TP-ICT

[Guest guest]

I know it is a very scarey thing to be faced with but I did not doubt

for one second that it was the only way to get my life back.

Actually I have more doubts about mondays surgery then I did about

the total. I did have 2 suurgeries before having the total; a

sphinteroplasty in oct 03 and a Beger (organ perserving whipple) in

April of 04. Even with all that I had over 600K islets

transplanted. The head of my panc was gone and the damage had spread

ductally to the body but the tail was fine; which is where most of

the islets are.

Where will you be hacving your procedure? I went to Cincinnati OH.

The surgery lasted about 10 hours. They put in an epidural and I had

a PCA pump so afterwards I felt little pain. YOu will probably be in

the ICU for about 2 days. They will put you on an insulin pump and

will check your blood sugar every hour. After a while I just slept

through it. I was in the ICU for 6 days, but that is very atypical.

I was then moved to a floor and stayed there for another 5 days. I

was given extensive instructions about diabetes, which was

excellent. I was weaned off the PCA pump and started on pills.

I had to stay in Cincy for about 2 more weeks and the first 3 days in

the hotel I didn't leave the room. Gotta love room service...lol.

By day 10 I was walking the shops of Cincy buying gifts for my

children. I felt that good!

My incision was through my sternum to below my belly button; it looks

horrible; hey maybe it will look better after MOnday. The cracked

sternum took the longest to heal and hurt forever but the only pain I

have now, and its almost 6 months, is this stupid hernia. If it

wasn't for that I would be back to my hyper obnoxiously perky self;

and working. By the time you are 8 weeks post op you will wish you

had done it sooner, you will feel like a new person, the person you

have been waiting so long to be.

I have had pancreatitis all my life. I can remember having attacks

when I was about 10 or 12 but wasn't diagnosed until my first ERcP in

April of O4. Things went down very rapidly for me then, seems like

it has been a thousand years, not one year.

I hope this answers some of your q's. Feel free to ask me whatever

you want, I'm not shy...LOL. But I will be unavailable for most of

next week so dont feel bad if I dont write back.

I know your scared, thats normal, its a scarey thing and the first

few weeks are going to be really rough, but you will be given lots of

pain meds and support. When you go back to your senior year you will

be like the 'new' girl, to all the kids around you and most of all to

yourself!

Warmly,

[Guest guest]

Thanks so much for all the details well I guess it doesn't sound that bad. Do

you even remember the pain at the begining? I am going to Minnasota to see Dr.

Sutherland I thought he was like 1 of 2 people that did this procedure am i

wrong? So what happen to you stitches that you have to have it repaired and

what do they have to do since it is inside? I hope that on my 10th day i will

be shopping. The bad thing for me is that the tail of my pancreas was removed

and Sutherland says thats where most of the islet tend to group. That was his

only worry. So are you a diabetic now? if you are how are you dealing with

that. I am kinda worried about taking on a whole new disease I don't know how

to deal with diabeties at all. Well thanks again for everything. this has

helped me clam of of my fears Thanks

wrote:I know it is a very scarey thing to be faced

with but I did not doubt

for one second that it was the only way to get my life back.

Actually I have more doubts about mondays surgery then I did about

the total. I did have 2 suurgeries before having the total; a

sphinteroplasty in oct 03 and a Beger (organ perserving whipple) in

April of 04. Even with all that I had over 600K islets

transplanted. The head of my panc was gone and the damage had spread

ductally to the body but the tail was fine; which is where most of

the islets are.

Where will you be hacving your procedure? I went to Cincinnati OH.

The surgery lasted about 10 hours. They put in an epidural and I had

a PCA pump so afterwards I felt little pain. YOu will probably be in

the ICU for about 2 days. They will put you on an insulin pump and

will check your blood sugar every hour. After a while I just slept

through it. I was in the ICU for 6 days, but that is very atypical.

I was then moved to a floor and stayed there for another 5 days. I

was given extensive instructions about diabetes, which was

excellent. I was weaned off the PCA pump and started on pills.

I had to stay in Cincy for about 2 more weeks and the first 3 days in

the hotel I didn't leave the room. Gotta love room service...lol.

By day 10 I was walking the shops of Cincy buying gifts for my

children. I felt that good!

My incision was through my sternum to below my belly button; it looks

horrible; hey maybe it will look better after MOnday. The cracked

sternum took the longest to heal and hurt forever but the only pain I

have now, and its almost 6 months, is this stupid hernia. If it

wasn't for that I would be back to my hyper obnoxiously perky self;

and working. By the time you are 8 weeks post op you will wish you

had done it sooner, you will feel like a new person, the person you

have been waiting so long to be.

I have had pancreatitis all my life. I can remember having attacks

when I was about 10 or 12 but wasn't diagnosed until my first ERcP in

April of O4. Things went down very rapidly for me then, seems like

it has been a thousand years, not one year.

I hope this answers some of your q's. Feel free to ask me whatever

you want, I'm not shy...LOL. But I will be unavailable for most of

next week so dont feel bad if I dont write back.

I know your scared, thats normal, its a scarey thing and the first

few weeks are going to be really rough, but you will be given lots of

pain meds and support. When you go back to your senior year you will

be like the 'new' girl, to all the kids around you and most of all to

yourself!

Warmly,

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