home again, home again-long

[Guest guest]

This is my first time back at the computer. Thanks for good wishes

sent my way. I was discharged Monday afternoon after my hernia repair

on 10/03. As my angel, , reported my hernia was much bigger than

the docs thought and the surgeon said some of my small bowel appeared

ready to rupture due to the hernia. He used surgical mesh for the

repair but said he wasn't able to completely bring the muscle

together. Hopefully, this won't fail again.

I was only supposed to be in the hospital overnight. He had to get

through a lot of adhesions before he could even get to the hernia.

That's one reason it took so long. My hospitalization was not

pleasant. My IV site had to be changed about 8 times in five days.

That's not counting all the sticks trying to get a site started. Each

arm is bruised from the elbow to wrist. The last IV site was lost

Saturday evening and another was not found. My morphine pump had to

be discontinued, of course. Due to a misinterpretation of the orders

the nursing staff decided that the long acting pain med that was

prescribed as 1-2 tabs every 12 hours meant only every 12 hours AS

NEEDED. It was supposed to be scheduled in order to have at least

three doses before the morphine was discontinued. When the pump had

to be discontinued early I'd only had one dose. And then the nursing

staff still didn't give me the original pain med unless I asked.

Unfortunately, I wasn't on a surgical floor post-op. Sure wish I had

been, they would have understood the orders and challenges of pain

management better. I was discharged on Percocet but it hasn't been

much help.

Then there's the hospital induced insomnia. I'm sure you're all

familiar with the problems getting sleep while hospitalized. I never

got more than 40 minutes before being awakened. I can truly say I saw

every hour of all six days after waking up post-op. These patterns

have followed me home. Last night I did a little better, actually got

about 1.5 hr before waking up the last time.

Then there's my mom. For my WLS I sent her to visit my brother in

Texas. This time she absolutely refused to go anywhere. My mother is

mostly blind (from diabetic retinopathy), has had several small

strokes, is on home oxygen, and very unsteady on her feet. She said

she had to be here to take care of me. It was a sweet thought, but

I'm sure you can see the problem here. My elder brother, in

Wisconsin, was going to have her visit while I recuperated. Mom flat

out refused since this was just a " simple " surgery, just overnight,

after all. When we realized post-op how long my recovery time should

be (6-8 wks) she started rethinking the issue. Friends had been

checking in on her daily and someone had spent each night at our home

with her.

Monday morning, before my discharge, mom fell. She'd gotten up and

started in for breakfast. She got dizzy, blacked out and fell. After

regaining consciousness she absolutely refused to be taken to an

emergency room or her doctor. She had to be home when I got home,

that's all there was to it. No one bothered to call me at the

hospital. I could have talked her into it. She did finally agree to

go to the ER Tuesday morning, having to be transported by ambulance

by then. She's broken her right wrist (and is right handed), has

bronchitis, and severe vertigo. She came home with RX's for pain

meds, antibiotics, and medication for the vertigo. There's absolutely

no way she can travel now.

So, here we are. I can't assist her and she definitely can't assist

me. We have friends and family coming in to check on us daily and

bringing meals. Mom's doctor arranged for home healthcare but she

only qualifies for a home aide two days/week. My brother is Wisconsin

feels guilty for not forcing the issue pre-op but of course can't

help long distance. (We are in Florida.) My brother in Texas had his

usual response of how I let this happen to her (just like last year

when she broke her left shoulder) before remembering I'd been

hospitalized when she fell. So maybe I have an excuse, huh?

Any prayers you can send our way are greatly appreciated. We're in a

mess here.

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