Monday, 27-Oct-2008
Saw Dr. Kuisle. He looked at Kris' wound and said that he needed to excise the bad tissue. It's also looking a bit red and angry, so, we are concerned about infection. He gave us a prescription for antibiotics and made an appointment for Wednesday at 4pm to do the procedure, outpatient.
Wednesday, 29-Oct-2008
Took Kris in. They gave her a local and did the procedure. He didn't find anything that he was surprised by. Told us to go home and take it easy. Her binding is now optional. She starts Physical therapy next week.
On the drive home, she was in a good deal of pain... she's weaned herself down to a fairly low dose of pain killers. We decided to take one as soon as she got in the car as the local was wearing off and the pain was increasing. She took both of her pain medications reasonably quickly (which is still a very low dose but it's the max dose she's been taking).
When we got her home and settled down, everything seemed fine.
Kris' spirits are generaly up though she was kind of down when we realized that some of the tissue from the reconstruction wasn't going to make it.
Oh, and what ever you do, don't watch the show Living Proof! Maybe I'm just too close to the subject, but, in the 16 years that I've known Kris, she's never seen me cry... not sure that's a good thing but... that movie (it's about the fight to develop Herceptin) made me cry like an open faucet! Was a terrible sight I'm sure... fortunately, Kris was in the other room... though, I freely admitted to my failings to her. :) Seriously, it's a great movie and I was rather surprised at the fight that had to be taken to get the drug to go through! Not that it was a fight of a technical nature, all of the tests seem to indicate the drug had promise, strong promise, from the outset... it was a political fight and that made me feel rather disgusted at our system!
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Friday, 24-Oct-2008
Went to see Dr. Kuisle. We had several questions for him and asked him to refill Kris pain medication prescriptions.
Kris has a dark spot on the reconstructed breast... downright black. It pretty much follows the line of the scar for about an inch and a half and has not seemed to fade like the rest of the bruising in the area. Dr. Kuisle looked at it and said that it might be that the tissue there is not getting enough blood. However, the overall breast looked to be doing fine. His expectation is that he might have to remove some dead tissue and that he thinks the tissue is just topical/skin, but, that we should watch it closely and just wait for now.
Kris mentioned pain up under her left arm where the surgery has occurred. Dr. Kuisles thought is that it's just that area finally waking up. Again, watch closely but generally don't worry about it.
We asked if and when she could stop using the binding around her waist. He admitted that at this point, the binding was really just a matter of comfort and specifically giving some extra back support while she healed. Essentially, it's optional at this point. Kris' back is sore enough that she's going with it for now, but, we are exploring alternatives.
Saturday, 25-Oct-2008
Went to Nordstroms to explore support clothes. The Spanx brand is nice, but, unfortunately, Kris wasn't really comfortable in any of them. Either they ride too high, or they ride too low. There are two basic styles, one which is like a very tall pantie that reaches up to the rib cage, and for Kris a wee bit higher. Kris has a fairly short trunk and long legs. She's not comfortable with something tight up around the area of the breast reconstruction so that's out... she tried folding the top down, but, that's too tight. Finally, it seems that they build these garments assuming you have a large... um... fundament (rump!) and she doesn't like that part being saggy (the cloth!). So, she tried the other style which go down about halfway on the thigh, and up above the belly button. She doesn't like the way they go down her legs, so, a miss there too!
We did find out that you can get custom made bras or prosthetics. Insurance covers two prosthetics a year. We'll visit again when we are ready for more comfortable bras.
I went to bed that afternoon (I'm on graveyards) and Kris woke me up as she'd noticed the wound for the reconstructed breast was weeping brown or reddish fluid. It's not seeping with any real flow, it's more a presence of fluid. We called the Dr. and his advice was to not panic, and to make an appointment to see him Monday.
Sunday, 26-Oct-2008
I convinced Kris to put some Neosporin on the breast wound. Figured it can't hurt and it should help keep the wound from getting infected. Later in the day, Kris noticed that the wound was... goopy! We are concerned but, there is no evidence of infection and we are going to see the Dr. this morning.
Went to see Dr. Kuisle. We had several questions for him and asked him to refill Kris pain medication prescriptions.
Kris has a dark spot on the reconstructed breast... downright black. It pretty much follows the line of the scar for about an inch and a half and has not seemed to fade like the rest of the bruising in the area. Dr. Kuisle looked at it and said that it might be that the tissue there is not getting enough blood. However, the overall breast looked to be doing fine. His expectation is that he might have to remove some dead tissue and that he thinks the tissue is just topical/skin, but, that we should watch it closely and just wait for now.
Kris mentioned pain up under her left arm where the surgery has occurred. Dr. Kuisles thought is that it's just that area finally waking up. Again, watch closely but generally don't worry about it.
