A (yellow) Bear in Borneo

[MotherBear]

Thanks for the good vibes. I'm finally out of hospital after 4 and a bit days in there. Found it very difficult to get in touch as my mobile decided it wouldn't phone or text out from the hospital although I could receive incoming calls.

Apparently the op was horrendous and the surgeon said it should have taken only 20 minutes but actually took him 3 and half hours. He was not amused. The gallbladder was so packed with stones he couldn't get it out without cutting it open to get the stones out. Luckily he'd managed to do it all via keyhole surgery so my recovery has been pretty good although he was very worried about inflammation and bleeding in my liver and there was a chance my liver would be damaged because the condition had gone on much longer than it should have while I was misdiagnosed. The surgeon said that never in the whole history of his career had he dealt with such a difficult and dangerous gallbladder operation. He's given us a video tape of the op which we'll have to put onto a CD so we can watch it, but that will be later on. Don't think I'm quite up to watching blood and gore this soon after the op. I was also given a phial of some of the stones that were removed and was shocked how big they were. He says in his report that 2 big stones were blocking the bile duct, although both hubster and I were sure he'd originally said it was 4 stones.

The surgeon was impressed with the speed of my recovery but I guess that was mostly down to his having done a great job at the beginning. I've struggled for days with having to lug my 2 drainage bottles around with me whenever I did some walking or went to the bathroom. They were a big problem when I tried to get in and out of bed, but nevertheless, held together well. Until my last night, that is. I'd got up to the loo, went back to bed and turned over to sleep on my side. I felt a sort of 'pop' and felt sick as I knew something had gone wrong. My bile drain pipe had come apart and the bed and I were both soaked in bile. Two nurses came and remade the bed and gave me a clean gown. Back to bed and thankfully to sleep. Upon awakening and turning onto my back, I saw that my nice clean gown was, once again, soaked in bile. The tube had come out again. Another clean gown, but, luckily the bed wasn't too bad. Pity I had to cause such disruption on my last night there.

So, I came home this morning with a T shaped tube still in me and a coil of plastic tubing hanging outside. There's plasters all over my abdomen from the keyhole surgery (they use several entry points for a camera and tools etc,). George will have to change my dressings (you should have seen his colour change when he was being shown how to do it and also when I had my drainage tubes removed) and I'll go back on Sunday morning to be checked out, then 6 weeks later to have the T tube removed under local anaesthetic. I'm still a bit doddery on my feet and have a bit of pain when I move about, but I'm hoping to get stronger and more active with each day now.

I put on some pics so it's up to you if you want to see them. The sight of my flabby belly isn't for the faint-hearted. I knew I should have laid back a bit and ironed the creases out. The first one shows how the bile has soaked into the dressing. Lucky I was having the drains out today and could have clean dressings.

[nickydwuk]

So glad it went ok. It will take a while for you to feel the full effects and the 'yellow' should fade. Plenty of sun should help. You had a heck of a lot of stones. Never seen that many come out of one person. A nice momento - you could make them into a necklace

Originally Posted by MotherBear

George will have to change my dressings (you should have seen his colour change when he was being shown how to do it and also when I had my drainage tubes removed) and I'll go back on Sunday morning to be checked out, then 6 weeks later to have the T tube removed under local anaesthetic. I'm still a bit doddery on my feet and have a bit of pain when I move about, but I'm hoping to get stronger and more active with each day now.

Poor George - don't they have any district nurses out there? For a small fee (and air fare) I would come and look after you

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by nickydwuk

You had a heck of a lot of stones. Never seen that many come out of one person.

Oh but that was only a token selection . There were heaps more apparently. I did wonder about making a necklace out of them, but, after all the trouble they've caused me, I don't think I want to have them anywhere close to me. The surgeon reckons I've been pretty sick in one way or another due to those little b*ggers for quite a long time and, having spoken to him about other symptoms I've had in the past like crushing pains in my chest during the night and, of course, the 'gastritis' I was diagnosed with late last year, it seems all can be attributed to the stones shifting around.

