Laparoscopy/Hysteroscopy
Yesterday was the big day. After I got up and moving my cervix was feeling better. Plus I was just distracted with everything else going on that I wasn't just concentrating on my painful cervix.
My mom showed up to watch the kids. Since my appointment got moved until later, I was able to get the kids up and settled in for breakfast before leaving. I had told them that I had to go to the dr because I had a bellyache. I had warned them that when I got home I was just going to be in bed and take a nap. DS1 told me I should take lots of naps. Mostly the kids were excited that they were going to get to ride in their grandmother's car. My mom told me today that DS1 was worried about me and kept asking her how I was doing and if I would be home soon.
DH and I left around 7:50, which was really early to get us there on time. We got stuck in lots of rush hour traffic so we ended up getting there around 9:20, 10 minutes before we had to be there. Then there was lots of waiting. I got signed in and they got my ID checked and insurance info scanned. I was given a bracelet with my name and birth date on it. Just about everyone I crossed paths with looked at my bracelet, asked me to spell my complete name and tell them my birth date. I had to fill out a anesthesia form, on which I wrote I was allergic to penicillin and amoxicillin and that those medications give me hives. DH was given a pager so they could page him when I was done or they needed to give him any information. He was also given my ID number that he could look up on a monitor in the "support person" waiting room to see where I was in the process the entire time. I thought that was pretty cool. We had to wait in that area for maybe another 10 minutes. I took that time to check out this totally dorky man that was there holding a book called "Marine Chemistry". It was really fitting to his dorkiness. I'm allowed to say that because I am a dork too.
Then we got called back to this prep area. I got assigned to this three walled cubical that had a curtain for the fourth wall. I was told to take off all my clothes except my socks, put on a robe with the ties up the back. I was also given a jacket sort of thing and a "warm" blanket that wasn't really that warm. I went to pee and was told to pee in a cup just in case they needed a urine sample. The nurse asked me if I had any allergies and I told her about the penicillin and amoxicillin. She asked what happened when I took them and I told her about the hives. Then she gave me a red allergy bracelet. There was a little TV in the room so DH and I started watching that. We ended up watching "Dinosaur Train", which is a cartoon that my kids love since there was nothing on. It was a silly thing to do but also relaxing. Not that I needed much relaxing. I was oddly very relaxed. Just hanging out and talking with DH, something we don't usually get to do with the kids. Around 10:00, several people came in. The anesthesiologist came in and asked me several questions, including what I was allergic to and what happened when I was exposed. She also asked me lots of questions about my mouth and teeth and checked out my mouth and throat. Meanwhile, some nurse put an IV in my hand. I took a look at DH and he looked kind of pale so I asked him if he was okay. He is not a big fan of needles and blood but he said he was fine.
They left and we watched some "Let's Make a Deal". Some other nurse came in at some point and put these things on my legs that were supposed to help with circulation during surgery. Someone else came in and asked me what I was allergic to and what happened when I was exposed. Then my dr came in and went over with me yet again what they were going to do during surgery. I asked him if they were going to take pictures and if I could see them at my followup appointment. DH thought I was weird. I told the dr it was only fair since he got to see my uterus, that I should get to see my uterus too. He said that was a very valid point and would be happy to share the photos with me. He said that they would probably be ready for me in about 20-30 minutes. DH and I started watching some "Price is Right". At some point this student doctor popped in to introduce herself and tell me that she would be in the OR observing. She was way too perky and after she left I told DH that I hope she kept her enthusiasm out of the operating room. Then in came my dr's fellow, a nurse, and a student that was learning from the anesthesiologist. I suddenly got really nervous, thinking that this was it. Turns out it wasn't it. The fellow told me again what they were going to do during the surgery and asked me what I was allergic to and what happens when I get penicillin and amoxicillin. The student anesthesiologist said that they were going to give me a sedative before they wheeled me down to the OR to relax me, although it didn't appear that I really even needed one. The she asked about my teeth and looked in my throat again. Then the fellow said she was going to make sure that the OR was ready and then would be back.
DH and I kept joking about who at the hospital was sleeping with who, because you know real life is just like Grey's Anatomy.
DH gave me a hug and a kiss. Soon the student anesthesiologist came back with some man named Matt who people had kept mentioning while in the room. They started messing with my IV and I felt more relaxed so I figured they had given me the sedative. The Matt guy checked out my throat and asked me about my teeth again. He also asked me about my allergies. I was just hanging out there all relaxed while they told DH where he could find the cafeteria. I was thinking that they better hurry up because I really wanted to run out of that room and find the cafeteria myself. I was starving and suddenly craving a greasy hamburger. Then Matt said, "Okay, we are going to give you the sedative now." Oops, I guess I was just imagining that I was relaxed. They gave me something in my IV and DH was standing at the corner of the room as they started to wheel me out. I turned the corner and he was gone, just vanished. I thought, "Wheeee!!! These drugs are fun!!" They took me into the OR and I had to move from my bed onto the operating table. I was checking out the lights on the ceiling and they were strapping my arms down. They were having some sort of problem getting my left arm situated. I know I spoke at some point but I have no idea what I said. (EDIT: I just remember I asked them why it was so cold in there and someone said they keep it cold since the doctors and nurses are wearing so many clothes in the OR.) I think someone said they were going to put me under.
