After the procedure (which everyone said went very well) I was wheeled into convalescence. My first lucid memory was looking at the clock and seeing it was a bit after two. I believe I was wheeled into the OR around 11 AM. [My sister said that she got the call a bit after one PM indicating the procedure was completed successfully.] So that was relatively fast.
As I came through more, I was in very bad pain. It felt like my bladder was so full and not being able to urinate I was beside myself. The nurses said that I was urinating a lot, but 'feelings of discomfort' was a result of the catheter and the 'inflated bulb' in my bladder. Apparently, this tricked my bladder into urinating, but the Foley catheter was certainly nor my friend. I was given some meds to calm me down. After about 20 minutes the pain went from 10 to 2 on the pain scale. Eventually I was able to eat some graham crackers and have water. It's still fuzzy but some doctors who assisted Dr. Schanzer stopped by to tell me that the procedure was successful.
Around 3PM I was wheeled to a separate section in unit. I was well cared for, but just wanted to sleep. I was told that the catheter would be taken out. [YAY]
Someone had stopped by and said that I was going to have supper. I really wasn't hungry, but I did manage to eat everything offered. As the afternoon slipped by, I was quite intent to take cat naps and watch some TV. There were some movies I hadn't seen, so I took advantage.
Sometime that evening, a nurse stopped by to remove the catheter. OMG did that hurt. But eventually the pain related to the Foley went away, and now I had to deal with urethra pain when I passed urine. I was happy to be in control of my bodily fluids despite the discomfort. I filled a few bedpan urinals which was a good sign [I was told].
As the night progressed, the unit became quieter. I was able to take short naps. But always seemed to be awoken by someone coming in to check my vitals.
The day came to a close, but didn't manage to get any meaningful sleep as I had expected anyway. I was told that I would be discharged the next day.
More to come!
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