Hello All,

I had my surgery Thursday morning and was released home from the hospital Sunday night. The doctors say the surgery was great and the nursing staff say everything looked fine. I did suffer from some anxiety at night after the surgery from the chest pressure so they prescribed me some medication for that. Now that I am home, I am finding myself even more out of sorts and anxious. I am having difficulty drinking enough fluids and cannot seem to sleep more than 2 hours at a time even though I am on sleeping pills. My bowels came back to life last night so some of the chest/gas pain has subsided but I am still concerned. I have emptied my drainage bulb twice so far, both times the discharge is similar to what I had in the hospital. It seems like a lot to me, but they say it is normal. I was expecting to be so happy and excited post op, but even with the positive statements from the doc & hospital, I find that I am not. Anyone else have similar issues??? Please tell me it will get better!!!

MrNickSr,

I am currently 2 days post op (my surgery was on Saturday). I am finding that I am having a more positive experience than you are, so I hope my comments are of SOME use to you.

I have emptied my drainage bulb 2x per day. Not fully full, but about 1/2 full. I see some viscous stuff that looks like part blood clot part liquid which was the same as in the hospital. The doc wasn't worried and said that was normal, so I am not worried.

My doc used a 36 bougie, just in case that makes a difference. I am using my blackberry timer so it goes off every 15 minutes. I have a chart that I made that tells me what to take when and when I go to the bathroom (with the exception of the AM) my pee looks fairly light. In the AM when i first go it is darker and it tells me that I am low of fluids over night. So, if it helps any, use a timer and keep sipping. My doc has be drink 1 30cc cup (like communion wine cups) of Water every 15 minutes. I may take 10 minutes to drink one, but I start the clock for the next 15 minute as soon as the alarm sounds. I find this is keeping me firm. It is not easy, but it is necessary.

The sleeping thing... I cannot help you with. I am one of those people that sleeps anywhere.

As for your overall attitude (positiveness), I see that from your statements you are probably prone to getting anxious. You just had major surgery, i think you can cut yourself some slack and recognize that it is normal to be anxious. Trust in your doctor, take your tempature if you get concerned (as this will let you know if you are getting an infection) and continue with the exact diet/timeline your doc prescribed. Be really anal about it like I am being. The more control I have of the times and charting things and the like, the more in control I feel of the situation. not sure if that will help you out, but you may want to try it.

I hope my comments help! I am by no means an expert and am a few days behind you, but I am sure we can work together to figure this thing out.

good luck and keep reaching out for help and advice.

Later,

Aimee

Edited December 21, 200916 yr by Wisconsin_Gal
putin wrong date

Nick,

When I first got out of surgery and the next day until I had my leak test, I was great. I basically ran laps around the hall, chatted it up with all the nursing staff, and just felt wonderful. From my leak test (day 2) until day 5, I took a turn for the worse. Although I walked, I was physically and emotionally spent. I sort of fell into a little depression and (at times) thought I just couldn't go on...well, on day 5 I took out my pain ball (never had a drain) and immediately felt better, each day got better after that. I guess what I'm trying to say, although we had different experiences and surgeries done a little different (pain ball, drain), it wasn't easy for me in the beginning. I will keep you in my thoughts and hope that you get better soon.

Hello All,

Just a quick update. A lot of the issues I was experiencing were due to the fact that my chest was so heavy (from the gas) and I was too weak to truly blow my nose (TMI, I know). This caused the feelings of suffocation I was having. Guess the snowstorm that was going on didn't help. As soon as I was strong enough to blow, I started feeling much better. Thankfully, once I had my drain tube taken out, much of the pain and discomfort I was experiencing was gone too! I just wanted to share this with others because it was so VERY unexpected and caused me such distress and nobody knew what was wrong. Knowing is half the battle!

Merry Christmas and a VERY Happy New "You" Year to all!!!!