Last week's surgery was a much better experience than I ever could have imagined. All of the staff was nice and considerate and courteous, the anesthesiologist gave me a shot with a teeny tiny needle to numb up my arm before he put in the iv so I didn't have any pain from that AT ALL, the nurses were fantastic about making sure I was comfortable - keeping me supplied with warm blankets, putting gauze between the IV line and my arm so the cool liquid going through the tubes didn't give me hives, etc. - and they let me read right up until they were wheeling me back to the operating room. When I woke up in recovery they were great about making sure I was comfortable there too, giving me a blanket that hooked up to some heater which kept me warm and cozy while I was waking up, giving me ice to suck on to help my cough, and constantly checking on my pain level. They were appalled to hear that I've been living with a daily pain level between 5 and 8 for the past three months and did their best to keep me as pain-free as possible.
The recovery has been better than I expected also, although I didn't realize quite how much it was going to hurt for the first few days. Even now, close to a week after the procedure, I still get worn out very easily, and lifting anything heavier than my pups is a no-go. My doctor was fantastic about working with me to find a prescription for pain meds that didn't knock me out, so I've got a prescription now that helps with the pain but still allows me to function enough to take them at work if I need to. I have two incisions - one in my belly button and one that appears to be about 1 to 1.5 inches long just above my hip - both of which were closed up with Dermabond, so it feels like my belly button has been glued shut.