Then I was coughing. It hurt a little. I was starting to wake up as they pushed me into position in a different room. I could see a clock on a wall. It took me a minute to focus on it and another to figure out what it meant since it was in military time. It was 1:10. I was in a large room that had spots for about 12 beds and each bed could be sectioned off by curtains, although none of the curtains were drawn. There was a computer next to my bed and about 6 people were crowded around it going on about how it wouldn't work. I had to pee REALLY bad. I wasn't sure how I was going to tell someone that when all these people just kept talking about the computer. I had the song "Switchblade" (by Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers) stuck in my head. I had an oxygen mask on. My lip felt like it was all busted up. I felt to make sure I had both legs and arms because I wanted to make sure they didn't do the wrong surgery, like one in which they would amputate my limbs. I still really had to pee. I thought maybe I would just go ahead and pee the bed because I was in a hospital and people do stuff like that all the time so no one would probably think twice about it. A nurse came over and asked me from 1-10 what my pain level was. I said 6, which was probably a rather conservative guess. She said she would give me some pain medicine. I told her I really had to go to the bathroom. She said she could give me a bedpan. She drew the curtains and stuck a bedpan under me. It hurt my belly to lift my hips. I tried really hard to pee. It wasn't working at all and just made me realize how much my vaginal area was burning. The nurse came back a few minutes later and asked me how I was doing. I said no success yet. She left again and eventually I decided that maybe my crotch just hurt and I didn't actually have to pee, much like happens when I have an UTI. She came back later and I told her I didn't think it was going to happen. She took my bedpan and opened my curtains. The clock on the wall said 13:45. I thought I had only been there for about 5 minutes but it had been at least 35. The nurse asked about my pain again. I said I felt better for a little bit but the pain was back up to a 6 again. She said the medication wears off quick and she would give me more. She took my oxygen mask off and I found it kind of hard to breathe at first. I felt my lip again and it was most certainly busted. My throat was sore too. I decided they must have caught my lip between my teeth and the breathing tube they inserted during surgery. They took off the little leg circulatory things and that made me sad because they were so comfy and had been giving me a nice leg massage. Every time I would cough, it would hurt my stomach and would taste like plastic. Then I decided I felt perfectly fine and was just bored. I got nosy and started checking out all the other recovering patients. From where I was situated, I could see across a hall another area where patients were recovering. Several nurses at the desk were trying to figure out if I ever got my IV antibiotics or not. (Obviously they weren't talking about penicillin or amoxicillin since by that point everyone in the entire county knew I got hives if I took those.) I am not sure they ever figured out for sure if I got my antibiotics but I think they decided I got them but someone forgot to mark it. They brought some lady into the phase 1 recovery area (by then I had decided that this is where I was) and they were telling her to cough and clear her lungs. I started wondering if maybe when I was coughing when I first woke up if it was because someone told me to do it. I soon ran out of things to entertain myself with while just sitting there slightly propped up in bed. I couldn't remember the second verse to "Switchblade" which was annoying me. I wished I had my phone with me so I could play some games or something. Then I heard some of the nurses on the phone talking about how they didn't have any room for anymore people in the area. I was just hanging out minding my own business when a nurse came over and shoved her hand right up in my crotch. I felt around a bit and realized she stuck a pad up there. Then she was sticking something around my feet. My curtain was still open and some guy was being wheeled through the hallway across from me watching all of this from a great angle. I only partly cared. The nurse said something about pulling this up and I realized the thing she put around my feet where these lacy elastic underwear. I couldn't get them up over my left butt cheek very well because my left hand had a large IV tube stuck in it. It was around that point that I realized that my left boob was nearly hanging out of the blanket that was on me. The nurses finally decided to draw my curtains at that point to get my robe snapped up and the back of it tied. Which was good you know, because that is the part I needed privacy for, not the part where they were putting pads in my crotch and putting underwear on me. A nurse helped pull me up to a sitting position to tie the back of my robe and then I was up and walking. We stopped at a bathroom and she told me to try to go. She put a toilet seat cover on the toilet and told me to pull the string on the wall when I was done. She didn't remove the center part of the toilet seat cover. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to do that and then realized that there was no way I was going to be able to bend over or figure out how to get the stupid toilet seat cover working right so I just squatted and peed on the damn thing. I figured I was in a hospital and all drugged up so even if I just peed on the floor, I am sure that would have been fine. It hurt like hell to pee and I barely peed at all. I wasn't sure if that was because I really didn't have to pee or if I just willed myself out of peeing because it hurt like hell. The nurse walked in on me while I was trying to get my massive pad back in place and those fancy underwear back up. She left and then I thought I should probably wash my hands but the sink was way over there and the string I was supposed to pull was right next to me. I pulled the string. She came in and walked me over to wash my hands. I told her I didn't pee much and that it hurt and she said they probably put a catheter in me during surgery. Ahh... that makes sense. That is why I felt like I had a UTI and had to pee so bad but couldn't. Then we headed down a hall into the phase 2 recovery area. She asked me what I wanted to start with to drink and I jumped at ginger ale which I regretted because I didn't realize they had cranberry juice. I started to get some shoulder pain in my left shoulder. When they do the surgery, they pump your abdominal cavity up with carbon dioxide so they can see in there. The gas presses on your diaphragm which is connected to a nerve in your shoulders and gives you this horrible stabbing/pinching pain on the top of your shoulders. I have broken my left collarbone a couple times and it kinda felt like how my collarbone feels sometimes when the weather gets really damp. The nurse helped me into this large chair. I had passed several other patients in their little cubicles in these large chairs and they were all reclining. My nurse didn't recline mine. She just gave me ginger ale and left. My feet weren't even touching the floor which is normal because I am so short. I was really uncomfortable. I was right across from the nurse's desk and there were three nurses there. I had to yell at them several times before someone came over. I asked to recline. Then they were all, "Oh, do you have family here? I could get them for you." Yeah, gee thanks. Don't do your job or anything. I sat there probably another 5-10 minutes before DH showed up. I asked him what he had been up to. He said he watched some episodes of "The Office" and got a Stromboli in the cafeteria. I told him everything that I remembered. It was kind of hard to talk because my chest was full of phlegm but it hurt too bad to cough and clear it. Plus, my busted lip and throat hurt.
