Surgery Day 2

The room I stayed in was pretty spartan, as most hospital rooms are. It had a TV, and a DVD player, though I didn't watch any movies. I never stayed awake long enough for a movie, though the TV shows help kill time. The nurses checked in on me every 90 minutes, so sleep was in short chunks.

Coming out of surgery, both of my hands were asleep. This had the anesthesiologists all concerned, and eventually a neurologist came in for a consultation. I think that the neuropathy was caused by my arms being outspread during surgery. There's a nerve in the elbow that is easily pinched, causing the neuropathy. Fortunately, this went away by the third day.

I had to get up and walk at least three times a day. This was a production for several reasons. The first was my reluctance to do it. It was painful, and extremely exhausting. The second was all the cables, IVs, etc that had to be detached. I couldn't understand how one day I could be healthy and hale, and the next, an invalid. The first few walks were less than 50 feet, and left me exhausted. I'd return to be and dread the next walk.

I don't remember if I started on Jello on day 2 or day 3. I liked the orange flavored jello, but the raspberry was horrible.

love,

Cj