Deb's Day in Surgery

Here is a rundown of Deb's day in surgery:

• Woken at 3:45 AM by the alarm clock.
• Arrived at Fairview Riverside Hospital in Minneapolis at 5:15 AM.
• Checked in for surgery at 5:40.
• Deb went back for pre-op prep at 6:00.
• Deb is nervous and her pain has been stronger lately. It is probably time to have had this done. We are hoping for some real relief.
• I got to go back to the pre-op room Deb was in at 6:30. She had acquired some new wrist bands and a snazzy new gown with built-in heating bladders heated by blown hot air -- very cozy and comfy for her.
• Surgery is scheduled from 7:30-9:40.
• Dr. Schwender stopped to see Deb at 7:20. He says the actual surgery takes about an hour or so.
• Deb leaves for the operating room at 7:30, right on time.
• At 9:16, I spoke to Dr. Schwender. Surgery is over, everything went well. Rods and screws came out without complication. We have them in the room. You need to see the size of these screws sometime when you are visiting -- I suspect you will be surprised at how large they are! Dr. says the nerve was being pressured and he was able to relieve the pressure. I hope this helps relieve her pain.
• Deb went to recovery and then on to her room on the 10th floor of the East building.
• Mom and Dad arrived at about 10:30.
• We all got to visit Deb in her new room at about 11:30. She was in a lot of pain when we arrived and they were trying to get her pain pump adjusted and get caught up with the pain.
• Mom, Dad, and I went to lunch at Davanni's. Deb had lunch delivered to her while we were away and she actually ate a fair amount of it. Goulash and peas and a chocolate chip cookie -- yum, yum! No nausea, just pain so far.
• Mom and Dad headed home, Deb trying to nap and relax -- she didn't get much sleep last night for some reason :-)
• Deb is scheduled to dangle her legs over the bed tonight and hopefully stand up by the bed for a while. Pain is blocking her from doing it right now, but hopefully later. I'm sure the nurses will keep after her.

All in all, in spite of the pain, Deb had a pretty good surgical outcome and is well on her way to recovery. She has some significant hurdles to get over, but she is motivated to get out of here as soon as she can -- no offense to the hospital or the staff!

Deb says "Hi everybody and my back hurts like heck."

More later,

Jon