FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Well heres one for the ladies ..
A few weeks ago i was told i was i would need to have a hysterectomy and was kind of pushed foward to be admitted asap for a few probs i was having , due to it all happening so quickly i didnt have time to mentally prep myself for it and was very very nervous indeed .
anyway last monday 6th off i went to the hospital to find i was first on list for my op and by 9.15 am i was being given an anastetic , very nervous ,worried about after the op because they had already told me i was gonna be all tubed up with different things and advised not to bring my daughter up for the first 48 hrs until all the tubes/drips etc had been taken down .
Anyway 8 days on i am home recovering and taking things easy . I was well looked after in hospital and the wards nursing staff were absolutely faultless (brilliant) but after all the fear it wasnt actually that bad , what pain i have experienced were well controlled and treated accordingly and it is the first time i have had staples as oppsed to stitches and boy i much prefer the staples as i didnt feel them being taken out .
I am now in recovery mode and am doing everything i have been told to do , no pushing pulling hoovering etc and although im still quite sore and very slow moving its not half as bad as i feared . so if anyone has an op of such coming up this is just to say try not to worry its not as bad as we may fear , although everyones recovery is different .
And if theres anyone whose been through it why not share it in this thread and give us some recovery tips because i for one would welcome them ..

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Not had that mel but get well soon. :Banane52:

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Cherokee, glad to hear that you are over your op....and doing all that you have been told.
Write to the hospital administrator and tell them of your experience.....they will pass your commendations on to the ward staff. I was a Sister on our local gynae ward and know how much it means to the staff to get praise.....goodness knows there is plenty of the other stuff gets said about hospital staff.
Take care and enjoy your new lease of life when you are fully recovered.

(I had this op more than 20 years ago, so i am speaking from both sides...patient and nurse)

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Glad you're making a good recovery, and that you'll soon be feeling A1 again.:)

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

I've not had that either but my mother in law did a few years ago and she said the same as you - it's not as bad as everyone thinks.

Glad you're in recovery now.

Btw - as a woman you should know the best way for recovering from anything - chocolate!

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

THANKS GUYS ...MP I actualy presented the staff with a big box of choccies and a card before i left and they were over the moon , and much deserved to IMHO

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

One of my recovery tips is......... drink plenty of water, it prevents constipation (which is a real bummer).....and try to have an afternoon nap, or at least a lie down (it is amazing how tired you can feel just doing nothing) there is nothing decadent about an afternoon nap.....and even if you are a really independent person, let your family help you out with doing things around the house....it helps them to feel they are part of your recovery.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

I haven't had a hystrectomy but I have had other operations, two C-Sections which were quite painful but not as bad as I had anticipated, all I can advise is take things easy and follow doctors orders, it does take a while to recover from surgery but if you do as you are told it helps. Hope you are soon back to your usual self;)

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Oooh they would LOVE you for that....but I would still write a note to the hospital administrator too......so that the powers that be know that the grass roots staff are appreciated......it also very nice to get a letter from the Chief Exec praising your team...as an ex-nurse i know that.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

I'm really glad to hear you are feeling good.

I had a hysterectomy 17 years ago. I had all the horror stories before I had the op but it was absolutely fine. I had 6 days in the local BUPA hospital, which was like being on holiday in a 5* hotel, then came home. I had "off days" for a week or two but went from strength to strength and was back at work 8 weeks later. They were good to me and let me work part-time, on full pay, for 6 weeks and then I was completely back to normal. I've never looked back since then.

Take every day as it comes. Don't try to rush things and, if you feel tired, lie down and go to sleep. Accept every offer of help that comes along as well as every bunch of flowers, get-well card, box of chocolates and bottle of wine. If the offers don't come - drop hints, loudly.

Best wishes and good luck.

:)

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Excellent advice West Ender....by the way spotted on another thread that you were not feeling up to scratch, so I hope you are feeling better soon...........sorry for the thread wander.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Glad your ok and the op wasn't has bad as expected.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Im drinking water like its going out of fashion lol( ummm know what you mean with the trapped wind hehe)
family is being great wont let me do a thing so i went for a nice stroll around the block today with hubby it seemed to take ages haha but must say had company when i got back and it really took it out of me , i am having off days but i was told i would .
W E i do like the idea of dropping hints in a loud voice and will bear that in mind now that my choccie box is on its last layer lol thnx ..

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Thanks Margaret. I've got acute bronchitis and sinusitis, apparently, which I think I got on holiday. 110 degrees isn't the best way to avoid infections. :D Feeling sorry for myself but otherwise still alive. :rolleyes:

Hope you get the chocs, Cherokee. ;)

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Peppermint cordial and two pain tablets...cure for trapped wind.
I used to tell my ladies that after the op it was like frating(sp intended) razorblades......used to make a windy cocktail and told them that if the trumps had lumps they weren't trumps they were bowel movements....they used to laugh so much......but it was a tonic.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Oh cherokee....have the peppermint cordial in hot water.....if that doesn't help i have a big gas tube that works wonders......guess where I'll shove it ;)

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

:eek::eek:NOOOOOOOOOOO
I will do everything you say :o:D

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

I would lubricate it first :)

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

I like that one, could have done with someone like you about when I had my first c-section. I was only nineteen and living in Scotland, away from my family so it was quite scary you would have cheered me up no end. A good laugh always helps.:D

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Roflmao!!!!!:rofl38::rofl38: PLEASE ... IM GONNA BURST OPEN :D

BERNADETTE MP Has the same humour as the nurses on the ward i was on and im sure they do it on purpose to make you feel like you,ll burst your stitches .. :D although admittedly it really does help.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

I had my first child in a small cottage hospital in Oakham, Rutland, in 1964. They used to make you stay in for a fortnight in those days.