I asked him if my doctor had come out to talk to him. It didn't even occur to me to ask what my diagnosis was until then. He kind of hesitated and I asked if it was really that bad. But really, not sure if there was anything that he could have told me at that point that would have really bothered me. He said no and kinda started to chuckle. He said, "You have a horn!" I said, "I knew it!" I also had a small bit of endometriosis that was removed.
Back in 2006 when I was diagnosed with a UU, I had an MRI done. The report said that I had a right UU with no evidence of a rudimentary horn. I don't know if I ever really believed that. Even before I found out about the UU, I always had pressure on my left side, the side where I am not supposed to have anything. Ever since the pain started getting really bad, the pain is ALWAYS on the left side. After I read about endometriosis I thought that maybe I just had endometriosis on the left side that had spawned from uterine stem cells that never formed.
When the uterus is formed during fetal development, it starts out in two halves that mesh together to form a symmetrical uterus. With a UU, one half never forms or forms incorrectly and therefore the two halves can't mesh. If there is no second half at all, then you have a UU with no rudimentary horn. This is what I thought I had and in my opinion it is the best of the UU diagnoses because you don't have to worry about the horn. If the second half of the uterus starts to form but is not connected to the main uterine cavity (the part that outlets through the cervix) then you have a rudimentary horn. You can have a non-communicating rudimentary horn which is a pretty good thing because it mostly just sits there and does nothing. Or you can have a communicating rudimentary horn which can be a problem. It responds to hormonal fluctuations during your cycle and often has a endometrial lining. During menstruation, there is no outlet for the lining to bleed out and you are left with retrograde bleeding that can be painful as it has to either flow up the fallopian tube or else it just has to be reabsorbed by the horn if there is no fallopian tube attached. Rudimentary horns can cause problems with pregnancy as well. Even though they are not attached to the cervix, it is possible for the sperm to swim up the uterus, out the fallopian tube, cross over the abdominal cavity, swim down the fallopian tube to the rudimentary horn, fertilize an egg, and implant in the rudimentary horn. (Those are some pretty determined sperm.) If not discovered soon enough, the pregnancy will erupt the rudimentary horn and emergency surgery is needed. If discovered soon enough, it must be terminated.
DH said that my dr only mentioned that I had one fallopian tube but I will find out for sure at my followup appointment. The dr said that my rudimentary horn was very small and he didn't believe it had an endometrial lining. If after a couple months I am still having pain, they will know that it is not from the endometriosis (which was removed) but from the rudimentary horn, and I will have to have the horn removed. I have a feeling that this might be in my future based on the fact that all my pain seems to be coming from that left side. They did a dye test during the procedure too and my tube that connects to my main uterine cavity is open.
I ran out of things to say and asked him for my iPhone. I emailed two of my friends and let them know I didn't die. It was probably a really ridiculous thing to be doing but I felt I had spent too much of the day just doing nothing already. A nurse came to give me my discharge papers. One part said no sex until I was cleared by my dr and another part said that I can have sexual intercourse. I told her she better cross that second part out so my husband didn't get any crazy ideas. Then I was told to get dressed and put my feet down when I was ready. DH got me dressed. He opened the curtain and got the chair to sit up straight. I ended up moving to the visitor chair in the room since it was lower and I could get my feet to touch the ground. We waited. Finally DH told someone that we were ready. She told him where to move his car and said that someone would bring me down shortly. Then I waited. And waited. And did some more waiting. The nurses kept calling people to see if someone could take patients out for discharge. Eventually someone showed up. Then there was an argument whether she was going to take me or take someone else. Meanwhile, I had a little anxiety attack. It was either because I realized I was going home and wasn't going to have trained medical staff looking after me that caused me to feel like I was going to throw up and get all hot and sweaty and dizzy. Or else I felt like I was going to throw up and realized there was nowhere for me to throw up and all the nurses were going to watch me throw up and that caused me to get hot and sweaty and dizzy. Thankfully that passed quickly and I got selected to be the patient that left first. So this woman got me in a wheelchair and I was feeling like I suddenly turned into John Locke and needed to shout, "Don't tell me what I can't do!" We got out to the elevators and I was feeling pretty doped up and found myself just staring at this guy simply because he was in my line of sight. A minute later I realized he had a deformed arm and he probably thought I was staring down his deformed arm and I felt bad. We got down to our floor and the lady pushing my wheelchair said, "Man, my whole body hurts." I tried really hard not to say anything but... Come on! Her body hurts?? Are you serious?? Maybe I should have gotten out of the wheelchair right then and started pushing her! I figured I had every right so I said, "You sooo don't have room to talk. I just had abdominal surgery!" Thankfully we were on floor zero so it wasn't like she could easily find a flight of stairs to push me down. Instead she took me out to the car and kept talking about how she thinks she is coming down with something. You know, just what I want to hear as she is breathing all over my susceptible to illness body.