We asked if and when she could stop using the binding around her waist. He admitted that at this point, the binding was really just a matter of comfort and specifically giving some extra back support while she healed. Essentially, it's optional at this point. Kris' back is sore enough that she's going with it for now, but, we are exploring alternatives.
Saturday, 25-Oct-2008
Went to Nordstroms to explore support clothes. The Spanx brand is nice, but, unfortunately, Kris wasn't really comfortable in any of them. Either they ride too high, or they ride too low. There are two basic styles, one which is like a very tall pantie that reaches up to the rib cage, and for Kris a wee bit higher. Kris has a fairly short trunk and long legs. She's not comfortable with something tight up around the area of the breast reconstruction so that's out... she tried folding the top down, but, that's too tight. Finally, it seems that they build these garments assuming you have a large... um... fundament (rump!) and she doesn't like that part being saggy (the cloth!). So, she tried the other style which go down about halfway on the thigh, and up above the belly button. She doesn't like the way they go down her legs, so, a miss there too!
We did find out that you can get custom made bras or prosthetics. Insurance covers two prosthetics a year. We'll visit again when we are ready for more comfortable bras.
I went to bed that afternoon (I'm on graveyards) and Kris woke me up as she'd noticed the wound for the reconstructed breast was weeping brown or reddish fluid. It's not seeping with any real flow, it's more a presence of fluid. We called the Dr. and his advice was to not panic, and to make an appointment to see him Monday.
Sunday, 26-Oct-2008
I convinced Kris to put some Neosporin on the breast wound. Figured it can't hurt and it should help keep the wound from getting infected. Later in the day, Kris noticed that the wound was... goopy! We are concerned but, there is no evidence of infection and we are going to see the Dr. this morning.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Kris, Dave and the Lumps: Post Surgery
Monday, 20-Oct-2008
The Good:
Went to Dr. Kuisle's office and had the last drain tube removed. Everything looks to be proceeding nicely. I just wish I'd remembered to ask about when Kris can start going without the binding, but, that can wait for Fridays appointment with Dr. Kuisle.
The Bad:
We noticed Sheba has one of her fangs pointing straight out! Poor thing apparently rammed her head into something and broke off at least one tooth. Dropped her off at the Vet. She'll be fine, if a bit toofless.
The Ugly:
In the realm of 'inquiring minds want to know' this is how Long Term Disability works:
Fill out about a pound of paperwork.
Apply for LTD from Social Security.
Separate from IBM(!)
Choose your insurance plan through the agency handling LTD (MetLife in our case)(!)
Wait a month for your first LTD check (it pays in arrears)
When done with whatever put you in LTD, come back to work.
Now, the primary concern we had was that Kris had already met, and by far exceeded, her out of pocket expense for the year. Changing insurance plans would eliminate that advantage... or so we worried. When talking to the councilor for MetLife, he advocated that Kris go on my insurance on November 1st (she's covered through the end of October on her own plan). He didn't say it in so many words, but, the implication was that if she'd gone to her own insurance plan under the LTD program, she'd once again have to suffer out of pocket costs. Note that while on LTD, she's at two thirds pay, so, this would not be a trivial set back. I don't know how folks who are on their own with the company manage... well, I have my guesses and they aren't pretty.
Add to this the fact that there is a lot of paperwork for separating from the company for the 6 weeks that Kris should be on LTD, and the subsequent paperwork to get back on board with IBM afterwords and it just seems totally inefficient... not to mention something less than you thought you were opting for when you signed up for your health benefits! I for one didn't realize that this was the way that Long Term Disability is handled.
Don't get me wrong, I don't have issue with severing from the company, at least, it's my sense that there is some legal precedence behind doing it this way... I have issue with changing insurance plans mid stride which seems highly likely to increase the medical costs for someone least likely to be in a position to absorb it. It just seems like it's an uncaring way to go about doing things. A way that is guaranteed to increase the stress on someone trying to heal... which is not conducive to rapid recovery at the very least.
The Good:
Went to Dr. Kuisle's office and had the last drain tube removed. Everything looks to be proceeding nicely. I just wish I'd remembered to ask about when Kris can start going without the binding, but, that can wait for Fridays appointment with Dr. Kuisle.
The Bad:
We noticed Sheba has one of her fangs pointing straight out! Poor thing apparently rammed her head into something and broke off at least one tooth. Dropped her off at the Vet. She'll be fine, if a bit toofless.
The Ugly:
In the realm of 'inquiring minds want to know' this is how Long Term Disability works:
Fill out about a pound of paperwork.
Apply for LTD from Social Security.
Separate from IBM(!)
Choose your insurance plan through the agency handling LTD (MetLife in our case)(!)
