) and one Friday with my surgeon, Dr. Liberman. 

          - I am seeing Dr. Nesmith tomorrow because I have been feeling bad for a few weeks. I have been nauseated and bloated with some cramping. I think my liver enzymes might also be elevated and are causing some of this uncomfortable feeling. I haven't had blood work since the summer, so they are going to have me come in to check my blood work to make sure everything is OK. Part of me hopes that I'm only feeling this way because I'm so worn out... sleep is an easy remedy and I will be able to get plenty this week (we don't have school on Thursday or Friday). 

          - I am seeing Dr. Liberman on Friday to ask a lot of questions about my surgery. I haven't compiled a list yet, but I have a pretty good mental list started. I plan to ask specifics about the procedure and what to expect when I wake up, complications, recovery, etc. Hopefully it will put my fears to rest and ease my increasing anxiousness. I have found myself occasionally getting very anxious about the surgery the closer I get to the actual date. 

          - Finally, I have my PreOp appointment scheduled for October 31 (one week before surgery). According to the nurse, the appointment will last about 2 and a half hours. She's not sure exactly what tests the hospital might ask for (EKG, X-Rays, etc.), but she did say that a stoma nurse will mark my stoma site during this visit.