Nothing that exciting about the trip home. We got stuck in rush hour traffic again. I ate snacks DH had packed the whole way home. I drank some water. I craved real food but knew I should take it slow. I called my mom to tell her that we would be home shortly. We stopped at the drug store so DH could drop off my prescription for my pain meds. While he went in I tried to check out my incisions. I could tell there was a bandage on my bellybutton. My right side hurt a lot but really didn't have much pain on my left. I discovered a bandage on the right side. I have one on the left side too but didn't find that one until late last night. So, three little incisions. I called my mom just before we pulled in at the house. I have a 10 month old, 55 lb puppy that I knew would be way too excited to see me. She does pretty well but still jumps on people when greeting them sometimes and I couldn't take that. My mom put the pup in the laundry room. I guess she told the kids that they couldn't hug me as soon as I came in because of my bellyache and that made DS1 cry. When I came in, both kids were in their seats at the dinner table so that worked out well. I stopped and kissed their hands and talked for a few minutes before I went off to get set up in bed. My bedroom is right off the main family room of the house so that is nice to not be far away. DH set up a baby gate so the pup couldn't get in. She cried. DH helped me into bed and got me some chips and then went off to eat some pizza with the kids and my mom. It was about that time that I started yelling that someone should really go pick up my Percocet really soon. The pain was setting in and I was miserable. My mom left to get that. I kept drinking a lot since I hadn't drank anything all day. That made me have to pee every hour. Poor DH had to help me in and out of bed each time. My Percocet arrived and I popped two of those puppies down right away. The pain was still pretty horrible but I didn't care so much anymore. The kids talked to me some from over the gate. When it was time for them to go to bed, they came over to the side of my bed and gave me hugs and kisses and tucked me in. DS2 wanted to turn my music on, since I always turn his music on for him when I put him to bed. Too cute.
We were trying to figure out a way that I could get DH's attention if I needed him. I asked him if we had a fog horn. We didn't. I suggested using the baby monitor. Thankfully DH agreed to that since my next idea was that he could wear the shock collar we have for the dog and I could hang onto the remote...
I really wasn't all that tired. I read some from my magazine. DH kept track of when I was due for more meds last night and I counted down the minutes. The pain really sucked but with the Percocet, it was quite tolerable. Going pee got less painful each time. After the kids went to bed, DH brought the pup in to see me. She did awesome. Animals just know when you aren't feeling well I guess. She is a big on cuddling and I know she was dieing to get up in bed with me and flop herself on my chest for some cuddles. But she sat nicely on the floor, doing her best to contain all her excitement. Even when I got up to pee, she stood out of the way so I could walk gingerly past her. She only tried to get on the bed once.
DH decided he would sleep on the couch in the room next to our bedroom. He took the pup's bed out there too. I took a Percocet around 10:30. I figured I would try to lie on my side since that is normally how I sleep. That wasn't working out. Gravity was pulling my floppy belly off in one direction and my belly is much happier in a more centered position. I got set up with a pillow under my head, two under my knees, and one on each side of me. I got up around midnight to pee. I decided to risk it myself and made it out of bed. I was going to take a Motrin at that point but realized I needed to take it with food and didn't want to have to go out to the kitchen. So, I decided I didn't need any meds. I got myself back into bed. I was having a hard time breathing because with each breath, my diaphragm would move and my right shoulder would have this horrible stabbing pain in it. I tried calling for DH over the monitor. No response. I tried calling for the pup to get DH out of bed. That worked. More Percocet and some fig newtons and back to sleep I went. I got up at 4 and decided I needed to pee and I wanted another Percocet. I got out of bed myself, peed, and went to get a banana to go with my drugs. I woke up DH and he yelled at me for getting out of bed myself. DH woke me up at 7:30 for another banana and Percocet. After that I kept half waking up thinking I would get up and then would ultimately decide the Percocet was awesome and go back to sleep. I got up around 10:30 this morning.
Today has been okay. I probably could have moved to the couch by this evening but I am milking it and staying in bed. My back is starting to hurt some from laying here most of the day. I played cars in bed with the kids for a little bit. DS2 keeps telling me he loves me which he NEVER says. That makes this all worth it. I did eat dinner with the family tonight. (My mom made us a lasagna.) DS1 spotted me trying to get out of bed for dinner and asked if I needed help. He pulled me out of bed which was really cute. I even let the pup get up in bed with me for a little bit this afternoon. I built a barricade up around my belly and she was mostly happy to lay along my legs. I'm slowly feeling better. The shoulder pain is just about gone, or else the drugs are taking care of it. My last Percocet was 6 hours ago. I took a Motrin about an hour ago. My busted lip is still a little sore. My throat is just about back to normal. I barely bled at all yesterday and none today. I'm going to try to take a shower in a little bit so I'll have to take my bandages off my belly. I guess that is about it. It sucks but really is not that bad. I love Percocet.
