Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Perfectly!

That's how Michael's doctor described how the surgery went today. What a relief!

During admission we met the anesthesiologist and the surgical nurses, and his oncologist came in to tell us what to expect. Every one of them was just wonderful to Michael. It's obvious that UCLA is a teaching hospital as many of the people on the team were very young and were being supervised by the more experienced doctors and nurses, but that didn't bother us. I think you have got to be the cream of the crop if you get an internship or residency at a hospital like UCLA.

Getting the IV in was a challenge, and the junior anesthesiologist ended up doing that instead of the nurse. Michael was pretty uncomfortable during all that, and I had to tell him that it would probably be the most uncomfortable part of his entire day today. That's the way it's been for me in the recent past.

Michael's mom and I spent the afternoon in the waiting room.

Around 3 o'clock we receive a phone call from one of the surgical nurses, and she let us know that there was some question as to whether or not they would be able to finish the procedure laparoscopically. But by 4 o'clock, Dr. P came down to the waiting room to tell us that everything was done, and that the procedure had been completed laparoscopically. In fact, he said a couple of times that everything had gone "perfectly". There was very little blood loss, and just a few small incisions to get the job done. He told us that there's a possibility that Michael will be able to go home tomorrow night, or Friday morning.

Michael was in recovery for quite a while, and we didn't get to see him until about 7 o'clock this evening. He looks really good. He's lost his voice due to the intibation, but that should improve in a day or two. At one point he complained of the pain to the nurse, and said it was a 7 out of 10 on the pain scale. That earned him a dose of vicodin. His nurse tonight is a young Filipino man, and when my mother-in-law spoke to him in Tagalog he assured her that he would take good care of Michael overnight.

We'll head back to the hospital early in hopes of being there when Dr. P comes by during rounds in the morning.

Thank you for all your messages of encouragement and love. Thank you for praying for us.

I intend to post again tomorrow.

21 comments:

Paulette said...

I am so glad he is on the other side of this procedure. Hope he gets out quickly. Nothing better then resting at home with the ones we love.

Shelley said...

I just cannot imagine how relieved you must feel. What an excellent outcome for the surgery.

Love to you both and your family.

xo,

Shell

AprilMay said...

I've been waiting for this post! I am so glad things went well, and I hope they continue to go well. We all know men can be whiners when they are sick, LOL! He's very blessed to have such a loving wife taking care of him!

dc said...

We're so glad to hear the surgery went well. Todd and I send our love and prayers to the both of you.

dawn said...

So happy to know the surgery went to well and that your man might be going home so quickly.
Great news for both of you.

Kate said...

"perfectly" is just wonderful- so glad it is over! And so glad he has such good care.I hope you really slept, and that he did too- pain control is much more humane than it used to be, and I hope he was comfortable.

And to you both: congratulations for making it over this hurdle in your journey toward recovery. This feels like such a relief!

Warmly,
Kate

Kate said...

I am so relieved to know that it is over and that it went perfectly. Such great news!!! Prayers to you all...and get well wishes to Michael...

kate

Kim said...

YEA>.. I knew it.. GREAT NEWS...
keep the faith up and going.. he is going to recover BEAUTIFULLY..
Hugs..

4D said...

Great news!!!

Keep smilin!

Sandra said...

Wonderful update! I pray that his recovery continues to progress quickly!

Kayce said...

Thank you for the PERFECT update Joannah. SO glad all went well. You all continue to be in our prayers.

Jill said...

I love the word perfectly! :)

Praising God for a successful surgery!!

((hugs))

Kelly & Todd said...

I'm so happy to hear that the surgery went well - what great news!!! I'm keeping you both in my thoughst and prayers.

-- kelly

~Kristen said...

Such wonderful news to hear... you will both continue to be my prayers.

Sugar Cookies And Hope said...

Thank God!! I am so glad that this part is over and with results that are amazing. Hope you are all resting well today and that Michael gets stronger by the minute.

Ava Baby said...

That's great! I'm so glad to hear that surgery went well.

C's Mom said...

The best of news!

Please do keep us updated.

Donna said...

I could almost hear your sigh of relief!

Sounds like it went beautifully. Now I'm hoping for a quick recovery.

:::hugs:::

Donna
Our blog: Double Happiness!

Swampgirl said...

I'm so thankful to hear this perfect news! I will continue to pray for good news everytime I check your blog!

onesillymama said...

Awesome news, Joannah. I am so gld that Michael has made it through with flying colors. I hope he has an easy recovery. Ever since "meeting" you on the ACOR list and reading your blog, I have been rooting for you both.

Alyson and Ford said...

So glad to hear the good news!

Alyzabeth's Mommy for Ten Months!