Pre-Anesthesia Stuff

My guardian angel (and her parents) was visiting and we had plans to go to Disney but Moffitt scheduled me for all the pre-anesthesia testing that they require prior to surgery. Moffitt wins (but I left right after it was done to go to Disney to meet them.)

I had an interview with the anesthesia nurse and nurse practitioner so they could verify that I was healthy enough to undergo anesthesia. While I was waiting a volunteer gave me some lemon drops and also some information on a non profit that supplies a support system if you need it. She explained that she was also a patient and that she had stage 4, inoperable lung cancer and had been diagnosed three years previously at age 39. She was really nice and open about her disease. I gave her one of the pendants that I had decorated with a white lung cancer ribbon and she put it on, immediately.

Chest X-Ray – simple and quick.

Blood work. Eleanor was super nice and drew what seemed like about two gallons of blood in various tubes but it was done in a manner that was pretty easy on me. I told her I needed to get a picture for Kaitlin of her tourniquets that were in a basket and nicely labeled. (Kaitlin had an adventure coming home from work the day before she traveled to Florida where she came upon a man who had just been shot, got a rag from a store to use as a tourniquet and some towels from a pizzeria to use to put pressure on the wound. Not kidding.) I told her the story and she gave me a tourniquet to give to Kaitlin.

Done! I could leave and go meet the family at Disney! While I was waiting for my car at the valet pickup I saw a patient who looked as though she had just had some treatment and was also leaving. She was in a wheelchair and leaning heavily to one side. She was thin, painstakingly thin, emaciated thin and her eyes looked sunken, blank and miserable. She reminded me of people who had been in concentration camps.

It struck me again that I am so fortunate to have caught this early. Someone may have to remind me of that on Thursday night!

Speaking of which, Kaitlin will be updating this when they get information from my doctor after the surgery is finished on Thursday. The surgery is scheduled for 12:15 and they anticipate it taking between 3 and 4 hours. Once the surgery is complete, I’ll be moved to recovery for about two hours before moved into my room. I will be hospitalized for somewhere between two to five days, depending on how quickly and well I heal.

And if I haven’t told you recently, I really appreciate your support!