The dreaded drain was removed day before yesterday at "We Care" at Billings. Despite the lame name, the service provided by We Care both at their facilities and through their in-home nurses was exceptional.
The drain really freaked me out. It was the one thing that, pre-op, I couldn't wrap my head around. To have a tube from inside me to outside of me was not right. Plus it was gross. Pain I can manage, blechy-ness is totally beyond me. Thinking of it pre-op made me weepy and by the 10th I had completely convinced myself that I wouldn't have one. Ignorance is bliss - I believe that more every day. Fortunately, a hospital volunteer sewed these wonderful little pouches that carried the drain and tied around the neck for minimal viewing and discomfort. That made dealing with it at home for five days was doable - but only barely.
Mother came to pick me up the morning of the removal. I was nauseous. I seriously thought I would hurl. I had very serious doubts that I could get through this next phase without hurling, passing out from blechy-ness and/or pain or screaming my face off. (That's a really awesome expression by the way, and very apropos my feelings on having the drain removed.)
I waited until the last minute to leave the house and when we arrived three minutes before my scheduled appointment time, I seriously suggested to mom that we wait in the car. She didn't seem to realize that I was serious however.
We didn't wait long before the nurse came out. It was an odd encourter as she had been given only my last name (which no one ever uses if they can avoid it) and my initial. She literally came out and said hello. I wasn't sure if she was for me nor did it appear she was sure either. In any event, we quickly resolved the name issue and off we went to the torture chamber.
The first thing out of my mouth was that I was going to puke and she should really get a bucket. Being a nurse, she wasn't fazed a bit - and never did get the bucket come to think of it. I was sweating enough buckets apparently. She was quite good and told me that everyone was really leery of this process and it wasn't nearly as bad as it seemed from my side of it. I doubted her seriously. She also told me that she would be removing all of the dressings in addition to the drain - which I didn't know and was totally unprepared for. Ignorance is truly bliss.
She had me lay down and she immediately went to work removing the dressings - and just fyi, having medical tape ripped off of one's armpit is painful in its own right. Once she had everything off we got down to business. Although I still today refuse to look, she told me Mirsky did a really good job. She also said that if the nodes hadn't been involved, the surgery would have been nothing. The major part of my surgery and the part that will take the longest to recover from is the node removal apparently. And a week out, I can vouch for that - it is what is continuing to cause me the majority of the pain and discomfort.
She gave me my instructions, "Take a deep breath in through your nose and release through your mouth and I will remove the drain while you exhale." Seriously? I just looked at her and told her that I could hold my breath for an incredibly long time! The meany told me that she could wait me out.
SPOILER ALERT: THIS NEXT PART IS GROSS! The drain was apparently held in place with a couple stitches. One of them was rather "tight" and the nurse had a really difficult time removing it. She had to snip and tug and the stitch and my flesh. I think I might puke just writing about it now. I begged her to leave it in but she wouldn't. She warned me that if she did it would soon start to bug me and Mirsky would tell me it was all in my head if I complained about it to him. That made me laugh - Mirsky wouldn't dare tell me something was "all in my head." The man knows me by now! Anyway, it's out and I lived.
Afterwards, the nurse/meany put on some surgical tape as it had come off during the dressing removal. These will apparently just fall off over the next few weeks and are holding me closed apparently (retch).
The really great news was that, as of that appointment, I am free to once again luxuriate in a shower! Yay me.
I'm now in a boring phase, doing my physio and trying to get back into the swing of things as they were pre-op. I still can't lift the sax to practice, so stay tuned as to whether I'll be able to make the concert on the 13th. Cheers.
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