Back in the Saddle Again . . .

. . . sort of.

My gall bladder was removed on Monday, outpatient surgery. Felt pretty out-of-it and uncomfortable afterwards, but by the time I got home that afternoon, I was starting to perk up and definitely felt better on Tuesday.

But then on Tuesday night my right shoulder started to bother me. A nurse had mentioned that the gas used to puff/pump up my abdomen might migrate up there, so I figured that was it. Got a heating pad and lay down on the couch (but didn't lay ON that side). At 2 pm I woke up and now my whole arm hurt, from my neck down to my tingling fingers. That didn't seem quite right, but I took a painkiller and tried to get some more sleep. Around 4:30 am my SO came downstairs to see where I'd been. After describing my pains, he called the Health Connect line our HMO provides. After asking me questions and looking at my file, she said "chew an aspirin for 30 seconds and call 911."

Well, that freaked me out.

So, we called 911 - I insisted that they not use lights or sirens. The EMS guys were quite nice and thought that I was doing well for just having had my gall bladder out. I walked out to the ambulance - they wanted me to lay on the stretcher, but I was being stubborn and embarrassed and insisted on sitting on the side bench (not a comfortable ride, I can tell you!).

I kept telling everyone that I was just following the recommendation of the phone nurse (and yes, I do understand their restrictions and liabilities) but that I really thought it was the gas from the operation - but I hadn't expected it to affect me or hurt the way it did. I had laser laparoscopy 15 years years ago and had gas bubble pains then, and this wasn't ANYthing like that. However, once they had me, they were determined to rule out a blood clot or anything else.

Well, after five hours and many tests - now I know what a CAT scan is like - they finally called my surgeon, who said "oh, yeah, that's quite common."

For pete's sake, couldn't someone have called him sooner?

So, my painkiller dose was increased, and now I'm really feeling odd. Definitely "do not operate a machine..." status. Plus I'm drinking plenty of fluids, so I'm visiting the bathroom plenty of times. Oh, what fun.

At least I'm losing weight, which I'm always trying to do. However, friends have been bringing over casseroles and stuff for my family and they SMELL SO GOOD .... and I can't eat them. Are flower arrangements fat-free?