Otherwise titled: Ouch.
Well… I had my follow-up today.
Time for the stitches and splints and packing to come out.
I’ve been more nervous about this appointment than I was for the actual surgery.
The kids have a snow day today and the mountain is pretty darn covered here, so Real Man decided to go late to work to make sure the monkeys and I got to the doctor and home again safely.
I think he loves us.
So, we went and actually arrived before the office was open.
We waited in the hallway, and my doctor showed up and let us in.
Real Man and the monkeys waited in the waiting room and I went back with the doctor.
In a few minutes, the nurse came in and put a bib around my neck, like when you go to the dentist.
I looked at her with a raised eyebrow and she said, “It’s to catch any blood so it doesn’t stain your shirt.”
Say what?
The nurse left the room and came back with a metallic briefcase.
I started to feel like I was in an episode of 24, and that she was going to handcuff me to the briefcase and give me an assignment.
I wish that was what she had done.
Instead, she opened it.
I don’t think she punched in a secure code, but I can’t be sure.
When it opened, she pulled out about ten feet of gray, rubber tubing.
I gave a nervous laugh and said, “What’s that for?”
She said, “To suction out the packing.”
It was at this point that I started to feel a little faint.
I’m not going to go through it all in extensive detail, because I don’t think everyone would appreciate it.
However, I will say that toward the end, there were tears.
And they were mine.
I was as tough as I could be for as long as I could be.
Yet, there came a point where it just hurt too much to contain the tears.
They were quiet and pathetic.
I think I scared the doctor because she took a step back and said, “Oh no…are you okay?”
I said, in a small, little voice, “Yeah. It just really hurts.”
Then, to make me feel better she said, “Well, it won’t be quite this bad every time.”
I said, “Every time?”
She said, “Yes…we need to do this every two weeks for the next few months to make sure it stays cleared out while it completely heals.”
Strange, how she thought that would stop the tears.
However, it’s an hour later now and I am feeling better.
She wants me out of work for another week, because apparently, now that the packing and stitches are out, the risk for opening things up and having it bleed are worse. I don’t know about that. I’ll be as still as possible at work, but I can’t do another week. We’ll see. That’s where I’ll leave it for now.
The best news of the day is that my monkeys are home due to snow and we’ve got a lot of snuggling lined up.
It’s gonna be a good day.
