I'd like to clarify that I've been updating the blog a bit historically, as in this update made in July is referring to events back in April. I hope to eventually catch up and be current with my posts, so I apologize for my tardiness. I know there was some confusion on my last couple of posts, and wanted to make sure we were all on the same page. This post refers to my second surgery, that took place on April 21st.
It was an early day. I had to be there at 6:00AM and it's over an hour drive, but I was pretty glad to get it out of the way. I had a mixed feel towards the day. On the one side, I felt pretty relaxed in that I had my previous surgery and this should be similar and even a less intrusive one as the band itself shouldn't need to be touched. On the other hand, this was a different surgery, and I wasn't 100% sure on the result; could they relocate the port in one surgery or would they find lots of signs of infection forcing them to do two? The unknown can be a bit scary, but I knew I was in the skilled hands of Dr. Jessee and the wonderful care of the staff at Palms of Pasadena Hospital. The registration process was very straight forward and then I was led down to the pre-op area. I will say the nursing staff there are very friendly and comforting. It seemed like things went smoother than the last time, but I think that was more about knowing what to expect having gone through it before. I also had the extraordinary support of my lovely wife, who was over seven months pregnant at the time. She's the best!
Before long it was time to go to surgery, so I was wheeled down the hall and told my wife not to leave town. ;-) The poor thing was to have to wait it out in the waiting area. I was wheeled to the runway area near the operating rooms. There they go through their final protocols including meeting the anesthesiologist. Again they were all very nice and all went smooth. Then I was taken into the OR and before long some of the night night juice had me out. I woke up in the recovery room feeling pretty out of it, but not nearly as much as I remember being the first time. I actually am starting to feel that the reason some of this is easier is because I'm in better shape than I was before the first surgery. Since I had already lost so much weight, I believe I'm just in better health, and my body is much better at tolerating a surgery. That realization gave me a nice reminder of why I started this whole process to begin with; I was in poor health and thanks to the Lap Band, I'm doing much better thankfully. I didn't experience too much discomfort, but after a few too many ice chips I did have a bout or two of nausea. They immediately gave me something for it and it went away nearly instantaneously; I would say they were very attentive there as well. I did experience a very strange side affect to this medication as I had a couple bouts of tears, that seemed to come from no where without cause. It was very strange to cry not knowing why you are crying. Luckily it was short lived and it was explained that was a common side affect to one of the drugs that they had administered.
Finally I got to go back to the pre-op area where my wife can be with me. She was a sight for droggy eyes. By now I had found out that I was fortunate and they were able to move the port all in one surgery, so I was good to go, well sort of. The one mistake that was made was mainly my fault. I had asked Dr. Jessee to give me an adjustment while I was in surgery to save me from coming into the office later. Well, they give you adjustments while you are awake for a reason. Without being able to drink during an adjustment, you can't tell what the right level is. Despite Dr. Jessee's best efforts, I must had gotten too much. I exasperated that fact, by choosing ginger ale when offered something to drink. Carbonation is kind of a no no when it comes to the Lap Band, but I was hoping it would help sooth my stomach from my earlier nausea. It didn't take more than a few sips before the pain started. It was hard to understand what it was exactly, especially in my post-op state. It was a distinct sharp pain in my chest and there was no way to get comfortable. After some discussion with the nurses, we deduced that I probably was fully blocked by my band being overly inflated. They paged Dr. Jessee, but she was currently in surgery. I had to wait for a while for her to come down to check me out.
When she did, she said that sounded like what it was. She was concerned that it was going to be fairly uncomfortable to put the needle in so soon after surgery, but it was a relief actually. Without even having to draw back on the syringe, a few CCs popped right out. It was an instant relief. Thank you Dr. Jessee. All in all everything went very well and I experienced a very successful surgery. The adjustment was just a minor issue that was easily corrected at the hospital. Once I'm recovered from surgery I can go in for a proper adjustment in the office, and now that I have a secured port, it should be much easier than my most recent ones. Going through some of these port issues is not very typical at all, but I consider it just a small chapter in my weight loss journey. I was very amazed at how much better my body handled the surgery compared to the first time. My health has really improved, and I feel a whole lot better and in the end that's what this is all about. Thank you Dr. Jessee and Palms of Pasadena; without you my improved health would not be possible.
God bless!
me :-)
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