Friday, May 31 - The END of the month of May and what I think is the END of feeling bad from the surgery. I didn't get much sleep the night before last, so was feeling pretty puny yesterday. I was on the phone a lot with the doctors setting up appointments and visiting with some friends, so I didn't get much in the nap area. I was afraid to nap anyway as I figured I wouldn't sleep again last night.
The good news is that I went to bed and slept there until 5:30 a.m. Yay for me! This hasn't happened in a while even before surgery. I had a good breakfast, compliments of Dane, and took a shower and dressed in street clothes. I moved around a little more and was feeling pretty good. After lunch I was pretty tired so had a 2 hour nap (hope I don't pay for that tonight).
So I'm feeling good about the pathology and getting on with the rest of this journey. I won't be having my follow-ups with the Surgeon and Oncologist until June 10. I am still waiting for a call from Mercy Washington Radiation Oncology to see when they want to schedule me. This little break should give me time to heal before the wedding and the next rounds of chemo. I'm assuming the chemo will begin the week of June 10 or the following. Stay tuned!
Talking with the nurse yesterday, I am very hopeful my drains will be pulled next week. They have been producing much less the last couple of days. Still aren't where they need to be, but getting closer. I had several people ask me what the drains are for and following is a synopsis of that:
After any large amount of tissue is removed from inside your body, your body attempts to fill the space with fluid. This fluid (blood & lymph node fluid) will slow your healing process. The purpose of the drains is to remove the fluid. The drain itself is a simple device, and consists of three parts: (a) a flat piece with holes that is inside the body, (b) a length of tubing running from the flat piece through a small incision to the outside of the body, and (c) a plastic bulb at the end of the tubing. The plastic bulb has a small spout and plug on it. The plug is opened, the bulb is squeezed to push air out of the bulb, the plug is closed, and the gentle suction of the bulb over time pulls the fluid out of the body and into the plastic bulb. The fluid collects in the bulb, and the bulb is emptied from time to time.
I want to thank everyone for the kind calls, prayers, cards, meals and gifts during this time. I am amazed at the caring and support from everyone. Dane was able to get his mind off work for a few days (although he's now back in the mode again) and pick up the slack around here. He definitely kept busy with the yard work, housework, shopping and running me to the doctors. Love that man to death!
After I find out my schedule I will be calling on a few of you to take you up on being my chemo buddy for the day.
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