Abdominal Hysterectomy: My TAH at the "Bates Motel"

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Abdominal Hysterectomy: My TAH at the "Bates Motel"

Abdominal Hysterectomy: My TAH at the "Bates Motel"

Date : 11-30-2007 - 07:04 PM - Readers : 708

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Decided on a TAH after many yrs of menstrual cramps, heavy bleeding and clotting. I've had 380 bad periods in my lifetime. I had 2 fibroids, the largest was golfball size. I am 45 and wanted to keep my ovaries. I have no children, therefore my dr. felt it best to do it abdominally just to be safe.

Surgery was successful, I am healing quite nicely, with today being Day #4 post-op. I feel pretty darn good, doing a lot of walking and just brimming with energy. Dr. found zero endo which thrills me, so I got to keep my ovaries as planned. One ovary was almost fused to my colon which was strange.

I have no complaints toward the actual surgery at all, but my hospital stay was from a horror flick. There's always got to be a wrench thrown in there somewhere. I was given no morphine pump, no ice chips, no solid food, no compression booties, no mesh panties, nothing. The gowns they gave me were so ripped up and torn I didn't know what hole to put what part through! After surgery I awoke in pain, they asked what my pain level was, I said "10". 7 hours later, they gave me dilaudid and asked again what my pain level was, I said "7" and they said "GOOD". WHAT? Good is 0, not a 7! This is unacceptable! And it pretty much stayed at a 7 and never let up. I was so mad and frustrated at them not keeping on top of this. It was like pulling teeth! Everything I asked for, they would say "well, we'll have to ask your dr". The instructions should've been already in place, right? I get the impression there was zero communication between my dr. and the hospital staff.

The 1st night I spent alone in my room with the lights off and my door closed. I moaned the whole night. I sent DH home as I thought I was in good hands. They left me alone for 5 hours in my room before anyone came back to check on me. They never checked my incision, never checked my maxipad which was taped to my legs and butt. The nurse let my IV bag run dry. When the alarm went off, she came in, pointed to my fanny pack hanging on the bedrail (I learned that here) and said "see, this got in the way and kinked your IV tube". Uh no, the IV tube ran DRY you idiot! That is when I realized I was in the Bates Motel and my nurse was Norman Bates! She acted just like him! I made DH stay with me the next night as I was scared to stay alone. He had gone home that day, they moved me to sit up on my bed and they never came back! I called DH to come and help me move! He stayed the 2nd night because we were both scared! All I could think of was "get me out of here, get me out of here, GET ME OUT OF HERE". We were up and packed at 5:30 am the next morning awaiting my discharge which of course didn't happen until noon. They told me I should shower before I left. They had no shampoo and I didn't bring any either. So I had to wash my hair with a bar of soap and dry off with my bed sheet! No towels either! They told me I needed my flu shot before I left, so we waited another 2 hours for that. Then the nurse came in, said "sorry, you don't qualify, you're not over 50" and she left. I had to wait for my wheelchair ride out of there, but deep down I wanted to bolt out that door, down the elevator and to the parking lot because I knew no way would they catch me! I never wanted to be home so bad in my life. DH is taking wonderful care of me and helping to erase all those bad memories of the Bates Motel. I am thankful surgery went great and that I feel great, but my hospital stay was atrocious! And they got PAID for this. That's robbery!

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