Wait a month for your first LTD check (it pays in arrears)
When done with whatever put you in LTD, come back to work.
Now, the primary concern we had was that Kris had already met, and by far exceeded, her out of pocket expense for the year. Changing insurance plans would eliminate that advantage... or so we worried. When talking to the councilor for MetLife, he advocated that Kris go on my insurance on November 1st (she's covered through the end of October on her own plan). He didn't say it in so many words, but, the implication was that if she'd gone to her own insurance plan under the LTD program, she'd once again have to suffer out of pocket costs. Note that while on LTD, she's at two thirds pay, so, this would not be a trivial set back. I don't know how folks who are on their own with the company manage... well, I have my guesses and they aren't pretty.
Add to this the fact that there is a lot of paperwork for separating from the company for the 6 weeks that Kris should be on LTD, and the subsequent paperwork to get back on board with IBM afterwords and it just seems totally inefficient... not to mention something less than you thought you were opting for when you signed up for your health benefits! I for one didn't realize that this was the way that Long Term Disability is handled.
Don't get me wrong, I don't have issue with severing from the company, at least, it's my sense that there is some legal precedence behind doing it this way... I have issue with changing insurance plans mid stride which seems highly likely to increase the medical costs for someone least likely to be in a position to absorb it. It just seems like it's an uncaring way to go about doing things. A way that is guaranteed to increase the stress on someone trying to heal... which is not conducive to rapid recovery at the very least.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Kris, Dave and the Lumps: Recovery from Surgery
Sorry for not posting more often, it's been busy.
Sunday 12-Oct-2008
Kris is still in the hospital recovering. She's not sleeping very well as they are keeping her full of fluids, which require trips to the restroom, which takes a bit of a production, and increases her pain. So, she was on a cycle of taking her drugs, sleeping for a bit, waking up, going to the bathroom, getting in bed, taking drugs. Roughly a one hour cycle. Despite this, when we visited her, she was in good spirits though she'd doze in an out on occasion while we were there.
We watched the second season of 'How I Met Your Mother' to pass the time.
Monday, 13-Oct-2008
On the way to the hospital, I checked and the third season of 'How I Met Your Mother' was out, so, I got it.
Slept better, but, same basic cycle. Kris is more mobile than she was which I take as a good sign. Dr. Kuisle said that she's not going home yet. Worst part is trying to get her on stable pain medications as there seem to be too many plans and no one knows which one anyone is supposed to be following!
Tuesday, 14-Oct-2008
During the night the nurse noticed that her IV had slipped out of her vein so Kris had a goodly bit of edema and really wasn't getting her pain medications. They accessed her port and her pain medications were administered that way... oddly, she slept a lot better this way!
When I got there, she was off of the PCA (Patient Controlled something, means she hits a button, and pain meds go into her). We started watching HIMYM and Dr. Kuisly showed up to give us our walking papers and a clear cut plan on how to use the pain medications. He also had us set an appointment to see him in his office Wednesday.
Leaving and getting home were fairly uneventful. We were going to just sleep downstairs in the lazy-boy chair but, Kris decided she wanted to sleep upstairs.
Wednesday, 15-Oct-2008
Dr. Kuisle changed her bandages and they removed approximately half of her staples. The nurse suggested wearing a soft cotton shirt under the binding they have wrapped about her abdomen to help make things more comfortable. They also removed one of the 4 drains (two in the breast area, two in the abdomen) and I'm to empty and measure them twice a day. We are also allowed to shower now, but, we have to put bacitracin (neosporin to you and me) around the drain sites after bathing. The nurse gave us supplies, including a soft, sports like, bra that should be more comfortable.
The Dr. gave us the news about the biopsy of the tissue removed from Kris left breast. There were indeed traces of the cancer, some signs of it in the lymphatic system, but, no signs that the lymphatic system itself was infected (GOOD NEWS!), better, the margins are clear (the margins are the areas at the edge of where the tissue was removed) which means that they removed everything they know about!
Thursday, 16-Oct-2008
Everything is pretty much uneventful. Kris is both more and less comfortable... which is part of the healing process, imho. Basically, things that were not bothering her before, are bothering her now. Which I take to mean that her surgery sites are 'waking up' so she is able to feel more and in some cases she's feeling things that aren't the same and are thus less comfortable. :)
More to come...
Sunday 12-Oct-2008
Kris is still in the hospital recovering. She's not sleeping very well as they are keeping her full of fluids, which require trips to the restroom, which takes a bit of a production, and increases her pain. So, she was on a cycle of taking her drugs, sleeping for a bit, waking up, going to the bathroom, getting in bed, taking drugs. Roughly a one hour cycle. Despite this, when we visited her, she was in good spirits though she'd doze in an out on occasion while we were there.
