My operation experiences on 14th September 2007

I was so nervous with this op because it is the longest I've had since last year when I had the caesarian and the hysterectomy - I was in that op room last year for a very long time. Not as long as this op I've had last week - 5 hours I think it is. That's why I was nervous cos of all the drugs and been under the knife for so long. In fact it is a half a day of my life!

Anyway, I was delirious when I came out of the op. I remember bits of the recovery room and this lady. I was in and out of my sleep like a yo yo! You wouldn't believe it but later that evening around 9pm I managed to go to the loo by myself! I was proud of myself! Although did go to the loo earlier around 5pm-6pm when Nigel was there with me and I wanted to go then because I felt safe with him there but of course I've had an injected needle still in my left foot! I still don't know why to this day that I had that needle in my left foot but I'll find out more when I see Mr Pringle at the Post op appointment on Monday to check my ears out and they are ok surgically. Well, they took the needle out so that I could go to the loo but it bled as I was walking and had to sit down again to stop the bleed! It did stop and went back to bed. I even managed to have supper that night, it was a beef stew with carrots and mash. It was hard work eating that cos I was sweating with this woolly hat on my head. It was not a brilliant night sleep because they kept waking me up for blood pressure checks in the night and drugs. It was a long night! Next day I got up and made sure I had a walk now and again
to stop the DVT etc I ate fine in hospital although kept snacking on my dried apricots, raisins and prunes to keep my bowels in working order cos of all the drugs I had etc I did drink loads and loads and loads of water cos it is hot in hospital and it makes you really thirsty. Strange thing is on when I came home on Monday, it stopped this thirstiness, weird! On Saturday evening Nigel brought the boys to see me and their face expression when they saw me with my woolly hat! Bless them it did frighten them, especially Oliver who was agogged! It was great to see them as I really missed them so much, it gave me an inspiration to get better faster ready for Monday to come home. It was such a long weekend in hospital. Anyway, there was an incident on the ward that I was in. A patient came towards my next door's patient's bed holding on to the drug trolley stand and this next door's patient who was a Chinese lady was getting very concerned and I buzzed for a nurse to help calm the situation. This patient holding on to the drug trolley was an older lady, I reckon in her seventies going do dally. It was frightening. She wouldn't calm down. The Chinese lady expressed her concern to a few nurses and it was decided that us three; the Chinese lady, me and another older lady who had surgery on her face to move to another ward. Luckily there was another ward that was empty and so we went there and settled down for the night. It was much more peaceful and I was able to get a bit more sleep. Luckily I had my eye blind to cover my eyes to get some kip. The eye blind is what you use on aeroplanes so I was very pleased to have that, very useful. After that incident, the Chinese lady was relieved but she didn't half fuss about everything, her bed, the window, the medication etc. She moaned about it to me a lot. I just took it on the chin and not took it personally. On Sunday morning the doctors came round and said that I could have the bandage off. Golly I was so chuffed to bits to have it taken off - it was a lovely breeze and the weight so much lighter. I slept much better that night. Come Monday morning, I couldn't wait to leave. Although was stunned that I had to walk to the X-ray department by myself! I know I was better but to go on my own in a strange hospital! I was a bit nervous however I did get there ok and it took ages to have this x-ray. I won't know of the results of that until we see Mr Pringle on Monday. However, I do know that from what Nigel told me about the electrode tests of each implant works fine. In fact it is really good in my left, better than what it was before originally. Apparently, that is quite often the case with re-implants!! However, my right implant is OK too, just not as good as my left. I was really pleased because it sounds as if the op went well although I have got some strange bruising
on my left eye, my left wrist and my left foot! Bizarre! It leaves me curious to know how the op went - I guess I'll know more from Mr Pringle on Monday. The only thing I've got left in my ears now is the dressings in my ear canals. They don't half itch inside them and it makes you want to wriggle your finger in there and give it a scratch and you can't! Don't worry I can grin and bear it until Monday cos I know Mr Pringle will take them out and it will feel so much better. I do have some steri-strips behind my ears so I guess they'll eventually come off when I have a hair wash which I can do in a week or so time.

I can't believe it is a week today that I went to Southampton. How time flies!

It is great to be back home. However, I was a bit disorientated on Monday and it is taking me a few days to get my bearings. I think it is because the whole op has given me a new perspective on things. Especially with two ears. I just don't know what I'm going to be feeling when I get switched on. I know I'm going to cry because I never heard out of my two ears. It is like a dream come true. I've always wondered all my life and yes there were times in my left that I wished that I was a normal hearing person. I'm trying to prepare myself now for the next step towards being switched on. It's been so long since I've heard and I have such a mixed bag of emotions; so hard to describe it. I'll definitely write up about it when the big day comes.