Surgery & Home Again

I'm home. I came home yesterday. I was very ready to leave the hospital and start the real healing. This picture is of Dr. Sadhasivam and I right before surgery. After surgery I didn't look too perky. I spent three days at Arnot Medical Center. I was lucky enough to get a private room on the end of a ward with air conditioning. Less noise, cool comfort and no roommate.

I ended up on the telemetry floor so my heart could be monitored. Unfortunately that meant I was not on the bariatric floor where they are familiar with bariatric patients. I'm not sure if that made a difference or not but I think that I might have left with more information if I had. I watched my blood sugars fall from the 140s to the 70s over a period of several days. I guess that is mission one accomplished. I no longer need medication for borderline type 2 diabetes. Most people who have the Roux-en-Y procedure have that result. I must say that makes it all worth it. Even the feeling terrible part, and there is plenty of that in the beginning.

Yesterday I was feeling pretty sick by the time I got home. I was nauseous which isn't too helpful when you are trying to get enough liquid into your body. Today I am quite a bit better. I have been having 1% milk, popcicles, jello, flavored water and regular water. I may try some broth today. I'm writing down how many ounces I consume so that I don't dehydrate. I'm only supposed to do a couple of ounces at a time so it is a challenge.

I weighed myself at home this morning and am down eight and one half pounds "the hard way". I would imagine that much of that is liquid since I've been on a clear liquid only diet for almost a week. My digestive tract is doing a lot of gurgling. I have a surgical drain in. It looks like a clear plastic grenade and is kind of annoying because it is in the way. That will come out when I go back to see the Dr. on Wednesday. Other than that I just have something called Tegraderm (a thin clear plastic covering) over six tiny incisions. I don't think I have any staples.

I sat outside for awhile this morning and I think I'll be napping soon. After that I'll be going for a walk. That's likely what my life will consist of this week. Everyone I know who has had this procedure says that the first week is the worst. I am so grateful that my surgeon was able to do a laparoscopic procedure and that it has been without complication.