Surviving Surgery: Warning, Contains TMI!

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

6/21/25

 

Aloha Everyone!

 

Well, I made it through my surgery ok. I've now joined the other 800,000 people who have this type of hernia repair each year.  It wasn't pleasant, but the medical professionals who were involved made it the least unpleasant as possible.  I'm very grateful to them for being very personable, professional, efficient, and skilled at their jobs.

 

I may have over-thought this just a teense, something I am prone to do in general, so I was pretty anxious.  My experience with hospitals is limited to a few trips to the ER, visiting friends and family, and one overnight stay many years ago.  My surgeon felt that having it done in a hospital instead of a clinic was advisable because of my age and past history of heart and breathing issues. Geezerhood strikes again.

 

I was scheduled for 11 am on Wednesday, with a check-in time of 9:30. I checked in on time, but the surgery was delayed until about 12:00 because some emergency cases tied up the surgical suites.  I was getting very hungry and thirsty, and more anxious than ever. However, once the process started, it went very quickly.  I talked to the surgeon and the anesthesiologist,  got into the lovely hospital garb, then was wheeled into the operating room and hooked up to all the monitors. The anesthesiologist warned me that he was running some antibiotic through the i.v. and it might sting, and then the anesthesia would begin.  The last thing I remember was him saying to think of a pleasant dream.  No counting backward or slowly fading out, I went into another dimension immediately. The next thing I remember was a voice far, far away calling my name -- the nurse waking me up.  "All done, everything went fine."  All the embarrassing and unpleasant stuff happened while I was out -- shaving, inserting tubes in various orfices, and of course the slicing and dicing itself.  I came back to life fairly quickly and without too much brain fog (something I had feared) and then I was required to pee before they would let me go.  I was given liquids through the i.v., so it wasn't long before this was kind of urgent (they had removed the catheter while I was unconscious).  Mission accomplished, the surgeon came in the recovery stall and explained how it went, complete with souvenir photos of inside of my abdomen! This was a surprise and very interesting.  In a laparoscopic procedure several small incisions are made in the target area and in one of them a catheter  with a light and camera is inserted so the surgeon can see to work (sort of a "Geezer Go-Pro").  You are also blown up like a balloon with CO2 to make room for the surgeon to work.  Wow  Anyway, my surgeon not only fixed the two hernias I knew about, he also fixed one that was starting to form, and on the outside he removed a benign cyst that my dermatologist had assessed earlier.  A four-for-one visit!

 

Recovery has been another adventure altogether.  Karen drove me home about 2:30, where I had a bowl of ramen noodles and then had a long nap.  There was no pain at all for the first 24 hours because while I was visiting Alpha Centari the anesthesiologist gave me two long-lasting "nerve blocks" (note, not an epidural) that involved locating and deadening a nerve in my lower waist area and another in my groin. The blocks worked well, and all I've needed so far is acetaminophen, even though I have a prescription for some heavy-duty opioid pain killer if I need it. When the blocks started to wear off, in about 36 hours, I mainly felt some discomfort and bloating at ground zero. Today I've had more pain as the nerve-block drugs continue to dissipate, but overall.I'm amazed and very pleased, given what that area went through.

 

Modern Medicine

For the next six weeks I have to be careful not to lift anything heavy or do anything (like golf) that might put too much stress and pull out my internal stitches.  By the way, the procedure used stitches to close the holes where the hernias were, and to install reinforcing mesh patches over them. The small incisions on the outside were closed with.....glue .  I've heard of surgical glue before, but now I am the proud recipient of the stuff.  It's waterproof, so I can shower right away, but since it can't be soaked the pool is off limits for awhile.

 

Ok, I'm sure that's more than you really wanted to know about this.  There are even more details, but I've overshared enough for this week.  Take care and enjoy whatever good things you can find. They are still there, behind the political smoke and fog.  Carpe Vitam.