I'm already losing that Yellow Peril look. My bilirubin was 250 when it should have been 20 so it was more than 10 times over the normal limit. My last test, a couple of days ago, showed it down to 69 so a dramatic improvement.

I'm still tickled by the general anaesthetic, not having had one since I was a young kid. A mask was put over my nose and mouth and I was told to breathe in the 'oxygen' deeply. There was no feeling of drifting off - it was more like someone had switched the lights off. I was wide awake one minute and the next minute my eyes flicked open and I appeared to be 'still' wide awake. There was no 'coming around' feeling at all - I was wide awake immediately. It was only when I put my hand down and felt a load of padding and tubing across my abdomen that I realised something had been done and it was all over. It was just such a weird feeling to have lost 3 and a half hours in what seemed like the blink of an eye.

I had a little titter to myself when I read the operative notes that I brought home today. At the start of the operation it says 'Procedure: GA (which would no doubt be General Anaesthetic) LEGS SPREAD. I just found it funny that they would put that in and could imagine them grabbing a leg each and making a wish. Later on in the report it says 'Dissection of the Calot's triangle. IT IS DIFFICULT'. I thought 'Yeah that'd be right. It was me they were working on after all'.

During the first few post-op days I reverted to babyhood. They had to try to rehydrate me and flush out my liver so I was on a drip. This, unfortunately, had the effect of rushing through me and coming out the other end without sufficient warning, considering how difficult I found it to get out of bed quickly and get to the loo. Because of this I was put into monster-size nappies (diapers) which I was extremely grateful for as I needed to go about 3 times every 15 to 30 mins.. It was just a bit embarrassing when the doctor was making his rounds one day and I found myself having to look him in the eye and pretend nothing untoward was happening in my nappy at the same time.

Hubster was allowed to stay with me all day, which was great as he's an excellent carer. We did have the odd mishap, like when he was about to take my meal tray away and put the (quite big and heavy) lid back on it. He dropped the lid, which in turn tipped a bowl over and caused a tea bag to fall into my lap, messing up my gown, but the main cause of my distress was the loud bang it caused. I almost leapt into the air, which didn't do my wounds a lot of good, I can tell you. I nearly had a heart attack to add to my woes .

I was just saying to hubster that I wish we had a nurse friend who could take over and monitor my progress now I'm out of hospital . I feel pretty good although still have a sharp pain where my gallbladder must have been when I walk about. The doc says I shouldn't have any pain but won't explain why I have. Perhaps this T tube is pressing on something.

[nickydwuk]

You should expect pain for a few days post -op. You have had surgery afterall. With removing the gall bladder they have had to stich inside so these could cause some discomfort - especially on moving. Also , as you say, the T tube may be pressing or irritating something inside. Just make sure you take your pain relief regularly and do not make any sudden movements. No bending or stretching (not like I did after my surgery) for a few weeks. I will be your virual nurse if you like

[keeweegal]

Great to you have you back, MB

Sounds very similiar to when I had my gallbladder out. Keyhole surgery but almost had to go the "full op".

I had very bad shoulder pain which I was told was due to the general anaesthetic. I had this for a few days until I passed wind one day & it was gone! Wee tip for you there!

Sounds like you're doing great - keep it up, but don't overdo it

[Taffy]

Come on now Bear. Picking up some rocks from the garden and covering yourself with bandages just for a bit of symapthy is out of order!

[Welshgirl]

Originally Posted by keeweegal

I had very bad shoulder pain which I was told was due to the general anaesthetic. I had this for a few days until I passed wind one day & it was gone!

Farting got rid of your shoulder pain????

Welcome back MB, glad to hear you're on the mend. Those rocks sure looked big!

[ebianca]

Hey MB.

Glad to hear you came out the other end OK and minus quite a bit of baggage.
Make sure you get plenty of rest!!!

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by nickydwuk

You should expect pain for a few days post -op. You have had surgery afterall.

