Ya'll know (if you've been reading) that I'm type A. I like order and planning and consistency. God likes to rock the boat sometimes with me; but only to help me grow! Since my last post, there was a plot twist. Every good story or book needs a plot twist, right?! I was all set to have the battery in my deep brain stimulation device replaced on Friday morning, when I got a call on Wednesday from the neurosurgeon's office asking if I could get it done on Thursday night instead. The neurosurgeon's schedule was having to be rearranged. So, all my "planning" went out the door and I agreed to have it done on Thursday (August 16) night instead of the next morning. I contacted my mom and dad to see if one of them were available Thursday night to take me. Mom said that she thought Thursday night would be even better than Friday morning listing that I could just go home and go to bed right after and I wouldn't have to get up at the crack of dawn to go to the hospital. She calmed me down! My friend, Kristen, texted me on Thursday morning and said she would be praying for me on Friday. When I told her that the surgery actually got moved up to Thursday night, her response was almost verbatim of what my Mom had said the day before, to which I replied, "How are you not my mom's child?"!! Seriously! Lots of people take Fridays or maybe Mondays off to get their batteries recharged, by going for a long weekend to the mountains or the lake or just a stay-cation. But I took a long weekend (Friday) to LITERALLY get my battery replaced. I'm half bionic once again. ;)
I worked a full day on Thursday and left the office around 4:00 pm. I had to be at the hospital at 5 pm for a 7:30 pm surgery. I won't lie. I was nervous. I really don't like being put under. Not because I get sick, it's just that I have this fear of being put to sleep and never waking up again. It's irrational and silly, but that's my fear nonetheless. It felt weird getting to the hospital when everyone else was leaving the hospital! :) I registered, got my hospital wrist band, signed papers and then Mom and I arrived at the surgical waiting room where we waited.
A nurse came out and said that there was one patient before me. She offered us a private room to wait in until the surgery but we opted to stay in the waiting room. So we waited. Work followed me to the hospital as all the waiting room TV's were set to HGTV! So we watched that until another nurse, Emily, came and got us. Once we were ushered back to a room, we realized we had made a mistake earlier in not taking that nurse up on the private room. ;) It was MUCH nicer/comfortable then the waiting room! I had a bed to lie in and Mom had a reclining chair. Oh well. You live and learn!
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| This was before the IV. The hospital gown was HUGE and I felt like it was swallowing me up. I'm smiling though because this is the first surgery since DBS that I've had hair going into it and coming out after it! Also, it's become a "thing" for me to take pre-op pics. ;) |
Back in the pre-op area, I got an IV. The nurse couldn't get the line going the first time in my arm because I was dehydrated. She ended up getting one in my hand. Mom told me later that she never allows them to get it in her hand because it hurts the worse. Today my arm aches and I have a nice bruise starting to develop. I told the nurse that I've been through brain surgery and more, but the worse part is getting the IV. I can't watch. I can see it afterwards in me and I can watch medical shows galore and others getting IV's but I'm a big baby when it comes to getting an IV myself. I also can never become diabetic, because I want to faint every time my finger is pricked. Like even typing this into the blog, I want to faint. What is my problem?!?!
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| See! I can take pictures and look at this AFTER it's in, but I almost faint as it goes in. (Kristen, skip over this picture, you'll faint!) |
I got purple socks to wear (no yellow socks this time. I guess I'm not a fall risk...or maybe they have a different color scheme - ha!). Mom and I told the nurse that my brother is an ER doctor at the hospital. She asked what his name was and said she knew who he was but didn't know him personally. I was texting back and forth with him so he told me to tell her hi. ;)
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| Purple socks, purple gown! |
The first doctor to come in was the anesthesiologist. He was super great and eased my worries. Mom asked him why I was going under general instead of local anesthesia. He said local was an option as was twilight, but he explained that it's easier to do the surgery under general when possible. The area where my battery is located makes it hard for a local and there's really not enough room for both the neurosurgeon and the anesthesiolgist to work in the OR around the same spot - they'd be getting in each others way. He gave other reasons as well, but in the end general sounded better and better. ;) He said it would either be him or his co-worker that would be the main anesthesiologist during my surgery - you know shift changes and everything. ;) But he promised, whether it was him or his co-worker, they would make sure they woke me up! And, since you're reading this, they kept their promise!