My mom showed up to watch the kids. Since my appointment got moved until later, I was able to get the kids up and settled in for breakfast before leaving. I had told them that I had to go to the dr because I had a bellyache. I had warned them that when I got home I was just going to be in bed and take a nap. DS1 told me I should take lots of naps. Mostly the kids were excited that they were going to get to ride in their grandmother's car. My mom told me today that DS1 was worried about me and kept asking her how I was doing and if I would be home soon.
DH and I left around 7:50, which was really early to get us there on time. We got stuck in lots of rush hour traffic so we ended up getting there around 9:20, 10 minutes before we had to be there. Then there was lots of waiting. I got signed in and they got my ID checked and insurance info scanned. I was given a bracelet with my name and birth date on it. Just about everyone I crossed paths with looked at my bracelet, asked me to spell my complete name and tell them my birth date. I had to fill out a anesthesia form, on which I wrote I was allergic to penicillin and amoxicillin and that those medications give me hives. DH was given a pager so they could page him when I was done or they needed to give him any information. He was also given my ID number that he could look up on a monitor in the "support person" waiting room to see where I was in the process the entire time. I thought that was pretty cool. We had to wait in that area for maybe another 10 minutes. I took that time to check out this totally dorky man that was there holding a book called "Marine Chemistry". It was really fitting to his dorkiness. I'm allowed to say that because I am a dork too.
Then we got called back to this prep area. I got assigned to this three walled cubical that had a curtain for the fourth wall. I was told to take off all my clothes except my socks, put on a robe with the ties up the back. I was also given a jacket sort of thing and a "warm" blanket that wasn't really that warm. I went to pee and was told to pee in a cup just in case they needed a urine sample. The nurse asked me if I had any allergies and I told her about the penicillin and amoxicillin. She asked what happened when I took them and I told her about the hives. Then she gave me a red allergy bracelet. There was a little TV in the room so DH and I started watching that. We ended up watching "Dinosaur Train", which is a cartoon that my kids love since there was nothing on. It was a silly thing to do but also relaxing. Not that I needed much relaxing. I was oddly very relaxed. Just hanging out and talking with DH, something we don't usually get to do with the kids. Around 10:00, several people came in. The anesthesiologist came in and asked me several questions, including what I was allergic to and what happened when I was exposed. She also asked me lots of questions about my mouth and teeth and checked out my mouth and throat. Meanwhile, some nurse put an IV in my hand. I took a look at DH and he looked kind of pale so I asked him if he was okay. He is not a big fan of needles and blood but he said he was fine.
They left and we watched some "Let's Make a Deal". Some other nurse came in at some point and put these things on my legs that were supposed to help with circulation during surgery. Someone else came in and asked me what I was allergic to and what happened when I was exposed. Then my dr came in and went over with me yet again what they were going to do during surgery. I asked him if they were going to take pictures and if I could see them at my followup appointment. DH thought I was weird. I told the dr it was only fair since he got to see my uterus, that I should get to see my uterus too. He said that was a very valid point and would be happy to share the photos with me. He said that they would probably be ready for me in about 20-30 minutes. DH and I started watching some "Price is Right". At some point this student doctor popped in to introduce herself and tell me that she would be in the OR observing. She was way too perky and after she left I told DH that I hope she kept her enthusiasm out of the operating room. Then in came my dr's fellow, a nurse, and a student that was learning from the anesthesiologist. I suddenly got really nervous, thinking that this was it. Turns out it wasn't it. The fellow told me again what they were going to do during the surgery and asked me what I was allergic to and what happens when I get penicillin and amoxicillin. The student anesthesiologist said that they were going to give me a sedative before they wheeled me down to the OR to relax me, although it didn't appear that I really even needed one. The she asked about my teeth and looked in my throat again. Then the fellow said she was going to make sure that the OR was ready and then would be back.
DH and I kept joking about who at the hospital was sleeping with who, because you know real life is just like Grey's Anatomy.
DH gave me a hug and a kiss. Soon the student anesthesiologist came back with some man named Matt who people had kept mentioning while in the room. They started messing with my IV and I felt more relaxed so I figured they had given me the sedative. The Matt guy checked out my throat and asked me about my teeth again. He also asked me about my allergies. I was just hanging out there all relaxed while they told DH where he could find the cafeteria. I was thinking that they better hurry up because I really wanted to run out of that room and find the cafeteria myself. I was starving and suddenly craving a greasy hamburger. Then Matt said, "Okay, we are going to give you the sedative now." Oops, I guess I was just imagining that I was relaxed. They gave me something in my IV and DH was standing at the corner of the room as they started to wheel me out. I turned the corner and he was gone, just vanished. I thought, "Wheeee!!! These drugs are fun!!" They took me into the OR and I had to move from my bed onto the operating table. I was checking out the lights on the ceiling and they were strapping my arms down. They were having some sort of problem getting my left arm situated. I know I spoke at some point but I have no idea what I said. (EDIT: I just remember I asked them why it was so cold in there and someone said they keep it cold since the doctors and nurses are wearing so many clothes in the OR.) I think someone said they were going to put me under.
