Post Op

7.45pm Monday, 10th May
5 hours 45 minutes since being knocked out I was coming round in Recovery.

Unsurprisingly I remember very little from this time apart from feeling very sleepy and being told I had a button to press that I could use every 5 minutes or as necessary to deliver a dose of morphine into my bloodstream. I think I was in recovery for about 45 minutes and every single 5 minutes that passed I pressed that little button.

I was taken up to ward 11b and put in a side room (number 6 for my memories sake).
I knew it was meant to be a warmed room and I had been told in recovery that it already had the heater on in the room so it was all ready for me (it wasn't of course and they had to run around trying to sort it out as soon as I arrived on the ward).

I asked the nurse to call Jay and my mum to come in as I knew they were both waiting at home desperate to know I was ok. The nurse that rang wasn't very clear so only Jay came along at first but when he arrived she asked him where mum was and he called her and told her to come over too.

Again I remember very little except for eating half a jacobs cracker with a little butter and drinking quite a lot of water, and having a very frustrating moment trying to get comfortable with about 10 pillows propping me up and not knowing what I needed my mum or the nurses to do to make it any better.

I know I tried to sleep but every 5 minutes (possibly as soon as the morhpine started to be processed) I opened my eyes, every time certain that at least 30 minutes had passed up until about 1am when I gave up and asked the nurse for some kind of sleeping tablet.

Even with that I think I woke up a few times but remember waking in the morning with no abiltiy to move without any pain (as obviously while I had been asleep I hadn't pressed my little button and the morphine had worn off). That morning was the worst, I felt awful, I was extremely stiff and just didn't know what to do with myself. The nurse tried to reposition me but I had a repeat of the last nights strop with the inability to explain what I needed her to do with my pillows to make it bearable for me.

Not long after that I think my drugs must have kicked in as I don't remember feeling that bad for very long. I managed to eat a custard cream and drunk a bit of water but didn't have the appetite that was so lively before my op which was rather disappointing to me, I felt quite cheated that finally I could eat and my body wasn't that bothered anymore. Typical!