Seven years ago

Seven years ago today I woke up at 4:30 am so I could play on my computer before we left for the hospital at 5:00am.I needed to check in at the hospital at 5:30.Thankfully we lived very close to my hospital so we got there by 5:15 and by 6:00am I had signed all the consent forms and everything (since I was 19 it was my first time signing all the forms and I was freaked out)

I don't really remember much about the waiting in the preop area. I remember some nurses coming down to see me from the pediatric floor (We had made the decision that I would recover in the pediatrics floor because that was the floor that I was most comfortable with) I remember the IV going in and how uncomfortable it was. The last thing I remember was the anesthesiologist coming into the preop area to give me some Versed to relax me.

The next thing I remember is waking up in my room and finding out it was two days later. I had my surgery on a Monday & it was now Wednesday. I had been extubated on Tuesday but I don't remember that. I remember asking for Sprite right after I woke up on Wednesday and the nurse brought it to me but I couldn't keep it down. I had a second cup of Sprite and that came back up.So the nurse decided we would stick with water for awhile.

On that Wednesday I sat up a bit and had the first of two chest tubes pulled. I don't remember any other lines coming out but I know they did. I got stronger as the days passed. I had a transfusion either Thursday or Friday.Doctors were still trying to calm my heart down.I was having episodes of arrhythmias daily that they couldn't stop.

Saturday I had my Foley catheter removed. Nothing else remarkable on that day. Sunday I stayed awake for a long period of time. Monday I was able to go down to the family room and eat dinner with my mom, 4 year old brother and the rest of my family. My brother kept trying to push the buttons on the IV stand.

It wasn't until we got back to my room that I noticed that my IV site was bleeding.My favorite nurse Fran, who is now in IV Therapy now put a new IV in.I do remember asking why a new one needed to go in because rumor had it that I was being discharged the following day. I was told that it was precautionary,

The following day another favorite nurse of mine by the name of Katie was my discharge nurse.It seemed to take forever to be discharged. I know that discharge usually does take awhile but it seemed to take even longer this time. By early afternoon I had been discharged with an appointment to see the surgeon & my pediatric cardiologist very soon.

I was sent home on:
Captopril
Coumadin
Lasix
Sotalol

I think there was one more but I'm drawing a blank.

I spent a total of 8 days in the hospital this time. I probably would have went home sooner but they could not stop the arrhythmias so I stayed a bit longer. Even so,the 8 days was the shortest hospital stay following OHS that I have ever had.

Happy Anniversary to me!