The day of my surgery almost feels surreal in my mind (writing this 18 days later). After waiting for almost 3 years for the surgery to occur I still wasn’t convinced that it was actually going to happen. Nevertheless I woke up and followed all of the steps to get ready, all the while keeping my fingers crossed that all would go well!
I was instructed to check in at the hospital at 9:15 am, so I got up at 7:00 to start getting ready. First up was the pre-surgery shower using the anti-bacterial soap I had been instructed to get from the pharmacy. That done I got dressed in loose fitting clothes (knowing that I was going to have to wear them home after the surgery and getting dressed would be more difficult!) Sadly it was also my time of the month so I had to pack supplies to take with me to the hospital to manage that (NOT fun!)
After the shower I took the medications I was approved to take with a sip of water (some meds and vitamins I had been instructed to stop in the week leading up to the surgery date.) Then an hour before leaving for the hospital I had 1 cup of clear apple juice (apparently required to give a carb boost to help the body with the surgery). Then it was time to go!
Fun fact, I have never had surgery or spent the night in the hospital before, so the procedures and check-in were all new to me. I arrived at the hospital and went to the main check-in area to be registered. I got my hospital ID bracelet as well as a GPS tag so that they could keep track of where I was (no chance of running away now!) Then it was off to check in at the surgical reception. In the reception room we were instructed to wait so I entertained myself watching the large screen that advised family members of where each patient was – it was as detailed as saying when someone was in pre-op, the operating room or even in the bathroom! Thankfully the names were in code so only the people with you could identify which line on the screen was you.
My friend Matt came with me to the hospital and was awesome – he stayed with me through the entire pre-op process. I was grateful to him for doing this as my surgery ended up being delayed 2 hours so I was hanging out in pre-op for 4 hours.
The Pre-op Process:
If you have had surgery before all of this is likely old hat, but the entire pre-op process was new to me! I was brought into my little cubical and given a hospital gown to put on. I also had to put on very ugly mesh panties with a pad since I had my period. The gown came with a lovely OR cap (which I wore like a beret!) and one green sock that I was to put on the leg that was to be operated on. Once I was all dressed I got onto the little bed and was given a blanket to keep me cozy.
On the wall of my room was a screen with my name, the surgery I was having, the time of surgery and details such as my blood type, Surgeon’s name and other info I can’t remember.
Shortly after I was changed and in bed the nurse came in to get me ready. He asked me approximately 1 million questions and then took me to be weighed. Once back in the room he brought me some pain killers (apparently to start loading my system for after the surgery) and put in an IV. We also did this really odd nose cleaning treatment. It is designed to kill any bacteria you may have in your nose. Each nostril was swabbed for a minute with a blue substance (I made the mistake of breathing in to hard while this was done – it was a somewhat unpleasant sea water type flavour in the back of my throat). Then I had to put what I can only describe as two stoppers in my nose which lit up with an infared light to kill the germs. The procedure was repeated twice.
Once that was done the nurse signed off on my screen that I was ready and then it was time to wait.
Through all of the waiting I still wasn’t convinced that the surgery wouldn’t be cancelled. I kept waiting for the surgeon to come in and say that my weight was too high, or there was something in my blood work, etc. and that they would have to postpone. That didn’t happen!
Shortly before my surgery time of 1:30 pm the surgeon’s intern came into the room to sign my knee. This is done to ensure that they operate on the correct knee! I was asked at least 10 times by various medical professionals what procedure I was having and on which side. I appreciated the attention to detail!
Once my knee was signed the anesthesiologist came in with the surgical nurse. I again went through about 100 questions about my health, allergies, etc. he then explained what was going to happen. They were using a spinal block which would numb me from the waist down. I would also be put lightly under (much less than a general anesthesia) so that I would be asleep for the surgery (thank goodness!) The Dr. explained that it was his job to monitor my breathing and make sure I was safe during the procedure. He had a really great sense of humor and put any fears I had to rest and had me feeling calm and good going in to the operating room.
