Back IN The Swing of Things

So as of yesterday I am back to work.
I made to about 3pm we I became exhausted. I was home about 10min until I was out and drooling on the couch for 2 hours.
I eventually made it up and functioning, went to the grocery store, got some dinner, ate and was in bed by 9pm(asleep by 10pm).
Yesterday at work I was about 50/60% today I am a about 70%.
I go back to the doctor this afternoon to see how I am progressing.
The only strange thing is that when I lay on my left side I feel like something inside me is drooping and it feels uncomfortable.
It has caused me some pain since returning to the bed Sunday night.

A tour of the new me

After getting up to pee, I give you a tour of the changes on my body. I am shaved and have a blood bag and looking good. I no longer completely loopy I am just looking for a way to pass the time and not think about the pain.

Post Surgery Excitement

So the wheeled me out of surgery and my first words to Courtney were "Take Pictures" Well she was all ready all over it. Don't I look good. The Doctors had wrapped in swaddling clothes to keep my bald head warm.
I don't remember anything from this time period. This video really is just as I am coming out of the OR.

All I have on my mind is taking pictures, wondering if the wi-fi in the building ever started working and going home.
Then I seem to remember that my stomach is in a lot of pain.

I am doing pretty well today. People have been stoping by the Recovery Cam and checking me out and some people even stay a while and talk. It is great.
Eric and I went to lunch today. It was nice to get out of the house and walk around for the first time. I have been a bit nauses from time to time and sore some.
Lunch wore me out, I came home and had a BM and the an attack of the diarrhea.
Still, that is all felling better than when I still had gallbladder!

All Druged Up and Ready to Go Now!

This is what a guy doped up on drugs right before surgery looks and sounds like

Don't you want to be friends with a guy like this?

I am sure this guy is a blast at parties!

Success!

Thanks to this special lady I just accomplished something that I have done done since last week.
Over the course of the day yesterday she feed me 6 fiber pills and made me drink a TON of water.
Well it finally worked; I did something that everyone does...I just had not done it for a while.
It was very refreshing to get over that hump in my recovery process.
Soon I will be turning cart wheels and doing jumping jacks just like the good ole days when I still owned a gallbladder.
But for now I am just going to keep on recovering and trying to eat and hoping I don't run across food that I once loved that I can not longer eat.
It sometimes happens...to my dad it was bacon.

Walking into impending doom with a smile on my face

This me Walking into the Tuscaloosa Surgical Center where my gallbladder is about to be taken from me. I am in pretty good spirits here.

I am doing pretty good right now. I have been staying on top of my pain. Because of that I have been able to sleep consecutive hours in through the night.
Sleeping through the night is something that I have not done in a while so that is very nice.
Courtney is taking great care of me, feeding and making sure I am ok. She has also been forcing me to drink tons of water and take fiber pills in hope of me making a poo.
I have not made a poo yet, so I hear that stool softeners are next up!
I'll keep you posted.

Gallbladder Tour '09: End Of The Line

I was in good sprits on my way to have my gallbladder taken out.
There are more videos, keep coming back the net few days and there will be more.
The good stuff is me all doped up before surgery and video just after.
you have to stay tubed for those.

My new look

So just in time for Mardi Gras I got this new look. A shaved chest some beads and holes in my stomach.
This is the look of 2009!
Mark my words, shirts are out in 2009.

So I am back at home and Courtney is taking care of me. Poor girl spent the night in an uncomfortable fuax leather recliner, every time she tossed and turned he skin stick to the chair sounded like velcroe pulling apart.

She got me home and made me soup for breakfast and then we crashed. It has been a long 2 days.

I got to talk to the doc when he was discharging me this morning. He said that most of the time the procedure take 35min to 45min. Mine lasted 1:45 min.
My gallbladder was infected swollen and packed with stones, the exit hole, the one by my belly button, had to be made bigger to get it out. Apparently it was hard to even get to, the gallbladder was stick to other stuff inside me and had to get off the duct that connected it to the liver.
The bad new is they did not tape the procedure or keep my gallbladder, so we will never know what it looked like.
But thats ok. When I get some strenght I will post some videos.
As for now I am going to stick to laying around in my recovery chair.

