I'm baaack!
Not yet 100%, but I'm a lot better now than I was last Sunday. Gosh, for a minor procedure like tonsillectomy, isa lang ang masasabi ko -- MAJOR pain sya. As in, super sakit.
Simulan na natin ang kwento. I had my tonsillectomy Saturday morning, around 8:30am. We were told that we should be at the hospital by 7am. We were running late so we forgot to bring a camera. Buti na lang Richard's phone has one.
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That's me checking myself in at BNH Hospital ER.
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Pre-op preps - I had my x-ray taken and a blood test (I went fasting the night before)...
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...in this photo, they were taking my bleeding time. They pricked my skin with some sort of needle and timed the bleeding (how fast I bleed or how fast I stop bleeding? Sorry I can't recall).
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Oh, and this is probably the most important pre-op prep that they did -- they removed my nail polish *sob*. Sayang...the night before lang ako nagpa manicure/pedicure. Kung alam ko lang, dapat hindi na ko nagpalagay ng ruby red nail polish!
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All geared up and ready for surgery! The green band is for the OR I think, while the white band is your regular hospital ID. The blue tube is for the dextrose and other meds.
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After putting on all these bands and tubes, we went to the OR on the third floor. From there, I parted ways with Richard and Aly -- I went inside to get changed, while the two went up to the sixth floor to wait for me. The procedure lasted for an hour, but I was in the recovery room for about two hours. I was asleep the whole time. The last thing I remembered was the anesthesiologist talking to me and telling me to breathe deeply. Then one of the nurses told me that Dr. Sakka was on his way. I was feeling very groggy by then and when I put on the mask, I was knocked out quickly. The next thing I knew, the anesthesiologist was waking me up, saying that they're finished. I think I mumbled something then I went back to sleep. When I woke up, I was inside the recovery room and I was starting to feel the pain in my throat.
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By the way, this is how my room at BNH looked like. It's called the Regent room, complete with dining table...
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...a refrigerator, mini-kitchen area...
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...and a bed couch. That's my little girl waiting for mommy. Ofcourse, there's also a bathroom complete with toiletries. Sakto lang si Aly sa couch na yan so we had to ask for an extra bed for Richard.
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When I was wheeled into the room, Aly was asleep. According to her dad, she was asking for me every ten minutes until she finally got tired and slept. She probably sensed the commotion inside the room so she woke up and went up to me to give me a hug.
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Richard also told Aly to sing for me. She paused for a while (probably thinking of what song to sing) then she started singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Twice! How sweet is that? I was really touched because I saw the love in her eyes. After her song number, she danced for me naman.
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For my first meal, they gave me a cup of chocolate ice cream. But I wasn't able to eat it. In fact, I wasn't able to eat or drink anything on my first day because I couldn't swallow anything! It was horrible because on Saturday evening, I was really, really hungry pero wala ako magawa kasi nga my throat was super painful and I couldn't eat!
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Flowers from the hospital staff.
Service at BNH hospital was excellent! Room service arrives promptly, same goes with your other requests. On Sunday morning, I had a parade of visitors starting with my doctor who checked my throat and gave me the go signal to go home, my OR nurses who wished me well, the pharmacist who gave us the meds along with instructions on how to use them, and lastly the cashier who collected out payment. At least Richard did not have to go down to pay for our bill because they go directly to your room!
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That's the garden on the fourth floor.
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If I wasn't asleep, I'd be watching tv kasi hindi pa ako makapagsalita.
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Taking out the needle before going home...
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...with my little nurse watching closely.
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My first attempt at eating before going home. I had vanilla ice cream! Yum!
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Uwi na kami!
Before I had the surgery, Richard told me na kung effective na pampapayat ang tonsillectomy, sya din daw magpapatanggal ng tonsils nya. Haha! That was before my husband saw how I was after the surgery and how much pain I was in. Ngayon ayaw na nya. That's ok, I wouldn't want to see any of my loved ones go through this much pain. It was sheer torture, I tell you. I felt weak from not being able to eat anything. I wanted so much to eat kahit soup lang and I was really thirsty but it was impossible for me to do so. Everytime Richard and Aly would eat in the room, I'd be so inggit. They had pancakes for breakfast and I imagined myself eating pancakes too. The night before they ordered fried rice...gosh, I love fried rice! Torture talaga!
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Today, I can finish a full glass of water but it takes me around 30 minutes to do that. Normally it should take me a couple of big gulps, but for now I can only take small sips. It's like I'm learning how to use my new throat, you know. If I want to swallow a small piece of chicken, I have to do it at least three times. Maybe it's because my wounds haven't totally healed yet, but I hope I can eat and drink normally in time.
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The good part is, I think I've lost some weight, but I'm not really happy about it kasi I lost it the hard way. But it's a good start. I hope I can maintain it even when I'm back to my normal eating habits.
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The part that I love best is the TLC that I get from Richard and Aly. Aly gives me a constant supply of hugs and kisses everyday. The other night, she told her daddy that she wants to sleep beside me so she can take care of me so poor daddy had no choice but to sleep in Aly's room. My husband takes really good care of me -- like he always does. He had some funny moments like the time when he changed the bandage on my hand, he pressed the very spot where the needle went through so masakit sya. Then another time when he thought I had a fever so he pressed the back of his hand on my neck, but he pressed too hard on the spot where my tonsils used to be so masakit na naman sya. Clearly, with these bloopers, my husband is not nurse material. But his effort and the love and care that he gives is more than I can ask for.
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Anyway, that's all for now. More updates in the days to come!
With Dr. Sakka in his clinic at BNH Hospital.
