Mike was up a lot during the night, but now is on oral pain meds for the first time and those have pretty much knocked him out. He'll get a about a 10 minute nap before the Surgical Team shows up. The first Med student showed up around 5:30 and then a group of about 6 more students showed up at 6:30. The surgeon is making his way down the hall now with his entourage.
If the oral pain meds control his pain OK then the epidural will be removed today along with the catheter. Full liquids are next on the meal plan and if that goes well, he can also get rid of the IV. Things are definitely heading in the right direction.
Our personal goal was to be out of here on Wednesday. So far so good. It helps when Mike has such an amazing attitude about the entire thing. He is so upbeat and positive about the process and has kept his sense of humor in tact. He continues to amaze me, although after 18 and a half years I shouldn't be surprised.
Yesterday he was joking that I had wanted a few days away just the two of us - laying around in bed, room service. I added that the tropical air was a nice touch too since he has the thermostat set to about 78 in his room.
Going through this together has brought us closer, I think. Just when I think things have never been better, it gets better. It's funny how love grows and gets deeper even when you've been together as long as we have. Much of the last two years has not been fun, but even more of it has been amazing. Mike supported me during the death of my Mom while dealing with his own grief. It's give and take, but there's no keeping score. I once read something about how in a relationship one person always has to love the other person a little bit more. I don't think I agree with that, but there has to be a willingness to love the other person enough to put your own stuff aside because they need you more than you need them at that moment. Although, I'm not sure "need" is the right word either.
Mike's recovery will be slow. Although his visible wounds will heal and the pain will go away, it will take much longer for his digestive system to find it's new normal. Like everything else, we'll deal with things as they come and know that while there may be some set backs and more than a little frustration, we will come out of this stronger than ever.
On June 25, 2010, at age 37, my husband was diagnosed with colon cancer. Following a right-hemicolectomy, genetic testing determined the cause was due to HNPCC/Lynch Syndrome. On December 9, 2011 he had a subtotal colectomy.
Stumbled upon your blog today while trying to find out if there's going to be another LS conference at Mayo. I was there in June with 2 of my daughters.
ReplyDeleteHow is Mike doing? My brother had colon cancer at 31 & had a left hemicolectomy. Nine months later he had a couple more malignant polyps and then a subtotal colectomy. That was 20 years ago. The first few years he couldn't eat raw carrots & onions, but no problems with food in many years.
In March my 33 yr old daughter had surgery for Stage III-C colon cancer (a sigmoidectomy.) She finished chemo in mid-Nov. and returned to work this week. Since her LS diagnosis, nine of the family (including my daughter & myself) have had the genetic test. Six of us have the mutation. But, the thing that was my "take away" from the conference was that - the worst thing about having LS is not knowing you have it.
Mike continues to do well following his subtotal. He's doing more than he probably should, but I wouldn't expect anything less from him LOL!
ReplyDeleteI imagine as a mom it has to be so hard to see your daughter go through surgery and chemo. I'm glad to hear she is back to work now.
I agree with not knowing being the worst thing. While I wish we weren't dealing with LS, I'm so thankful we know Mike has it and we can be sure to take care of our kids and have them tested when the time is right.