Then I was coughing. It hurt a little. I was starting to wake up as they pushed me into position in a different room. I could see a clock on a wall. It took me a minute to focus on it and another to figure out what it meant since it was in military time. It was 1:10. I was in a large room that had spots for about 12 beds and each bed could be sectioned off by curtains, although none of the curtains were drawn. There was a computer next to my bed and about 6 people were crowded around it going on about how it wouldn't work. I had to pee REALLY bad. I wasn't sure how I was going to tell someone that when all these people just kept talking about the computer. I had the song "Switchblade" (by Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers) stuck in my head. I had an oxygen mask on. My lip felt like it was all busted up. I felt to make sure I had both legs and arms because I wanted to make sure they didn't do the wrong surgery, like one in which they would amputate my limbs. I still really had to pee. I thought maybe I would just go ahead and pee the bed because I was in a hospital and people do stuff like that all the time so no one would probably think twice about it. A nurse came over and asked me from 1-10 what my pain level was. I said 6, which was probably a rather conservative guess. She said she would give me some pain medicine. I told her I really had to go to the bathroom. She said she could give me a bedpan. She drew the curtains and stuck a bedpan under me. It hurt my belly to lift my hips. I tried really hard to pee. It wasn't working at all and just made me realize how much my vaginal area was burning. The nurse came back a few minutes later and asked me how I was doing. I said no success yet. She left again and eventually I decided that maybe my crotch just hurt and I didn't actually have to pee, much like happens when I have an UTI. She came back later and I told her I didn't think it was going to happen. She took my bedpan and opened my curtains. The clock on the wall said 13:45. I thought I had only been there for about 5 minutes but it had been at least 35. The nurse asked about my pain again. I said I felt better for a little bit but the pain was back up to a 6 again. She said the medication wears off quick and she would give me more. She took my oxygen mask off and I found it kind of hard to breathe at first. I felt my lip again and it was most certainly busted. My throat was sore too. I decided they must have caught my lip between my teeth and the breathing tube they inserted during surgery. They took off the little leg circulatory things and that made me sad because they were so comfy and had been giving me a nice leg massage. Every time I would cough, it would hurt my stomach and would taste like plastic. Then I decided I felt perfectly fine and was just bored. I got nosy and started checking out all the other recovering patients. From where I was situated, I could see across a hall another area where patients were recovering. Several nurses at the desk were trying to figure out if I ever got my IV antibiotics or not. (Obviously they weren't talking about penicillin or amoxicillin since by that point everyone in the entire county knew I got hives if I took those.) I am not sure they ever figured out for sure if I got my antibiotics but I think they decided I got them but someone forgot to mark it. They brought some lady into the phase 1 recovery area (by then I had decided that this is where I was) and they were telling her to cough and clear her lungs. I started wondering if maybe when I was coughing when I first woke up if it was because someone told me to do it. I soon ran out of things to entertain myself with while just sitting there slightly propped up in bed. I couldn't remember the second verse to "Switchblade" which was annoying me. I wished I had my phone with me so I could play some games or something. Then I heard some of the nurses on the phone talking about how they didn't have any room for anymore people in the area. I was just hanging out minding my own business when a nurse came over and shoved her hand right up in my crotch. I felt around a bit and realized she stuck a pad up there. Then she was sticking something around my feet. My curtain was still open and some guy was being wheeled through the hallway across from me watching all of this from a great angle. I only partly cared. The nurse said something about pulling this up and I realized the thing she put around my feet where these lacy elastic underwear. I couldn't get them up over my left butt cheek very well because my left hand had a large IV tube stuck in it. It was around that point that I realized that my left boob was nearly hanging out of the blanket that was on me. The nurses finally decided to draw my curtains at that point to get my robe snapped up and the back of it tied. Which was good you know, because that is the part I needed privacy for, not the part where they were putting pads in my crotch and putting underwear on me. A nurse helped pull me up to a sitting position to tie the back of my robe and then I was up and walking. We stopped at a bathroom and she told me to try to go. She put a toilet seat cover on the toilet and told me to pull the string on the wall when I was done. She didn't remove the center part of the toilet seat cover. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to do that and then realized that there was no way I was going to be able to bend over or figure out how to get the stupid toilet seat cover working right so I just squatted and peed on the damn thing. I figured I was in a hospital and all drugged up so even if I just peed on the floor, I am sure that would have been fine. It hurt like hell to pee and I barely peed at all. I wasn't sure if that was because I really didn't have to pee or if I just willed myself out of peeing because it hurt like hell. The nurse walked in on me while I was trying to get my massive pad back in place and those fancy underwear back up. She left and then I thought I should probably wash my hands but the sink was way over there and the string I was supposed to pull was right next to me. I pulled the string. She came in and walked me over to wash my hands. I told her I didn't pee much and that it hurt and she said they probably put a catheter in me during surgery. Ahh... that makes sense. That is why I felt like I had a UTI and had to pee so bad but couldn't. Then we headed down a hall into the phase 2 recovery area. She asked me what I wanted to start with to drink and I jumped at ginger ale which I regretted because I didn't realize they had cranberry juice. I started to get some shoulder pain in my left shoulder. When they do the surgery, they pump your abdominal cavity up with carbon dioxide so they can see in there. The gas presses on your diaphragm which is connected to a nerve in your shoulders and gives you this horrible stabbing/pinching pain on the top of your shoulders. I have broken my left collarbone a couple times and it kinda felt like how my collarbone feels sometimes when the weather gets really damp. The nurse helped me into this large chair. I had passed several other patients in their little cubicles in these large chairs and they were all reclining. My nurse didn't recline mine. She just gave me ginger ale and left. My feet weren't even touching the floor which is normal because I am so short. I was really uncomfortable. I was right across from the nurse's desk and there were three nurses there. I had to yell at them several times before someone came over. I asked to recline. Then they were all, "Oh, do you have family here? I could get them for you." Yeah, gee thanks. Don't do your job or anything. I sat there probably another 5-10 minutes before DH showed up. I asked him what he had been up to. He said he watched some episodes of "The Office" and got a Stromboli in the cafeteria. I told him everything that I remembered. It was kind of hard to talk because my chest was full of phlegm but it hurt too bad to cough and clear it. Plus, my busted lip and throat hurt.