We watched the second season of 'How I Met Your Mother' to pass the time.
Monday, 13-Oct-2008
On the way to the hospital, I checked and the third season of 'How I Met Your Mother' was out, so, I got it.
Slept better, but, same basic cycle. Kris is more mobile than she was which I take as a good sign. Dr. Kuisle said that she's not going home yet. Worst part is trying to get her on stable pain medications as there seem to be too many plans and no one knows which one anyone is supposed to be following!
Tuesday, 14-Oct-2008
During the night the nurse noticed that her IV had slipped out of her vein so Kris had a goodly bit of edema and really wasn't getting her pain medications. They accessed her port and her pain medications were administered that way... oddly, she slept a lot better this way!
When I got there, she was off of the PCA (Patient Controlled something, means she hits a button, and pain meds go into her). We started watching HIMYM and Dr. Kuisly showed up to give us our walking papers and a clear cut plan on how to use the pain medications. He also had us set an appointment to see him in his office Wednesday.
Leaving and getting home were fairly uneventful. We were going to just sleep downstairs in the lazy-boy chair but, Kris decided she wanted to sleep upstairs.
Wednesday, 15-Oct-2008
Dr. Kuisle changed her bandages and they removed approximately half of her staples. The nurse suggested wearing a soft cotton shirt under the binding they have wrapped about her abdomen to help make things more comfortable. They also removed one of the 4 drains (two in the breast area, two in the abdomen) and I'm to empty and measure them twice a day. We are also allowed to shower now, but, we have to put bacitracin (neosporin to you and me) around the drain sites after bathing. The nurse gave us supplies, including a soft, sports like, bra that should be more comfortable.
The Dr. gave us the news about the biopsy of the tissue removed from Kris left breast. There were indeed traces of the cancer, some signs of it in the lymphatic system, but, no signs that the lymphatic system itself was infected (GOOD NEWS!), better, the margins are clear (the margins are the areas at the edge of where the tissue was removed) which means that they removed everything they know about!
Thursday, 16-Oct-2008
Everything is pretty much uneventful. Kris is both more and less comfortable... which is part of the healing process, imho. Basically, things that were not bothering her before, are bothering her now. Which I take to mean that her surgery sites are 'waking up' so she is able to feel more and in some cases she's feeling things that aren't the same and are thus less comfortable. :)
More to come...
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Kris, Dave and the Lumps: Surgery and Post Surgery
Friday, 10-Oct-2008, Surgery, and Saturday 11-Oct-2008 Recovery
1030 we saw Dr. Kuisle who drew a bunch of lines on Kris and explained what they illustrated. Long and short is that they showed where the tissue was to be removed, and where it was to be relocated from. What I found interesting is that they take tissue from either the right side of the tram flap or the left side. Put another way, they take tissue from the left of the belly button, or right of the belly button and use it. What they don't use is discarded! I'd imagined using the tissue from the whole belly region for the reconstruction.
1130 We arrived at the hospital and checked in. Went through the usual rigmarole of getting dressed in the latest, and most stylish, but, drafty, hospital attire for the event. Waited around... the nurse contacted the anaesthesiologist to determine if they would use her port (which Kris prefers) and got the go ahead. She had a little trouble doing so, called in another nurse who had no problems doing so. At about 1245 (surgery planned for 1300) Dr. Jones showed up asking when we were heading to surgery. The nurse said we haven't seen Dr. Lane (the anaesthesiologist) yet.
Dr. Lane was called for and arrived and gave us the run down on the drugs he'd be using. I asked him about how long the surgery would take. He said Dr. Jones would take about an hour, they would call when he was done. Dr. Kuisle would take about 3 more hours. I did some quick math and asked if I should expect her out somewhere between 1630 and 1730. He said that with such a wide margin, he could agree. Kris was then wheeled out for surgery, a tidge late... I was left in the waiting room with instructions, from Kris, to get food (I'd been fasting with her to show her support... it's hard to fast when folks are eating around you!).
I headed to the cafeteria, which I found with some searching, and had... lunch. I then headed back to the surgery waiting room where I... waited.
... and waited...
1400 ... and waited....
... and about 1600 (4pm for folks who don't know the 24 hour clock) I got a call saying that Dr. Kuisle was almost done! Um... where was Dr. Jones call?
... waiting...
At about 1730 Dr. Kuisle showed up and let me know that everything went about as smoothly as you could ask for. I mentioned Dr. Jones lack of call and he was embarrassed for Dr. Jones having not brought me up to speed. He said that I'd get a call when she was back in pre/post operations and left.
1800 ... waiting...
1900 ... waiting...
