Bypass Surgery

Dave has Bypass Surgery - Page 2

It was still Saturday morning (less than 24 hours since the end of my surgery) and I was now in the process of clock watching. I was feeling somewhat exhausted, had some low level pain, was experiencing continued shallow breathing, and was a bit anxious. I knew that I needed some deep sleep, but it seemed impossible to even catch a catnap, as I was too much aware of my condition. Not only that, but there seemed to be constant interruption because of the constant care I was receiving. I was thinking that some additional pain medication might help relieve what I was experiencing, but when I asked for further relief, the nurse said that I was already receiving my necessary dosage. Then I had visitors. Diana's daughter and her family arrived to provide me good wishes. I can't say that I was too accepting of the visit even though I appreciated their thoughts and concern for me. I just wasn't feeling very sociable in my current situation. After they were gone, lunch soon arrived, and I climbed out of bed to down a bowl of chicken noodle soup. Then it was back to bed and some more clock watching. Next, Diana was told that she needed to leave for awhile so they could remove a few of the tubes from my body prior to transporting me to a regular hospital room. Removing some of those tubes was definitely something I was not looking forward to as some of those tubes seemed quite large and seemed to extend a fair distance into my body. My emotion was mixed because I didn't like having those tubes, but I also didn't want to experience the expected pain of removal. Well, it really wasn't too bad. It was an uncomfortable feeling when the large tube protruding from my upper stomach area was removed and it seemed to take forever for its full length to exit. The tube coming out from the right front side of my neck was a bit of a worry for me because I knew that it contained a catheter that led into my heart. I could actually sense when the catheter was being removed, but there was no pain involved. Then there was the catheter to be removed from my manly part, a nice relief. So, my apprehension toward this whole procedure was finally gone, and I found that it was not nearly as bad as I had anticipated. I was now left with the two tubes that were protruding from between my ribs on each side of my body. Evidently these were the ones that were still inhibiting my ability to breathe comfortably.

This is the heart pillow I received from hospital

After a bit more clock watching, a wheel chair arrived, which would be the transport to my hospital room that was located in the building next door. Seeing the wheel chair was another disappointment as I had expected that the bed I was laying in would be the vehicle to my next location. With the exhausted, sleepless, and anxious feeling I was experiencing, I was not looking forward to being out of bed for any length of time. My nurse then said, "You don't have your heart yet do you?" She then appeared with a large red heart-shaped pillow, which she handed to me. This was my gift from the hospital and would be my companion to clutch against my chest when moving around. Soon I was on my way (about 3pm), followed by Diana and being pushed through several corridors, through the main hospital lobby, up an elevator, and finally to my new room. I felt very conspicuous on this journey, and did not relish or enjoy the ride as I clutched my red heart to my chest, stared at the floor in front of me, and tried to hold up my head the best I could without looking totally feeble. I finally arrived at my room after what seemed like a very long ride, but I was then very pleased when I took a look and saw what a wonderful and beautiful room I had. This would be my home for the next few days (and Diana's too). It was not the plain and austere room that I had expected, but it actually seemed quite elegant and very comfortable; looking more like a small luxury hotel room. It was a good feeling to arrive at this place.

After settling into my new bed, I soon located the clock, but there was no rest to be had. Vital signs had to be checked, medications taken, another walk down the hallway, a first trip to the bathroom, and then a visit from my pastor. This was a welcome visit and it was an excellent time to have such a visitor. My condition at this time was quite anxious and I needed a calming spirit to help guide me for the hours ahead that the clock was showing. There is no doubt that Diana also provided a calming influence for me, as she was constantly next to me, providing comfort and attending to my every small need and desire. With her tender touch, she seemed to instinctively know how and when to make me more comfortable without me speaking to her. It was still difficult for me to keep my eyes open for any length of time and it seemed like an effort to do so, except to glance now and then at the clock. But, she was there close to me and I could feel her love and the warmth of her hand. Time continued to pass, and I continued to feel more and more frustrated with my inability to find a sense of relaxation and relief from the stress that seemed to be building inside me. Later in the evening, the nurse arrived with some medication that she said my surgeon had ordered for me. Evidently, this was medication that he was providing in response to my request to him when he had visited that morning. Then later, at about 11pm that night, I noted that I had a brief unconscious moment, which lasted only about a second or two. Then there was another, and later another. For me, this was an encouraging situation because I recognized that this was the beginning of what I hoped would lead to some relaxation and perhaps to some sleep. After another couple of hours, I was noting that my unconscious periods were stretching into a minute or two, and then to several minutes. I was also noting a great sense of relaxation and my sense of stress was disappearing. I was finally starting to feel for the first time that my condition was beginning to improve and that my body was starting the healing process. I was coming to understand that I had reached a turning point and that I could now expect to see continued improvement. Even though I continued to be interrupted throughout the morning hours by the nurse attending to my medical needs, I was able to take my mind off the clock and settle more into the sort of relaxed slumber that I had desired. By the time my new male nurse arrived, at about 7am, announcing that it was time for my shower, I could not believe the transformation that had occurred in me overnight. I was feeling amazingly good, even though I still had the shallow breathing and had no appetite.