After the anesthesiologist, a representative with Medtronic came and spoke with me and Mom. Medtronic is the company that creates the electrical system that I have in me now. Two guys had this idea that maybe a battery-operated electrical device could be used to shock an irregular heartbeat back into rhythm. And that's how both the heart pacemaker and Medtronic were born. I personally think how awesome God is to give people the brains to think of these things. It went from 2 guys with an idea and has turned into a company with thousands of employees all over who have saved more lives than I can imagine. While they first started with just pacemakers for the heart, along the years they came up with a system to help the brain. I've been told from the beginning that I have a "pacemaker for the brain" and it's so true!
What struck me was that the Medtronic rep didn't bring in the huge remote I was expecting. She came in with an iPad. Just this week, Medtronic started using this new system that works with an iPad. The rep said that my neurologist, Dr. Tolleson, just got his iPad that day. This is what floored me and also made me really proud: She said that my neurologist, Dr. Tolleson was part of the group of doctors who invented this new method of being able to check on patient's systems with this iPad. HE helped invent the system!!! How amazing is that?! This new system means I no longer have to be tethered to the remote when I go see Dr. Tolleson. No more wire hookups and such. I asked, jokingly, if the device shows a depleted battery picture when the battery is low. I was so picturing this in mind and it turns out that is exactly how it is. She showed me the iPad and there's a depleted battery image on it!
Mom asked the rep if this new battery would only last 2 and 1/2 years like the old battery. On this, we kind of got bad news. She said that no one likes to hear this, but actually the second battery has less of a lifespan than the first. The reason is, the first battery was not activated until a month after it was surgically implanted. Then, when it was activated, I was started out on the lowest dose of electricity and increased it as needed until I'm where I'm at today. The new battery will be active instantly and will be at full electrical force from the get-go, so it will "die" faster than the first battery. So now I have something to go by. I know that the battery will last less than 2 and 1/2 years, but I don't know how long. Once this new battery dies, I'll know exactly how long I have with the next battery and the battery after that.
I've recently been thinking hard on how God uses trials, tribulations, difficulties, setbacks and more in our lives so that we can help others. His greatest command is to love one another. I love when I hear a story of a person who had cancer and when he/she was better, he/she went to medical school and became an oncologist. Doctor's who have experienced what a patient goes through, in my opinion, are the absolute best. I don't hope to go to medical school and become a doctor, but I do hope that my experiences can help someone else. If it helps just one person, it would all be worth it. Mom said that I'm one of Medtronics success stories. Ya'll for 10 YEARS...YEARS, I walked with a walker. And then deep brain stimulation happened and it changed my life. Yes, I still have some major problems, but, I would do the surgery again in a heartbeat because it has given me so much freedom. If you're reading this and debating whether or not to do DBS - debate no more - DO IT!! How blessed am I to have been given this opportunity to have this surgery?! It's not perfect by any means, but it's a life changer and I will be forever grateful for it!
After the Medtronic representative finished with us, the surgeon came in and spoke with us. It was actually the first time I met him. Yes, that's true. I met with his physician's assistant before, but this was my first time actually meeting him. I can say this now that everything is done. I didn't want backlash on never having met my surgeon until the night of the surgery - haha! ;) Talk about putting your life into the hands of someone you've never met! I did research him though before the surgery and every single nurse or PA or doctor that I met from the time of my first appointment at his office until Thursday night in the hospital raved about him. Every single one of them. And when Mom and I met him, we both felt instantly at ease with him. Dr. Boyer knows his stuff and calmed me down. He spent a good deal of time with me. He also said that his last patient was just being wheeled into recovery so it would be about a half hour until my surgery would begin. When he left, Mom and I both said that we had an instant calm about him. He was super sweet and when asked (by me!) if he'd had his coffee and if he were wide awake and if he had steady hands, he calmed me right down in saying YES to everyone of my questions and giving us a little of his background. He used to perform surgeries all the time overnight. Whew!! Thanks, God!
When Mom and I were alone in the room, she prayed with me. She knows how anxious I get and how to calm my nerves. Jesus is always with me.
