Catching Up

So I decided to post this update a bit out of order since many of you asked for the details. I've been typing this in Word but I haven't been on line to post it. And we had to share the amazing great news yesterday with all of you as soon as we got it.
OK this will test my memory. It’s Monday morning, March 2, 2009. The guy on TV just said this is a true Nor’easter (that’s how he said it and btw spell check knows the word). It’s snowing out and we look out on a beautiful old barn from Teresa’s grandparents apartment which we moved to late afternoon Sunday but I get ahead of myself. . I’ll get the picture on here later. No Internet connection on the computer and typing this entry on my iPhone will be too hard so I and anyone else who contributes will just type away and we’ll post when we can hook up to the internet.
Ben walked on Friday night very gingerly and with a walker because he was having terrible shoulder pain (even through the PCA morphine-stands for patient controlled something with an “a”-) from the carbon dioxide pumped in his abdomen to create more space in the surgical field. It settles in the shoulders. They also used heat on his shoulders to help with that.
Teresa stayed on a cot in Ben’s room on Friday night and did her best to deal with his Darth Vader hallucinations. Neither got too much sleep because in a hospital (I know they think they’re helping), they apparently think it’s healthier to keep waking you up to do things to you and make sure your pain level is under control. Now it seems to me that if you’re sleeping (drug induced or not) and your pain isn’t waking you up, best to leave well enough alone especially if your patient is still hallucinating. Harry and I just were dead to the world over at the Residence Inn. I had eaten my baked potato dinner at 10 and was exhausted .We got up and got ready and had a good breakfast before heading over to the hospital. Despite a rough night, Ben looked way better but was a little grouchy. Teresa was her usual wonderful self. After we got there, Teresa went to eat her breakfast (which we brought from the Residence Inn) so we took over. The nurses were very attentive but Ben was his usual “high maintenance” self so we were busy all day trying to keep him “happy. I use that term very loosely. He was able to keep liquids down on Friday after the surgery and had no nausea. They took out his catheter and he started peeing in a bottle (I thought to myself that it’s much easier to be a bedridden guy than a female) and then pretty quickly in the bathroom in something called a “toilet hat” which looks like a hat and measures his output. Ben won the prize for the whole hospital- 5 liters of pee on Saturday. Switched him to oral Vicodin so disconnected his IV (but left in the “ports” to give him Toredal too). That’s important because on Sunday when he was about 6 hours from his last dose of that, the pain was definitely breaking through the oral Vicodin. He was able to eat chicken noodle soup and crackers for lunch. If I could have brought some from phone, I’m sure that would have been better for his soul but I have to say the care to a person was incredibly caring and reassuring. Teresa stayed with him again on Saturday night and they got a little more sleep.
I started this entry on Monday morning and now its Tuesday morning.
Sunday, he was starting to meet more of the discharge criteria (more talk about “passing gas and getting closer to pooping” than when he was a baby.) By Sunday noon, not even 48 hours after the end of the surgery, they were saying he could go home that afternoon. His friends Emily and Liz (2nd year med students) came to visit (they had come when he was in recovery and we have a picture of that which I will try to remember to post). And Carol Ann ?, one of his med school teachers, came by. Turns out her husband was Ben’s anesthesiologist and she had asked him to be on Ben’s case if he could. Teresa went to high school with his daughters which we talked about with him in pre-op. So nice to know he was in the hands of great doctors but also people who had a special connection to him. So around 4 ish, he walked with his walker to the door. I pushed the wheelchair just in case but it was piled like The Beverly Hillbillies car so not sure where we would have put Ben. Thanks to all for the beautiful flowers, balloons, stuffed animals and very large cards. Begem and Kolene had come to visit and stayed until “discharge” so they helped us carry all his stuff. Teresa met us at the door after work to drive him home. Harry and I drove his car. We arrived at Teresa’s grandparent’s home where our apartment was ready and stocked with all the comforts of home. Teresa’s Mom, Tracey, even bought me some shampoo and conditioner I had used at their house the last time I was there which I happened to mention that I liked (you can't do that with her because she will make sure you have it the next time you visit) so I could upgrade from the cheap stuff from the Residence Inn. Ben went to bed. Harry went to the store and we made brown rice broccoli and sauteed chicken and garlic for dinner.
I'm going to post now and then will add pictures and continue this entry later.Love to all of you.
Amy