2030 ... waiting... and I decide I'm far too patient and call the operations area to ask about Kris. They said they'd be wheeling her to room 377 in about 5 minutes! Nice call to be with her when she was recovering! So, I headed to room 377 and was headed off by the nurses on the 3rd floor. They said to have a room in the waiting area and they'd gather me when she arrived.... waiting...
2100 (or there abouts) the nurses said she was heading down the hall... I went and caught up with her and started calling folks after I'd spoken with her. By 2130 (9:30 to those who don't know the 24 hour clock) we were pretty much done and I was about wasted from the day.
Kris seemed in good spirits, if a bit groggy. She was talking with me and the nurses, in some pain, but, generally in good spirits and all is well.
While I was gone, about 2330, she gave herself some pain medications and got nauseous... not a comforting thought when work has been done on your abdomen! Apparently, she was waking up about every 15 minutes, hitting the button to administer pain killers, and spending about 5 minutes fending off nausea! Finally at about 0300 (3 am), they gave her a shot of something to fend off nausea and she was able to get some sleep between administering boosts of pain medications (delaudin). So, she didn't sleep very well, but, she did rest.
I got in to see her about 1100 and she seemed fine though, a bit drugged (go figure!). Dr. Kuisle showed up about 1130 and checked on things. She should have been up and walking early in the morning! He talked about transitioning her to Darvocet and said that things looked good and went on his way. At 1350 I went off to pick up Mary at the Airport and got back about 1700. During the drive we called Kris and found that she's got a fever and fluid in her lungs. However, I spoke with her and she said that according to the nurses it was nothing unusual.
When we arrived we learned that with surgery, at least surgery of this type, a low grade fever is fairly normal. We also learned that with this kind of surgery, you have to exercise the lungs as fluid will tend to gather in the bottom of the lung which can lead to pneumonia! They have Kris doing deep breathing exercises every hour to stave this off. She was talkative, between bouts of fading out due to the pain killers, and animated while we were there visiting with her. All in all things look pretty good. Just at 2100 (9 pm) the nurses gave her a walk up and down the hall and it was time for us to head home... and Kris to go to sleep.
More to come!
1030 we saw Dr. Kuisle who drew a bunch of lines on Kris and explained what they illustrated. Long and short is that they showed where the tissue was to be removed, and where it was to be relocated from. What I found interesting is that they take tissue from either the right side of the tram flap or the left side. Put another way, they take tissue from the left of the belly button, or right of the belly button and use it. What they don't use is discarded! I'd imagined using the tissue from the whole belly region for the reconstruction.
1130 We arrived at the hospital and checked in. Went through the usual rigmarole of getting dressed in the latest, and most stylish, but, drafty, hospital attire for the event. Waited around... the nurse contacted the anaesthesiologist to determine if they would use her port (which Kris prefers) and got the go ahead. She had a little trouble doing so, called in another nurse who had no problems doing so. At about 1245 (surgery planned for 1300) Dr. Jones showed up asking when we were heading to surgery. The nurse said we haven't seen Dr. Lane (the anaesthesiologist) yet.
Dr. Lane was called for and arrived and gave us the run down on the drugs he'd be using. I asked him about how long the surgery would take. He said Dr. Jones would take about an hour, they would call when he was done. Dr. Kuisle would take about 3 more hours. I did some quick math and asked if I should expect her out somewhere between 1630 and 1730. He said that with such a wide margin, he could agree. Kris was then wheeled out for surgery, a tidge late... I was left in the waiting room with instructions, from Kris, to get food (I'd been fasting with her to show her support... it's hard to fast when folks are eating around you!).
I headed to the cafeteria, which I found with some searching, and had... lunch. I then headed back to the surgery waiting room where I... waited.
... and waited...
1400 ... and waited....
... and about 1600 (4pm for folks who don't know the 24 hour clock) I got a call saying that Dr. Kuisle was almost done! Um... where was Dr. Jones call?
... waiting...
At about 1730 Dr. Kuisle showed up and let me know that everything went about as smoothly as you could ask for. I mentioned Dr. Jones lack of call and he was embarrassed for Dr. Jones having not brought me up to speed. He said that I'd get a call when she was back in pre/post operations and left.
1800 ... waiting...
1900 ... waiting...
2030 ... waiting... and I decide I'm far too patient and call the operations area to ask about Kris. They said they'd be wheeling her to room 377 in about 5 minutes! Nice call to be with her when she was recovering! So, I headed to room 377 and was headed off by the nurses on the 3rd floor. They said to have a room in the waiting area and they'd gather me when she arrived.... waiting...
2100 (or there abouts) the nurses said she was heading down the hall... I went and caught up with her and started calling folks after I'd spoken with her. By 2130 (9:30 to those who don't know the 24 hour clock) we were pretty much done and I was about wasted from the day.
Kris seemed in good spirits, if a bit groggy. She was talking with me and the nurses, in some pain, but, generally in good spirits and all is well.