After Dr. Boyer left, the OR nurses came in and gave me "happy juice". That stuff is amazing. I don't really know what it is, but I care about NOTHING when given it. All is right with the world. ;) Mom gave me a kiss and left. I remember being wheeled into the OR and getting on the table and getting oxygen. The OR nurse said she'd be with me the whole time and the next I thing I knew I was in the recovery room. The recovery room nurse told me her name was Joan. I instantly forgot it and asked a couple of minutes later what it was again. This time she said it was Joan like Joan of Arc. That time, her name stuck with me! Mom came back and helped me get dressed. Nurse Joan asked if I wanted anything to eat or drink. All I wanted was saltines, so that's what she gave me. She gave me some oral pain meds, removed my IV and Mom and I busted out of the hospital. As we were driving away, I asked Mom, "Do you have my clothes?" to which she responded, "You're wearing them!" Aww, yes, drugs are good when used properly....I was totally out of it.
Mom stopped at the pharmacy and got my pain med script filled and we headed to her and Dad's house. I'd been wanting ice cream as my "reward" and recovery meal. I even told the anesthesiologist this. He said that he would give me meds so that I could enjoy the ice cream afterwards and not get sick from it. ;) I hadn't eaten since the night before, so I made it a whole 24 hours plus with no food. We got to Mom and Dad's around 10:30 pm. And first things first: I got the ice cream and it was glorious. I got ALL the ice cream. Mom had two kinds. She started me out with two scoops of Oreo ice cream and when I requested more, but of the mint ice cream this time, she gave me an entire bowl of that. Then she said she had raspberries (my ultimate favorite fruit), so I put the raspberries on top of the mint ice cream and came up with my new favorite flavor. It was heavenly!!
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| This is not the best picture, because I had eaten half of it already, but oh did I enjoy this!! |
Unexpectedly (to me), I wasn't quite ready to head to bed, so Mom and I watched HGTV (I mean come on, what else would we watch? She HAS to support me - haha!) for a little bit and then went to bed. I slept great in G and H's playroom on the bottom bunk. Ya'll just don't know how much I love having nieces (or maybe you do!). Mom has a designated room just for them at her and Dad's house and it's filled with everything they could possibly want! So sleeping in there was like sleeping in every girls dream room. :)
Friday I woke up and was very pleasantly surprised that I wasn't in much pain at all. I was mainly just sore. My head hurt worse than the surgery site. I had a dull ache of a headache all day and it felt like I was clenching my jaw, but I wasn't. These were just all effects of the previous night's surgery and the anesthesia. I told Mom that it felt like I had had surgery on my brain again. I could only look at my phone or the computer for short periods of time without feeling nauseous or having to lay down. So, as much as I love getting on Facebook and Instagram or blogging, I couldn't do either for very long. I stayed away from blogging until today. Facebook and Instragram, I got on for a few minutes at a time. I spent all day Friday at my parent's lounging around and eating their food - ha! :) But, Mom brought me back to my house last night. I got sick feeling on the drive over, but didn't get sick, so when I got home I just went to sleep. Mom's words as I shut the door to the car, "Don't be afraid to take medicine!" She knows me so well - haha! I don't like taking medicine, unless I absolutely have to. But, I slept great last night, no pain meds needed.
Today's been great as well. I've been sleeping off and on. I got flowers from my friend, Savannah. She's been texting with me as well.
Another friend, Rebekah, brought brownies over and visited for awhile.
Another friend, Tina called. I got a bunch of text messages from friends and co-workers right after the surgery. Thank you to everyone!!! I'm finally feeling like myself again, minus some soreness from the surgery spot. I have to keep the incision bandage on until Monday (three full days), but then can have the air hit it. So it's sponge baths and dry shampoo for me. I'll be sure to put deodorant on too and brush my teeth when I go to church tomorrow. ;) I am having difficulty walking however. I'm not as steady as I was before the surgery. This is where my blog helps. I wanted to make absolutely sure that I was on the same frequency and amount of electricity that I was on before the surgery, even though they said that I was. So, I went back to my blog postings and found one from March that listed my settings. I'm where I'm supposed to be. :)
The Medtronic rep thought that maybe Dr. T. had put me at a different level to extend the length of the battery, but according to my blog, he didn't and I'm on the correct level. So, why am I not walking like I did before the surgery? I think that has to do with the device being turned off and the battery being replaced and then activating the device again. I probably was without the electricity for 30 minutes to an hour, so that can effect my walking. God's just teaching me more patience. I have to be still (haha, see what I did there?!) and know He is God. He works everything out for HIS good. If you read this tonight and see me tomorrow at church (or elsewhere), you'll know why I might be struggling a bit. But then again, God is God and He's got all power. I could be walking miraculously well tomorrow.
Thanks again for all the prayers and for reading this book-length blog post! In everything, I always know that God's Got This!
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