Well, this was my thoughts but the doctor says I shouldn't have any pain now, 5 days later, which is the worrying thing. If he'd said I would have pain for a while yet or while the tube is still in me, I'd have accepted it but I don't like it when he says there shouldn't be any pain. It's just in the one place, under my right rib cage and in the vicinity of where the tube goes in. It's a sharp pain and I feel it when I try to take a deep breath as well as when I walk about, almost like something's pressing on my bottom rib. It's difficult for me to stand up straight but it's not bad when I sit or lie. I'm seeing the doc on Sunday so I'll mention it once again and try to get him to at least acknowledge that I do have pain and see if he can explain what it could be. If it's only pain from pressure and doesn't do any harm then I'll just have to put up with it until the tube is removed in 6 weeks, but I would like to be reassured that nothing is wrong. The only pain relief I've got is something similar to Panadol Extra which gives me bad palpitations so I tend not to take it. I explained this but they wouldn't offer me an alternative. The idea is 'You shouldn't have pain therefore you shouldn't need painkillers'. I'm also a bit puzzled why I have to take a proton pump inhibitor in the mornings. Those are usually for treating ulcers. Perhaps it's just to keep my acids down while I'm healing? Nicky, I really would appreciate having you as my virtual nurse, someone to bounce things off. When you get out of hospital here, you're very much on your own. Information is a bit hit and miss because the nurses are either Indian or oriental and we don't always connect correctly because of linguistic misunderstandings.

I was somewhat alarmed by the aftercare, such as getting out of bed and washing etc. The first morning after the op a nurse got me out of bed and expected me to toddle into the bathroom to wash myself. As it happened, I felt quite dizzy and queasy so she gave me a quick rub down with a wet flannel. After that there was nothing, so I was obviously expected to take care of myself, which was quite tricky with so many plasters and tubes across my front. Had I passed out and, being in a private room, I could have lain there for a few hours before someone found me. After I'd had my babies in the UK (reasonably normal births), a nurse came with me the first few times to shower and wash in case of mishaps. Even though it was under the NHS, I felt they looked out for the patients a bit more than they do here privately. Perhaps it's to do with the 'Sue' culture in the UK which I don't think exists here as, under Islamic law, 'one man may not profit over another'.

KG, I very much go along with what you say about wind. It's quite alarming where it gets to and how much havoc and pain it causes. I was told quite firmly that I must let my wind go free and not try to be all ladylike and hold it in. Thank God I had a private room though . What with wind and wandering around with my super-sized nappy dangling between my knees I must have looked a right joke.

I'm off to get my hair cut today so that's a biggy for me. Just hope I can manage the hair-washing bit. Also going to try to stagger around the supermarket. I think I'll make a sign to hang around my neck 'Keep clear - Please do not bump'. I'll probably get some strange looks as I shuffle around but at least I'm out and about and slowly getting back to normal. Um..... was I ever 'normal'? Maybe this afternoon, if I'm still on my feet, I might try to build a garden wall with my stones. I'll get the video of the op put onto CD or DVD so we can watch it on the PC. Perhaps it'll show just how many stones he got out of me. He said the gallbladder was absolutely packed with them. Maybe HE'S building his own garden wall with the rest of them .

[nickydwuk]

Originally Posted by MotherBear

Nicky, I really would appreciate having you as my virtual nurse, someone to bounce things off. When you get out of hospital here, you're very much on your own. Information is a bit hit and miss because the nurses are either Indian or oriental and we don't always connect correctly because of linguistic misunderstandings.

Just let me know when you want a consultation - mates rates of course

Originally Posted by MotherBear

KG, I very much go along with what you say about wind. It's quite alarming where it gets to and how much havoc and pain it causes. I was told quite firmly that I must let my wind go free and not try to be all ladylike and hold it in. Thank God I had a private room though . What with wind and wandering around with my super-sized nappy dangling between my knees I must have looked a right joke.

Originally Posted by MotherBear

I'll get the video of the op put onto CD or DVD so we can watch it on the PC. Perhaps it'll show just how many stones he got out of me. He said the gallbladder was absolutely packed with them. Maybe HE'S building his own garden wall with the rest of them .

Will it be on 'MovetoNZ Tube'?