While I was gone, about 2330, she gave herself some pain medications and got nauseous... not a comforting thought when work has been done on your abdomen! Apparently, she was waking up about every 15 minutes, hitting the button to administer pain killers, and spending about 5 minutes fending off nausea! Finally at about 0300 (3 am), they gave her a shot of something to fend off nausea and she was able to get some sleep between administering boosts of pain medications (delaudin). So, she didn't sleep very well, but, she did rest.
I got in to see her about 1100 and she seemed fine though, a bit drugged (go figure!). Dr. Kuisle showed up about 1130 and checked on things. She should have been up and walking early in the morning! He talked about transitioning her to Darvocet and said that things looked good and went on his way. At 1350 I went off to pick up Mary at the Airport and got back about 1700. During the drive we called Kris and found that she's got a fever and fluid in her lungs. However, I spoke with her and she said that according to the nurses it was nothing unusual.
When we arrived we learned that with surgery, at least surgery of this type, a low grade fever is fairly normal. We also learned that with this kind of surgery, you have to exercise the lungs as fluid will tend to gather in the bottom of the lung which can lead to pneumonia! They have Kris doing deep breathing exercises every hour to stave this off. She was talkative, between bouts of fading out due to the pain killers, and animated while we were there visiting with her. All in all things look pretty good. Just at 2100 (9 pm) the nurses gave her a walk up and down the hall and it was time for us to head home... and Kris to go to sleep.
More to come!
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Kris, Dave and the Lumps: Presurgery meeting with the plastic surgeon
Monday 6-Oct-2008
Met with Dr. Kuisle. He's pleased with Kris recovery from the preoperative procedure but, said that based on her pain, she's going to need some kind of narcotic after the surgery. We discussed which medications had caused problems in the past (Vicodin, Oxycontin, etc) and which had seemed to work well (Demerol, Morphine, aspirin)... based on that, he's going to try Delaudin (I think that's how they are spelled). I know that drug packs my head to bursting with cotton! We'll see how Kris fairs.
Spirits are as up as they can be given that she's in pain. Granted, she's not taking very little pain medications at this point and generally she's ok... but, she walks/stands with a minor stoop to relieve tension on her lower stomach area and if she makes a sudden move, she gets pain there. Also, if she stretches that area (leans back), it burns. Normally this would have me worried, but, they are going to work on that area again Friday, so, there's no real sense in doing physical therapy for 3 days.
Friday the original plan was for us to go to Dr. Kuisle's office at 0730 before the surgery at Boulder Community Hospital in Boulder Colorado... yes, there's a reason I'm being so specific... but, Dr. Kuisle pointed out that we are not doing a sentinel node biopsy so we don't have the normal 2 to 4 hour prep the day of the surgery and our procedure is scheduled for 1pm... which is a big 'ugh' given that you know they will require fasting before the procedure! Dr. Kuisle sent us to the hospital to check with them for preoperative blood tests and for the time they really want us there.
So, we went by the hospital and found that normally they call and make an appointment for pre-procedure testing and evaluation 2 weeks out! Not sure why we didn't get any such calls. Made an appointment for 1330 (1:30 pm) on Wednesday which will include blood tests and asking us what medications Kris is on, what to do the day of, shaking of hands, nodding of heads, all followed by lunch! Ie: not a lot which is really useful, but, it's required. We also found out that she needs to be at the hospital by 1130.
Went back to Dr. Kuisles office and he said to be there at 1030... he needs to draw a diagram on Kris for the surgeons (Dr. Jones and himself) to follow.
Ok, why was I specific about the hospital above? To let y'all know that that's where she'll be come Friday. She'll stay there three or four days, which means we'll leave Sunday or Monday. I asked to have her put on the directory so if you want to call and chat, you can call the hospital and get forwarded to her room. Normally I wouldn't do that, but, with her being there for several days, it seemed to make sense.
Recovery will be a pain... at least, judging by the recovery from the pre-operative procedure to prepare for the Tram Flap! However, I almost expect it to be a bit easier since I expect Kris will be on pain medications when she starts the physical therapy... which means that I'm hoping she'll be stretching those muscles out while he pain is well under control... which will make it easier... at least, that's my hope. The worst part about things right now is hearing Kris gasp, or seeing her writhe, in pain and not being able to do anything but... well, stand by. It's really frustrating to me, at times like these and only times like these, that Kris can't stand to be stoned... this aversion is so strong that she won't do pain medications and will suffer instead. Don't get me wrong, she definitely tries to find a happy middle ground where she's not in pain nor too stoned. However, there are times when I think it'd be nice if she'd just relax, float a little and, as several nurses have said, 'get on top of the pain' so that it's not an issue. The real irony here is that Kris thinks she's a wimp... introduce me to a wimp who would rather have pain that be stoned... I don't think there is such an animal! Fact is, Kris is quite tough! She just doesn't want to admit to it. :)
Thanks to all of you for: Afghans, cards, wonderful big soup mugs with flowers in them, calls, Afghans, emails with well wishes, stupendous notes of support, care packages and general well wishes... we're still hanging in there and things are looking good!
