One day post surgery! I had started this post yesterday pre-surgery but was too tired and unable to see in order to post it. So I’ll leave it here:

I really feared something would interfere and it would have to be rescheduled, but I’m so thankful things worked out. They usually do, even though I still have to run through worst-case scenarios in my head beforehand. In some weird way, it helps me mentally prepare.

We had to get to the hospital, which is over an hour away, at 5:30 in the morning, so it was a very early day. Cooper wasn’t happy at being directed outside at 3:30. He immediately curled back up on our bed once he got back inside. Barley didn’t even bother getting off the bed. Lucky for them, my mom was awake when we left, so they probably all snuggled up together.

We made it to the hospital a little early and had to wait to check in. Probably the hardest part of pre-surgery stuff is the waiting. And not being able to drink any water. Once we were able to check in, we went to our pre-op room where I had to go through the normal questions, change, and get an IV put in. This time, my hospital gown had a hose attached and warm air put in. Apparently warm air aids in healing.

I’m still using a warm air device today. I’ve gotten out of bed a couple of times. The first time I got too lightheaded, so I had to try again later. The goal was to stand for 3 minutes. When I was successful, it was a long and uncomfortable 3 minutes. Then my blood pressure dropped so I again technically failed in what the nurses were looking for. But I ended up sitting in a chair for over an hour and then going to the bathroom by myself, so I think I made up for it.

Yesterday was a long surgery. About 9 hours. The doctor said my damaged skin was very difficult to work with. And it’s been a long day. Last night the nurse was checking my “skin flaps” every hour, listening for blood flow. Then take my vitals. Hospitals are a terrible place to rest. But I’m super thankful everything is going well so far.