I asked him if my doctor had come out to talk to him. It didn't even occur to me to ask what my diagnosis was until then. He kind of hesitated and I asked if it was really that bad. But really, not sure if there was anything that he could have told me at that point that would have really bothered me. He said no and kinda started to chuckle. He said, "You have a horn!" I said, "I knew it!" I also had a small bit of endometriosis that was removed.
Back in 2006 when I was diagnosed with a UU, I had an MRI done. The report said that I had a right UU with no evidence of a rudimentary horn. I don't know if I ever really believed that. Even before I found out about the UU, I always had pressure on my left side, the side where I am not supposed to have anything. Ever since the pain started getting really bad, the pain is ALWAYS on the left side. After I read about endometriosis I thought that maybe I just had endometriosis on the left side that had spawned from uterine stem cells that never formed.
When the uterus is formed during fetal development, it starts out in two halves that mesh together to form a symmetrical uterus. With a UU, one half never forms or forms incorrectly and therefore the two halves can't mesh. If there is no second half at all, then you have a UU with no rudimentary horn. This is what I thought I had and in my opinion it is the best of the UU diagnoses because you don't have to worry about the horn. If the second half of the uterus starts to form but is not connected to the main uterine cavity (the part that outlets through the cervix) then you have a rudimentary horn. You can have a non-communicating rudimentary horn which is a pretty good thing because it mostly just sits there and does nothing. Or you can have a communicating rudimentary horn which can be a problem. It responds to hormonal fluctuations during your cycle and often has a endometrial lining. During menstruation, there is no outlet for the lining to bleed out and you are left with retrograde bleeding that can be painful as it has to either flow up the fallopian tube or else it just has to be reabsorbed by the horn if there is no fallopian tube attached. Rudimentary horns can cause problems with pregnancy as well. Even though they are not attached to the cervix, it is possible for the sperm to swim up the uterus, out the fallopian tube, cross over the abdominal cavity, swim down the fallopian tube to the rudimentary horn, fertilize an egg, and implant in the rudimentary horn. (Those are some pretty determined sperm.) If not discovered soon enough, the pregnancy will erupt the rudimentary horn and emergency surgery is needed. If discovered soon enough, it must be terminated.
DH said that my dr only mentioned that I had one fallopian tube but I will find out for sure at my followup appointment. The dr said that my rudimentary horn was very small and he didn't believe it had an endometrial lining. If after a couple months I am still having pain, they will know that it is not from the endometriosis (which was removed) but from the rudimentary horn, and I will have to have the horn removed. I have a feeling that this might be in my future based on the fact that all my pain seems to be coming from that left side. They did a dye test during the procedure too and my tube that connects to my main uterine cavity is open.
I ran out of things to say and asked him for my iPhone. I emailed two of my friends and let them know I didn't die. It was probably a really ridiculous thing to be doing but I felt I had spent too much of the day just doing nothing already. A nurse came to give me my discharge papers. One part said no sex until I was cleared by my dr and another part said that I can have sexual intercourse. I told her she better cross that second part out so my husband didn't get any crazy ideas. Then I was told to get dressed and put my feet down when I was ready. DH got me dressed. He opened the curtain and got the chair to sit up straight. I ended up moving to the visitor chair in the room since it was lower and I could get my feet to touch the ground. We waited. Finally DH told someone that we were ready. She told him where to move his car and said that someone would bring me down shortly. Then I waited. And waited. And did some more waiting. The nurses kept calling people to see if someone could take patients out for discharge. Eventually someone showed up. Then there was an argument whether she was going to take me or take someone else. Meanwhile, I had a little anxiety attack. It was either because I realized I was going home and wasn't going to have trained medical staff looking after me that caused me to feel like I was going to throw up and get all hot and sweaty and dizzy. Or else I felt like I was going to throw up and realized there was nowhere for me to throw up and all the nurses were going to watch me throw up and that caused me to get hot and sweaty and dizzy. Thankfully that passed quickly and I got selected to be the patient that left first. So this woman got me in a wheelchair and I was feeling like I suddenly turned into John Locke and needed to shout, "Don't tell me what I can't do!" We got out to the elevators and I was feeling pretty doped up and found myself just staring at this guy simply because he was in my line of sight. A minute later I realized he had a deformed arm and he probably thought I was staring down his deformed arm and I felt bad. We got down to our floor and the lady pushing my wheelchair said, "Man, my whole body hurts." I tried really hard not to say anything but... Come on! Her body hurts?? Are you serious?? Maybe I should have gotten out of the wheelchair right then and started pushing her! I figured I had every right so I said, "You sooo don't have room to talk. I just had abdominal surgery!" Thankfully we were on floor zero so it wasn't like she could easily find a flight of stairs to push me down. Instead she took me out to the car and kept talking about how she thinks she is coming down with something. You know, just what I want to hear as she is breathing all over my susceptible to illness body.