Met with Dr. Kuisle. He's pleased with Kris recovery from the preoperative procedure but, said that based on her pain, she's going to need some kind of narcotic after the surgery. We discussed which medications had caused problems in the past (Vicodin, Oxycontin, etc) and which had seemed to work well (Demerol, Morphine, aspirin)... based on that, he's going to try Delaudin (I think that's how they are spelled). I know that drug packs my head to bursting with cotton! We'll see how Kris fairs.
Spirits are as up as they can be given that she's in pain. Granted, she's not taking very little pain medications at this point and generally she's ok... but, she walks/stands with a minor stoop to relieve tension on her lower stomach area and if she makes a sudden move, she gets pain there. Also, if she stretches that area (leans back), it burns. Normally this would have me worried, but, they are going to work on that area again Friday, so, there's no real sense in doing physical therapy for 3 days.
Friday the original plan was for us to go to Dr. Kuisle's office at 0730 before the surgery at Boulder Community Hospital in Boulder Colorado... yes, there's a reason I'm being so specific... but, Dr. Kuisle pointed out that we are not doing a sentinel node biopsy so we don't have the normal 2 to 4 hour prep the day of the surgery and our procedure is scheduled for 1pm... which is a big 'ugh' given that you know they will require fasting before the procedure! Dr. Kuisle sent us to the hospital to check with them for preoperative blood tests and for the time they really want us there.
So, we went by the hospital and found that normally they call and make an appointment for pre-procedure testing and evaluation 2 weeks out! Not sure why we didn't get any such calls. Made an appointment for 1330 (1:30 pm) on Wednesday which will include blood tests and asking us what medications Kris is on, what to do the day of, shaking of hands, nodding of heads, all followed by lunch! Ie: not a lot which is really useful, but, it's required. We also found out that she needs to be at the hospital by 1130.
Went back to Dr. Kuisles office and he said to be there at 1030... he needs to draw a diagram on Kris for the surgeons (Dr. Jones and himself) to follow.
Ok, why was I specific about the hospital above? To let y'all know that that's where she'll be come Friday. She'll stay there three or four days, which means we'll leave Sunday or Monday. I asked to have her put on the directory so if you want to call and chat, you can call the hospital and get forwarded to her room. Normally I wouldn't do that, but, with her being there for several days, it seemed to make sense.
Recovery will be a pain... at least, judging by the recovery from the pre-operative procedure to prepare for the Tram Flap! However, I almost expect it to be a bit easier since I expect Kris will be on pain medications when she starts the physical therapy... which means that I'm hoping she'll be stretching those muscles out while he pain is well under control... which will make it easier... at least, that's my hope. The worst part about things right now is hearing Kris gasp, or seeing her writhe, in pain and not being able to do anything but... well, stand by. It's really frustrating to me, at times like these and only times like these, that Kris can't stand to be stoned... this aversion is so strong that she won't do pain medications and will suffer instead. Don't get me wrong, she definitely tries to find a happy middle ground where she's not in pain nor too stoned. However, there are times when I think it'd be nice if she'd just relax, float a little and, as several nurses have said, 'get on top of the pain' so that it's not an issue. The real irony here is that Kris thinks she's a wimp... introduce me to a wimp who would rather have pain that be stoned... I don't think there is such an animal! Fact is, Kris is quite tough! She just doesn't want to admit to it. :)
Thanks to all of you for: Afghans, cards, wonderful big soup mugs with flowers in them, calls, Afghans, emails with well wishes, stupendous notes of support, care packages and general well wishes... we're still hanging in there and things are looking good!
Friday, October 3, 2008
Kris, Dave and the Lumps; Tram Flap Prep
Wednesday 1-Oct-2008
Took Kris in to the Avista Surgery center (which is attached to the plastic surgeons office) for the Tram Flap preparation at 0930. The nurse read me the riot act when she realized that I was planning on going back to work that night and just about got to where she was going to write a note. I called in and Barry was very supportive. They gave us a pair of stockings Kris has to wear for 48 hours. They are support stockings designed to increase blood pressure by keeping pressure on your legs and as you may well imagine, are quite tight! They also said that after the procedure she is to keep ice on the wounds for 48 hours solid! She is to walk every other hour to help prevent blood clots. They asked after her pain medications and we revealed we have some Darvocet left over from the last surgery and plan on using that... half pills. Kris is a light weight. :)
Kris and the nurse ordered me off for breakfast so that I'd be up to watching her for the rest of the day when the procedure was done. The procedure went like clockwork. Dr. Kuisle seemed quite pleased with the results. At about 2 pm we were sent home with a couple of ice bags and instructions on their care and maintenance. I was told to watch her closely until the anaesthetics wore off... so, I did.
