Recovery

The actual surgery was the easiest part of this journey because I don’t remember any of it. The difficulty comes when you wake up and begin the recovery process. I remember waking up, but not being able to see what exactly was going on around me. I could hear the nurse moving around and other people nearby. I remember talking a lot, but I don’t really remember what I was saying. I do recall asking several times when I could see Matt (my husband). They kept saying that I would get to see him when I wake up more. The next thing I remember is being brought to my room. I finally got to see Matt and my family and friends that were there.

Inpatient Hospital Stay

The first night, I did not feel a lot of pain. I was connected to an IV pain pump that I had to press every 10 minutes to release the pain medicine. During the night, one of my nurses removed the pump because my blood pressure and heart rate kept dropping. They switched me to oral pain medicine and I began feeling the soreness. Bone graft was harvested from my left hip and I could definitely feel the soreness from where the bone was scraped. The first time I sat up, I felt awful. I was stiff, dizzy, and nauseated. It was difficult to sit up because I couldn’t bend my back or use any of my back muscles. In order to get up after spinal fusion surgery, you have to rely on your leg and abdominal muscles (good thing I ran a lot before surgery).

Once I was a little more coherent, my anesthesiologist came to my room and informed me that I took a long time to come out of the sedative they gave me. He said some people lack an enzyme to break down that particular type of medication. They use some sort of paralytic to place your trachea tube and nerve monitoring stimulators. Most people come out of it in about 5-7 minutes. He said I was paralyzed for close to an hour before I came out of it. They provided me with some information on it in case I ever need anesthesia again.

My Graduation Ceremony

The next couple of days involved pain, headaches, light sensitivity, nausea, vomiting and walking the hospital halls. My husband stayed with me in my hospital room and slept on the couch beside my bed. The Friday after my surgery was my graduation day. I graduated with my M.Ed. in School Counseling. I had to miss my graduation ceremony, but I was able to put on my cap and gown to walk the hospital halls. My mother-in-law and father-in-law brought me a graduation gift and some decorations to put in my hospital room. It was nice to have my own little ceremony, even though I wasn't feeling well that night. 

The third day after surgery was my worst day. I was dizzy, nauseated and very weak. My blood work showed that my hemoglobin levels were very low. I lost a lot of blood during surgery and continued to lose blood over the next couple of days through my incision drainage tubes. The doctor ordered a blood transfusion and it made me feel much better. The transfusion took most of the day and I was released the next day.

I was in the hospital for 4 days after my surgery. Right before I was discharged, my surgeon came by to visit me. He said that he could not be more pleased with the surgery and that everything went great! My recovery process is now continuing at home.The dizziness and nausea lasted almost a week and I'm still dealing the stiffness and soreness. It takes time to recover from this type of surgery and I will get there soon. 

Blood Transfusion

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