My myomectomy experience: Overnight at Yale

Although I was extremely drowsy, I remembered to have
hubby get my satin bonnet. I was not about to mess up
my mini twist on these non-satin pillows.

The first thing I noticed after surgery was that my voice was sore. I didn't sound like myself. The breathing tube made my voice hoarse and raspy. By this time, it had been over 24 hours since I last ate. I wanted food. My friend Ayana made some homemade cookies for me. I desperately wanted them down my sore throat and in...to...my...belllly. The nurse gave me the cafeteria menu. I had hubby order stir fry vegetables over rice for me since my voice was all weird. She proceeded to show me a few other things that were waiting for me on my rolling table.
She opened a sealed plastic bag that contained, ear plugs, an eye mask, Kleenex, and a weird breathing contraption called the Triflo II. It has 3 balls that are situated in separated cylinder shaped chambers. As you quickly inhale, the balls float to the top. Ten times an hour, this exercise is done to promote deep breathing and to prevent pneumonia.

I took this photo at home since I was
in no condition for
self portraits at the hospital.

Another IV was set up on my right hand to keep me hydrated via a saline drip. Inflating/deflating booties were put on my legs to prevent blood clots. And unbeknownst to me at the moment, a catheter was in place because there was no way I was able to get out of bed for the next few hours.

Throughout the night, various nurses came in to take my vitals, my temperature and blood samples. My back started to hurt and I couldn't find a comfortable position no matter how I positioned the bed or where I placed the pillows. This caught me completely by surprise. I expected my abdominal incision to be painful, but I didn't expect the back pain. Still doped up from anesthesia and a lack of sleep the night before, I thought I would be getting some of my best sleep ever... not so much.

At 6am, a nurse informed me that it was time for "dangling". This is when I am moved from my lying position, to an upright sitting position, allowing my legs to dangle off the side of the bed. It's a simple movement that I make each morning as I get out of bed. This time, much more effort was required.

She unfastened my blood clot booties (if you're from the West Indies, no pun intended) and proceeded to help me dangle. The pain in my ab and my back were intense as I tried to move. I told her that I didn't think I could do it. She told me to take a little break and we tried again. The second time around, I gritted my teeth and I dangled. Once I was up she looked at my bed and said, "We must change your bed cloth."

She grab a new bed cloth from a nearby draw and helped me to raise my backside off the bed enough to change the soiled cloth. The blood didn't surprise me that much, but I didn't understand why the bed cloth was so wet because I still had the catheter in place. I assumed that perhaps the catheter leaked when they first inserted it. I was in no mood to ask a bunch of questions, I wanted to get back to my uncomfortable horizontal position. I didn't want to dangle anymore.

to be continued...