We got home, settled in front of the tube and both of us fell asleep for about a half hour. Kris got up (which woke me up) and trundled about, she seemed stable enough so I just listened and kept 'resting' as much as I could until she was ready to go downstairs and watch some shows we had recorded. Sometime after 9 pm I got up and ordered Kris to bed. :)
Thursday 2-Oct-2008
Kris is doing well enough. She's up and about but, in more pain than she might wish for. She's decided to take a half a Darvocet every 2 and a half to 3 hours. I advocated for every 2 hours to get on top of the pain. Coincidentally a nurse called about this time and agreed with me. Just for the sake of information, her prescription calls for up to 2 pills every 4 hours. If she were on that schedule, she'd take a half a pill every hour... so, she's really undercutting her prescription! Oh, she's also eating real food, which is good. Nausea right now would be a bad thing since her abdominal muscles are tender due to the surgery.
Friday 3-Oct-2008
Things were doing fine until she tried to juggle her ice bag and a bottle of water while navigating the stairs and one foot slip. She didn't fall, but, catching herself she used her stomach muscles and.. well, it hurt. Now, she's looking forward to her pain medications every 2 hours and I blame the near fall. She's also off the ice now (and happy for it) and has taken her first shower. The wound looks pretty good. I don't think there will be much, if any, scarring. Dr. Kuisle seems to have done a bang up job. The shower was a bit scary in that she got light headed and looked about to pass out. I was quite concerned and sent her off to bed. She was asking why it was and I pointed out that she'd just taken off the stockings from the Inquisition and her Blood Pressure had probably plummeted in response. This was about 2 pm and she laid their for a while and was feeling much better when I trundled off to work.
Took Kris in to the Avista Surgery center (which is attached to the plastic surgeons office) for the Tram Flap preparation at 0930. The nurse read me the riot act when she realized that I was planning on going back to work that night and just about got to where she was going to write a note. I called in and Barry was very supportive. They gave us a pair of stockings Kris has to wear for 48 hours. They are support stockings designed to increase blood pressure by keeping pressure on your legs and as you may well imagine, are quite tight! They also said that after the procedure she is to keep ice on the wounds for 48 hours solid! She is to walk every other hour to help prevent blood clots. They asked after her pain medications and we revealed we have some Darvocet left over from the last surgery and plan on using that... half pills. Kris is a light weight. :)
Kris and the nurse ordered me off for breakfast so that I'd be up to watching her for the rest of the day when the procedure was done. The procedure went like clockwork. Dr. Kuisle seemed quite pleased with the results. At about 2 pm we were sent home with a couple of ice bags and instructions on their care and maintenance. I was told to watch her closely until the anaesthetics wore off... so, I did.
We got home, settled in front of the tube and both of us fell asleep for about a half hour. Kris got up (which woke me up) and trundled about, she seemed stable enough so I just listened and kept 'resting' as much as I could until she was ready to go downstairs and watch some shows we had recorded. Sometime after 9 pm I got up and ordered Kris to bed. :)
Thursday 2-Oct-2008
Kris is doing well enough. She's up and about but, in more pain than she might wish for. She's decided to take a half a Darvocet every 2 and a half to 3 hours. I advocated for every 2 hours to get on top of the pain. Coincidentally a nurse called about this time and agreed with me. Just for the sake of information, her prescription calls for up to 2 pills every 4 hours. If she were on that schedule, she'd take a half a pill every hour... so, she's really undercutting her prescription! Oh, she's also eating real food, which is good. Nausea right now would be a bad thing since her abdominal muscles are tender due to the surgery.
Friday 3-Oct-2008
Things were doing fine until she tried to juggle her ice bag and a bottle of water while navigating the stairs and one foot slip. She didn't fall, but, catching herself she used her stomach muscles and.. well, it hurt. Now, she's looking forward to her pain medications every 2 hours and I blame the near fall. She's also off the ice now (and happy for it) and has taken her first shower. The wound looks pretty good. I don't think there will be much, if any, scarring. Dr. Kuisle seems to have done a bang up job. The shower was a bit scary in that she got light headed and looked about to pass out. I was quite concerned and sent her off to bed. She was asking why it was and I pointed out that she'd just taken off the stockings from the Inquisition and her Blood Pressure had probably plummeted in response. This was about 2 pm and she laid their for a while and was feeling much better when I trundled off to work.
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