Totally freaked now

love life, don't sweat the rest. I go to the castle tomorrow. Hoping to have a farewell party later w DH for the old parts.

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Originally Posted by CRS Okay, so I understand that I will have to take it easy (no treadmill for a LONG time ) - but will I have difficulty in getting in/out of bed? I really would prefer to go to my home afterwards if at all possible.

A physical therapist met with me in the hospital and taught me the right way to get in and out of bed. She worked with me until she was comfortable that I could do it without the bed rails (so I could do it on my own at home). If this is not offered, ask for it!

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Originally Posted by Normalita Hi everyone, I am freaking, but for a different reason. My surgery is a week from this wednesday. August 19th, I have had very few people, except for coming in here, to talk to. Everyone I do talk to, just brushes the whole Hyst. thing off as "oh, you'll be ok" This is something I don't know. WIll I be ok? I have never been knocked out before, I am scared to death about the fact that they just inject you with what ever they want, out you go and you have no more say about anything. Then when/if you wake up, you are in awful pain and you just have to "get over it" My biggest fears right now are: Having a reaction to the meds and having a problem while I am under. I am a fraid they will leave me sitting somewhere for long periods of time with no one to talk to, that they will make my husband go away and I will be all alone. and I am affraid they will wake me up to tell me, it couldn't be done or they didn't take it out and that now I have been through surgery, but am not better off than when I went in and now there is nothing I can do about my problems. I have a bunch of needy people in my family that all say they want to help, but all this surgery has done is created a reason for them to put the focus on themselves, becasue they are so concerned. Helping me is secondary. Because of this, If I don't take care of myself, then who will? I won't have time to rest or recover, because someone might need something and my being layed up will cause a problem for them and they will be sure to tell me so. I just don't see this surgery being a good thing. Feeling better after its over, just isn't going to happen.

I too found that a lot of people treated it like it was no big deal - well it IS a big deal. Block those people out, don't take their phone calls! As for giving up control under anesthesia - at some point you have to ask yourself if you trust the doctor/hospital. If you do, then you know that they are not going to jeopardize their reputation or licenses and not take very good care of you while you are out! Waking up in pain - I was in the worst pain of my life when I woke. The staff was so attentive and so kind while they got me comfortable. They don't want you in pain either. I felt almost loved in how considerate the post-op staff was. I don't think family could have done a better job.

They won't just leave you all by yourself (until you are in your hospital room, I had to send out scout parties sometimes to get my nurse lol). I don't know of any hospital that doesn't allow family to be with them 24/7. I was alone in pre-op and post-op, but I wasn't really alone - the staff was doing their job and keeping me very busy with forms, procedures and sleep! And you really do know that they won't put you out and NOT do the surgery. I've never heard of that happening. If it gets cancelled, it's because they had to bump you for a more serious surgery, and it's before you hit the OR.

If your family can't grow up and take care of you, then you need to ignore their complaints and whining about their problems. If you do not put yourself first, you won't heal properly (trust me, I know - I wound up on 3 days bed rest after lifting a toddler). Print out the Mister Hyster tips list so your family understand what you need.

CRS-
As someone already said, they should show you the way to get in and out of bed. Start doing a few push ups- I relied on my arms a lot to move around, so building any muscle will help! I also found once home that laying in bed was really uncomfortable. During the day I was propped up on the sofa. I had a chair next to it to use to help me get up and off it. At night I slept in the recliner/Lazy Boy for about a month. It was more comfortable and much easier to get out of for those middle of the night bathroom trips!
As for the pain, make sure you ask your doctor about what the plan is. They should be able to keep the pain under control and don't be afraid to ask for more/different medicine if its not working. Make sure you keep taking it when you're supposed to and that will help as well.

Thanks Kare - those are some really good tips. I got my date today - it's September 17th, so I have a few weeks to get everything in place - as well as give me time to get my mind wrapped around this.

CRS:

As you can see from my post, wrapping your mind around this is not easy. I was doing well with it. But now all of a sudden my husband has taken a leave of absence. In reading the Myster Hyster stuff, sounds like he is A-typical. He is probably more nervous than I am, so he is shutting down. they said to have him read stuff. The ebook I down loaded, the pamplet the Dr. gave me and the booklet from this web sight has been sitting on the dinning room table for a month now and he has not gone near it. I cleaned house all weekend getting ready for my mothers arrival and my coming home etc and he went out side and played with his motor cycle. He had no intention of helping me with any of it. He is not a beast. He is just very sensitive and I don't think he will do well with seeing me just laying around either. So good luch with your journey and good luck with your upcoming surgery.

I wish I understood men, but that's a whole other story isn't it?! I am not married, nor in a serious relationship. My 'friend' however has been wonderful, he is a understanding man.

Norm - I wish you the best of luck with your surgery and a speedy recovery. Take care