Once the anesthesiologist signed off on my screen it was time to go into the OR. It was at this point that I was finally convinced that this was actually happening. I was having my surgery!
In the OR:
Having never been in an OR before I was naturally curious about what it was all going to look like. From watching TV and movies I thought everything would be stainless steel. To my surprise it was really just a regular room with a whole bunch of equipment in it.
I walked in to the room (another surprise – on TV they always wheel patients in on a bed!) and hopped up on the operating table. I was instructed to sit on the edge so that I could get the spinal injection. While everyone was getting ready I was checking out the room. I was warned not to look at the equipment because it can be scary but I couldn’t resist- I was so curious! There was a table set up with the drill and saw and other tools, as well as another long table with a variety of metal knee parts on it – I assume so they could get the right size and fit? It was very cool!
The first medication I was given via IV made me feel like I was drunk and happy. After that the spinal went in and I lay down on the table. Within minutes I could not feel my legs and didn’t even notice that my leg had been put in this U shaped stand for the surgeon. After that I was out. I woke up some time later, still in the Or, to hear someone say “we’re all done!” I said OH! I was having a dream – remarkably feeling very awake. I was transferred to a bed and wheeled out and off to the recovery room. It was like time had passed in a flash – I had no sense at all of how much time had passed.
The Recovery Room:
In the Recovery room a very nice nurse came over and checked my vitals. She had a look at my legs and incision and hooked me up to some monitors. I was very awake but the entire process was all a bit of a blur. I do remember the nurse being incredibly kind and friendly.
Every once in awhile the nurse would come by with a bag of ice and put it on my hip, and down my leg to see if I had feeling back. Once I could feel the top half of the bag and not the bottom. It was very odd. It was also very odd not being able to feel my legs. I kept trying to move my legs or wiggle my toes and couldn’t do it. It is a very unsettling feeling.
Once I started to get feeling back the nurse called up to the orthopedics ward to request a bed – shortly after that I was transferred to the ward.
The Orthopedics Ward:
On the advice of friends and family who had been through hospital stays I opted for a private room. The room I got was HUGE with a bed, chair, equipment and private bathroom. On my arrival a nurse came in to check my vitals including my oxygen levels. My blood pressure was lower than it had ever been! (and continued to be low for my entire hospital stay). She asked if my pain levels were at a 1 or a 2 and I happily told her that no, they were a ZERO! I was thrilled! Surgery was done and I was feeling NO pain! I was giddy (it may have been the drugs.) My bag had been transferred to my room for me so I got out my phone and gave Matt a call. He had not heard from the hospital so it was the first he knew that I was out of surgery. He was very surprised that I was so alert (so was I to be honest).I kept announcing that I felt great.
My next call was to my parents to let them know I was out and all went well. I told them I was feeling no pain and was happy as could be. My Mom laughed but said she hated to tell me that was likely to change as the night went on. She was quite right.
Next up was dinner – gratefully received because I hadn’t eating in 24 hours at that point – and finally a chance for a bit of a rest. After I woke up the pain had arrived – in fact it was probably the pain that woke me. I called the nurse and let her know my pain was building and was somewhere near a 4. She brought me some meds to take the edge off. Shortly after that Matt arrived and brought his laptop with a movie for us to watch. I could not tell you WHAT we watched – it was all a blur. All I know is that by the time it was over I was in a LOT of pain. It had climbed to at least an 8, possibly a 9.
I have always had a decent pian tolerance and consider an 8 to be when the pain has reached a level that I can’t concentrate or sit still as I am so uncomfortable. I was given more meds and a sleeping pill.
During the night I was woken up a few times for pain meds and vitals checks. I was also asked several times if I needed to pee – I did not. Apparently going pee is a must-do before you can be released from the hospital (they need to know your organs are working properly again). I was brought a bed pan and asked if I could try to go. I tried but nothing came out. C’est la vie -we would try again in the morning.
The rest of the night passed in a blur with not a lot of sleep. Between pain, nurse checks and the sounds of the hospital I only got little bits of sleep. But hey – it was done and I had a new knee! Whoohoo! Bring on the healing.