I had been curious about how the shower process would work out, but it really went quite well, to my delight. The shower facility was in a roomy alcove within my attached bathroom and it gave me plenty of room for doing what needed to be done. There was a comfortable place to sit while my nurse and Diana went to work scrubbing me down with soap and nice warm water. It really felt quite good, although I felt a bit like a car in a car wash where I didn't have to do anything except to absorb the attention I was getting. The only thing that was a bit bothersome were the two drainage tubes still protruding from each side of me with their attached suction balls hanging loose and bouncing around. These balls would fill with fluid and would need to be emptied every so often. After being emptied, the balls would then be reattached and then squeezed a bit to exert some suction within the tubes. I would later discover, on the following day, that this suction would provide some great discomfort.

As I stepped out of the shower I found that my breakfast had arrived and so I sat in my chair to eat while I started to experience some mild cramping in my lower back. It was during breakfast on this Sunday morning that I received my first visitors of the day, Charlie and Carleen See. It was good to see them and to feel the caring warmth that they brought with them. Later, Rolv and Carole Trigstad arrived and then Ron and Patsy Rice. My son Devin and his fiance Stephanie also showed up with their good wishes. With all these people arriving throughout the day, I felt the need to look strong and healthy, but I found it still took some effort to keep my eyes open and to look alert for them. They all said how well I looked and that it was hard to believe I just had major surgery. Soon, however, I would find myself with my eyes closed as they talked between themselves and Diana. This seemed to provide a signal to my visitors that it was time to leave. I had hoped that I was not being discourteous in ignoring my visitors in this way, but I figured they would understand. Altogether, this turned out to be a busy but good day and I was pleased at how different this day seemed compared to the day before (on Saturday). Besides my shallow breathing, the only thing that bothered me was that my appetite was completely gone and just the thought of eating food made me slightly nausea. I would later come to realize that it was the pain medicine that I was taking between meals that was causing this. Toward the end of this day, Diana discovered that there was actually another bed in the room that had been disguised within a box. After she was able to extract and unfold the bed, she now had a comfortable place to snooze the night away instead of sleeping in the chair like the previous night.

Sunday night was a night with peaceful resting despite the frequent interruptions by the nurse. And, again in the morning it was time for the shower. But, this time I was allowed to do much of the washing myself. I could tell that I was being weaned from the attention I had been getting and I was now more on my own. After this shower, the suction balls were emptied and then the nurse applied some extra suction to them. I did not realize it at the time, nor did the nurse, but this was the cause of some very bad muscle cramping that I soon began to experience on both sides of my lower back. This cramping was quite sever and very disabling. It was not until the surgeon showed up awhile later in the morning that my cramping was quickly diagnosed as resulting from the suction in the tubes. When the suction was backed off, the cramping was immediately removed to my great relief. When the surgeon arrived, I was just preparing to go for a walk and he walked with me down and around the corridor and back. He indicated that he felt I was doing quite well and that I could probably expect to be released the next day, on Tuesday. This was not really a surprise to me as it was sort of what I was expecting based on how well I was feeling. He did indicate that he was going to put me on a quick diet to lose some weight, and that I would start it immediately. He said that I would find myself frequently heading to the bathroom for the next few hours. It was not long afterward that the nurse gave me a pill to take and I was heading to the bathroom just like the doctor said. And, I quickly lost some weight. Although food did not interest me at all the previous day, I was now sensing some hunger. When lunch arrived, I devoured it and I could have eaten more. When dinner arrived, it was the same thing. I had just previously learned that it was necessary to take my pain medication with a bit of food (like some toast) between meals. This made a big difference in my appetite for the subsequent meals. Now, things were really starting to look up and I could finally breathe much better after having the tubes from my sides removed that afternoon. My shallow breathing had still been a major concern of mine, but now for the first time I could inhale with a little less effort, although it still was not close to normal. I would later learn that it would take many more days of exercising my lungs before I could take more deeper breaths.

When Tuesday arrived, I knew it was time to go home and I was prepared for that. After a shower and breakfast, I put on some civilian clothes for the first time in more than 4 days. After I was instructed on the medications I would be taking and after I had some lessons on climbing some real stairs in the back stairwell, it was almost time to leave. Soon, the necessary paperwork was completed and I was saying goodbye to my wonderful nurse named Sunny. I gathered up my six colorful mylar balloons in one hand and my red heart pillow in the other, and then settled into the wheel chair for my ride to the front entrance of the hospital and into the warm sunshine of a beautiful day. It was truly a great day on this August 31st; a great day to be alive with a new life to look forward to!

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