Nothing that exciting about the trip home. We got stuck in rush hour traffic again. I ate snacks DH had packed the whole way home. I drank some water. I craved real food but knew I should take it slow. I called my mom to tell her that we would be home shortly. We stopped at the drug store so DH could drop off my prescription for my pain meds. While he went in I tried to check out my incisions. I could tell there was a bandage on my bellybutton. My right side hurt a lot but really didn't have much pain on my left. I discovered a bandage on the right side. I have one on the left side too but didn't find that one until late last night. So, three little incisions. I called my mom just before we pulled in at the house. I have a 10 month old, 55 lb puppy that I knew would be way too excited to see me. She does pretty well but still jumps on people when greeting them sometimes and I couldn't take that. My mom put the pup in the laundry room. I guess she told the kids that they couldn't hug me as soon as I came in because of my bellyache and that made DS1 cry. When I came in, both kids were in their seats at the dinner table so that worked out well. I stopped and kissed their hands and talked for a few minutes before I went off to get set up in bed. My bedroom is right off the main family room of the house so that is nice to not be far away. DH set up a baby gate so the pup couldn't get in. She cried. DH helped me into bed and got me some chips and then went off to eat some pizza with the kids and my mom. It was about that time that I started yelling that someone should really go pick up my Percocet really soon. The pain was setting in and I was miserable. My mom left to get that. I kept drinking a lot since I hadn't drank anything all day. That made me have to pee every hour. Poor DH had to help me in and out of bed each time. My Percocet arrived and I popped two of those puppies down right away. The pain was still pretty horrible but I didn't care so much anymore. The kids talked to me some from over the gate. When it was time for them to go to bed, they came over to the side of my bed and gave me hugs and kisses and tucked me in. DS2 wanted to turn my music on, since I always turn his music on for him when I put him to bed. Too cute.
We were trying to figure out a way that I could get DH's attention if I needed him. I asked him if we had a fog horn. We didn't. I suggested using the baby monitor. Thankfully DH agreed to that since my next idea was that he could wear the shock collar we have for the dog and I could hang onto the remote...
I really wasn't all that tired. I read some from my magazine. DH kept track of when I was due for more meds last night and I counted down the minutes. The pain really sucked but with the Percocet, it was quite tolerable. Going pee got less painful each time. After the kids went to bed, DH brought the pup in to see me. She did awesome. Animals just know when you aren't feeling well I guess. She is a big on cuddling and I know she was dieing to get up in bed with me and flop herself on my chest for some cuddles. But she sat nicely on the floor, doing her best to contain all her excitement. Even when I got up to pee, she stood out of the way so I could walk gingerly past her. She only tried to get on the bed once.
DH decided he would sleep on the couch in the room next to our bedroom. He took the pup's bed out there too. I took a Percocet around 10:30. I figured I would try to lie on my side since that is normally how I sleep. That wasn't working out. Gravity was pulling my floppy belly off in one direction and my belly is much happier in a more centered position. I got set up with a pillow under my head, two under my knees, and one on each side of me. I got up around midnight to pee. I decided to risk it myself and made it out of bed. I was going to take a Motrin at that point but realized I needed to take it with food and didn't want to have to go out to the kitchen. So, I decided I didn't need any meds. I got myself back into bed. I was having a hard time breathing because with each breath, my diaphragm would move and my right shoulder would have this horrible stabbing pain in it. I tried calling for DH over the monitor. No response. I tried calling for the pup to get DH out of bed. That worked. More Percocet and some fig newtons and back to sleep I went. I got up at 4 and decided I needed to pee and I wanted another Percocet. I got out of bed myself, peed, and went to get a banana to go with my drugs. I woke up DH and he yelled at me for getting out of bed myself. DH woke me up at 7:30 for another banana and Percocet. After that I kept half waking up thinking I would get up and then would ultimately decide the Percocet was awesome and go back to sleep. I got up around 10:30 this morning.
Today has been okay. I probably could have moved to the couch by this evening but I am milking it and staying in bed. My back is starting to hurt some from laying here most of the day. I played cars in bed with the kids for a little bit. DS2 keeps telling me he loves me which he NEVER says. That makes this all worth it. I did eat dinner with the family tonight. (My mom made us a lasagna.) DS1 spotted me trying to get out of bed for dinner and asked if I needed help. He pulled me out of bed which was really cute. I even let the pup get up in bed with me for a little bit this afternoon. I built a barricade up around my belly and she was mostly happy to lay along my legs. I'm slowly feeling better. The shoulder pain is just about gone, or else the drugs are taking care of it. My last Percocet was 6 hours ago. I took a Motrin about an hour ago. My busted lip is still a little sore. My throat is just about back to normal. I barely bled at all yesterday and none today. I'm going to try to take a shower in a little bit so I'll have to take my bandages off my belly. I guess that is about it. It sucks but really is not that bad. I love Percocet.
Labels: endometriosis, hysteroscopy, laparoscopy, Percocet, rudimentary horn, unicornuate uterus
posted by AM | 10:12 AM
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