Pain (the stuff that hurts not the band)

Don't get me wrong, I'm in some pain and it hurts when I get up but I
feel pretty good.
Ya, I know I am on the loratab, but I can tell a driftine already in
my new altered state. I fell better.
The nurse told me that some peolple fell so god that they did not
relize how bad they felt. I am sure that is going to happen to me.
I still can't get over the fact that I should have had this thing pit
a year ago. I am sure with all the pain I had last year with a broken
arm that I never noticed the discomfort in my chest. Then I it got so
bad that it hurt worede then my broken arm.

Hour 13!

So we have been here 13 hours. Who would-a-thunk it. I did get to eat
"solidish" food. I got some jello and Popsicles. Good times.

More Blood!

So a while ago the came to let the blood out of my collector. They say
I am doing pretty well and have not got sick. The new word is the
apprentley I should have had this done a year ago, maybe it would have
not been so bad.

Over night

They are keeping me over night. The surgury took a lot longer than
they thought.
The doc almost had to cut into me the old World stlye. My gallbladder
was impacked. It was doing a little damage to my liver. The sack on my
side is keepind the blood from entering my liver.
The doctor told courtney be could not belive that I was walking around
with that with that In me for so long. I guess I was in alot of pain.
The doc told one of the nurses that it was like pulling on duct time.
Because I keep saying oh it does not hurt that bad, they are keeping
me loaded up knowing that I am lying.
all things being said I'm doing ok. People are waiting fore me to be
nauseous but it has not happened.
I can not eat and am on a clear liquid diet. Did you know lemon-lime
gatoraid is a "clear liquid".

After surgery

Spending the night at the hospital

Getting ready

This is my gown and my deep vain throunbpusis panty house to keep me
from blood clots.
I'm in the back IVed up read to go!

On the way!

Courteny is driving and we are ok the way. I hope to fell better soon!

Last Meal

The last meal I eat with a gallbladder: toasted bread and turkey-
plain. My gallbladder served me well for a long time but now it has a
new master. I can't even send it off right with a steak b/c the master
it serves is evil and will turn on me.

Long overdue update

Thanks for asking my arm is doing pretty well. It has some pain from time to and 14 months later I am almost back to full strength.
I have had a few medical run ins recently, in October I was playing flag football and collided with my teammates shoulder and resulted in this.

Nothing a few stitches could not take care of.

The other medical problem I have had has been by way of an internal problem. I have been battling for months what I thought was heartburn. At times it would flare up out of the blue, sometimes cereal would make it happen, some times a glass of water, some times wings. There was seemed to be no cause of the problem. I tied Prilosec OTC it did not help. I got put on Nexeum I drank a lot of Mylanta.
No Dice.
The problem was I would go days a weeks feeling fine. The doctor thought it may be a ulcer. I had a GI appointment scheduled in October. The date was accidentally booked the same week I was to be in Hawaii. I had a hard decision to make…Hawaii and cross the Pacific on a Navy ship or go to a GI appointment.
After some soul searching I went to Hawaii and had a great time. Read about it a HERE. I felt better for about two months and never re-booked the GI appointment.
Come February I stared to feel awful again. It the pain was as bad as it had ever been.
I rescheduled the GI but that was not going to make me feel better. The pain got worse; it feels like a flaming softball in my chest. It aches burn for hours. I would vomit and be in more pain than when I broke my arm. Soon my right side stated to be in pain and my back would hurt a lot.
Long story short, thanks to good advice from my mother, father, girlfriend and my girl friends mother I took action.
Last Friday after a bad attack I went to the ER. I could not handle it any longer. The ER doctor asked about my symptoms and he replied, “Do you still have your gallbladder?” When I told him “no” he said, “well we will see how long that lasts.”
I had some blood and urine work done and had an ultra sound.

The doctor gave me the results “You have a gallbladder very packed with stones”
More About Gallstones.
My mom and my girlfriends mom where right. Gallstones. Come tomorrow morning I will never be able to make gallstones again. They are taking my gallbladder from me. I invite you to come along for Nick Rymer’s - Gallbladder Tour ’09: Road to Recovery.
And a very special thanks to Courtney who twist my arm and made me/took me to the ER.