Every day, Matron used to come round, with a big smile on her face, accompanied by her little dog which looked like a mop with no handle. It used to skitter into the ward and slide along the ultra-clean floor under the beds and it always weed. The cleaners were kept busy. Every night, Sister used to come and "tuck us in" with a slightly risqué joke.

Those ladies made an unbearably long stay much more easier. Even the staff nurse, who had no sense of humour what so ever, used to make me laugh (behind the sheets) as she sternly called out your name followed by the demand, "Bowels?" I was always reminded of her, years later, in the TV sitcom Bread - the woman at the DSS who used to screech, "Next".

Laughter is a damned good medicine.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Another thing...post-op blues...they are totally normal and can afflict you from around the third day.....and there is nothing to say they won't make a return visit.....just have a good blub...stuff your gob with choccies (they have a wonderful mood lifting chemical in them) and accept you are normal.

Yes, all my ladies looked forward to me coming on duty to make them ache with laughter...but i did give them the tablets afterwards.
i have been retired for 5 years now and they tell me there are still ladies asking where 'Sister P' is......I miss the patients, but not the bureaucracy.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

It has all changed so much in the past few years:(

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

hi, cherokee, im glad your feeling better & glad all went well for you. you take care now x x x x

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Glad Ur feeling well after your op Cherokee. Did you have an Epidural or were you asleep?.
They say you are a lot better and heal quicker after an Epidural.
I had the op in July 03. I opted to be put to sleep after having a bad experience with an epidural after my last child. I wish I never had the blooming operation for along time. It was the most horrendous experience of my life.
Before hand I was OK not much in the way of nerves chatting to one of the nurses about N.V.Qs and smoking way to many fags.
After I was in sheer agony all battered n bruised. The catheter was worse than the stitches in my tummy. They were sheer hell even after they had been taken out due to my being over weight. Black n blue from waist to thigh.
I was in tears due to the wind, they then gave me some awful mint stuff. I told the nurse I would be sick but she wouldn't have it. Served her right when I vomited on her. I only got rid of it when I could sneak very slowly to the corridor and get some fizzy coke.
Mick was wonderful when I first came home bless him. ( Big Bully ) I was very board he wouldn't let me move from the settee for a fortnight. Had to help me in and out the bath an did everything.
Take it easy Cherokee and all the best for a speedy recovery

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Thanks Mez .
Anne omg it sounds like you had a real bad time love ,how awful.
I was put to sleep for the op ,and the bruises are there but not too bad although i did have a very bad reaction once under the anastetic , apparently i flushed and had a bad asthma attack they said i was not in danger but they were puzzled as to why it had happened so they did a few bllod tests to try and find out to which im still awaiting results but i have had to go on iron tablets due to my bloods being low apperently . so you can imagine my wind prob lol.im trying everything to lots of water to lemonade and as MP suggested peppermint , only without hot water , so will be trying that one , im sorry to hear yiou had a bad time though anne .

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Wasn't all bad, got loads of sympathy and nice cards. The 3 months off work giving me the much needed extension to my N.V.Q was good. Trying to get comfy in bed was the worst problem.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Get well soon cherokee,,, sounds like youve had a traumatic time,,,,:flower::flower:

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

You too ANNE :flower::flower:

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Aww bless ya cherokee, glad you are on the road to recovery

take care xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

There was a point a few days after surgery were I laughed so much nearly busted my stitches.
My darling Daughter came to visit and she had a sore finger. I'm led there hooked up to all sorts, arm round her going " there, there, there. ahhh. Sympathy, sympathy, sympathy."
I must be wrong in the head. Kids eh.

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

No your just a loving mum:)

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I had a hysterectomy at age 32 - that's 32 years ago.
I remember the wind :D - I looked 9 months pregnant with it, so that when I returned to the hosp to ask the consultant about it, I was ushered towards the maternity wing.
I never considered it as a loss of my femininity as some women do - it was great never to need tampons or towels ever again.

I am glad you are feeling better and I know you will bless the day you had the surgery, - I always have

Re: FEARING SURGERY (wasnt all that bad)
 

Well today has been a good day thankfully wind prob eased senokot a great relief ,lol,, literally . Off out for a little walk again tomorrow fingers crossed , cus jims takin me for a run in the car to get me out depending on weather .

anne your just a great typical mum puttin your offsprings pain before your own , things us mums do eh!!!