Well, here I am!

Hey all,

Well, I am back home now, actually since yesterday, a mere 24 hours in hospital was all it took to rearrange my insides:) The actual procedure was about an hour and a half.

I arrived at Barix at quarter to twelve for my appointed time and sat there for another hour bouncing my knees and basically freaking out. Dr. Nunn was, mostly on time, just a tad bit behind which is not uncommon once the surgery starts. Almost anything can happen once you are in that little room and you definately want the Dr. to take the time to make sure all is good. That is what happened with me as well as once in there, the Dr. Realized I had a hietal hernia that needed repairing as well. A hietal hernia, for those that don't know is when a portion of the stomach starts to "balloon" into the esophogus track. Dr. Nunn was able to pull it out and stick it up so that it is out of my throat. He informed me that this is probably the reason I have had acid reflux for the past decade as well. Huh, who knew!

So I was in quite a bit of pain as I came to around 5pm yesterday and was moaning and groaning to prove it. They upped my morphine dispenser to give me more at a faster rate and that seemed to work. They get you doing the breathing excersises pretty soon, so make sure you practice that before going in, it is very important to help keep your lungs clear. By 9:30pm thay had me up for my first walk... OUCH! But each subsequent one gets a little easier.

The Dr. came in yesterday around 11am to tell me I was good to go and by around 2 pm we left the hospital. Tena had already gone to a wlagreens down the road to get me my vicaden(yummy)pain killer and we were on our way.

The trip home was not much fun and I really feel for those of you that have to travel long distances to leave the hospital. Our drive was only about an hour, but you are very sensitive to every bump along the way(to be honest I am not completley sure Tena wasn't hitting them on purpose, after all she has had three of my children:) )

The night last night was rough, but managable and every hour it gets a little bit easier. I have not had a lot of gas pain(thank god) but pain in a swollen area just below my left breast, apparently this sore spot is a Dr. Nunn special as the "big" stapler goes in here and can sometimes get a little to close to the ribs, causing some bruising.

I am trying to drink my water, although 64 ounces in a one ounce pouch is not going to be easy, but I am not the first to have this done and I won't be the last.

I am hoping to be fit enough to go to my uncles wake on Sunday, it is actually scheduled for tomorrow and sunday with the funeral on Monday, but I think tomorrow is too ambitious of me. I will try for the evening session on Sunday and will definately attend the funeral Monday, no matter how much pain I am still in.

All in all, it has been a painful experience so far, but I know that in a little time I will be starting to feel like my old self and can get back into the swing of things.

Thanks so much for all your phone calls and emails with words of encouragement, they mean so much to me.

Take care for now, now I need a nap:)

Wayne