Two whole weeks, Internet.
May 26th, 2009 | by TJ |Dear Internet,
What’s up? Not too much here. Writing a lot. Anyway, Phil is having surgery tomorrow. It’s for a deviated septum and supposedly is going to be done with lasers. We have to be at the hospital at 6:30 in the morning, so we’ll probably be leaving here around 5:30am, since god forbid they cater to my paralyzing fear of driving in this area and give us a hospital near by. He’ll drive there, but I’ll have to drive his loopy ass home and I am so not looking forward to it.
Once the doctor said Phil needed the surgery, we started looking into experiences with the procedure and what kind of recovery time we were looking at. The problem was, while there’s no shortage of first hand accounts of deviated septum surgery online, it’s been hard to locate anything describing the kind of laser type surgery Phil is going to be having. Old school surgeries that involved breaking and resetting the nose are discussed much more. Also, even with those surgeries, I can’t find the answers I want. First of all, the recovery varies SO widely. People claim that it was incredibly painful for weeks, others say they were off pain meds and up and around within a day or two.
The short recovery people seemed a bit more realistic, especially considering Phil’s having a newer type of surgery, so we figured he’d be off Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and back to work, even if in a limited fashion, by Monday. So he first had to get paperwork from the doctor doing the surgery saying how long they recommended they take off work. Then he had to go to the Air Force doctors and see how much time they would actually GIVE him.
So, he got the note from the doctor and we were shocked to see it was for two weeks. That threw us for a loop, because we were expecting a pretty easy recovery (especially because we have tickets to see Alkaline Trio on Tuesday!). We figured the Air Force would cut that down, though.
Nope. The Air Force also gave him a full two weeks off. So surgery is tomorrow, and then he will be here, with me, for two full weeks. I’ve made him promised to stay confined to the bed through Thursday (no bending, no lifting, best he just rests), but by Friday we’re hoping he’ll be up and around. Of course, the waiting on him hand and foot stops as soon as he gets out of bed, so hopefully he’ll stay in a few extra days to milk it.
We bought a Tablemate (I love those as seen on TV products) for next to the bed during his recovery, to hold water, food, the clickers, his nose care stuff, etc. We bought a new game for the Nintendo DS, and I’ll turn over the laptop to him for movies and web surfing. I made Jello today, and he’s going to stop at the store after work to make sure we have everything we need until he’s up and around (I’m out of diet soda). Anything he doesn’t get today, he just won’t have, since me driving him home from the hospital is a huge exception to my new “I don’t drive anywhere” rules.
Well, I kind of know how to use neighborhood streets to get to Walgreens with mostly right turns. So, he’s out of luck if he wants anything that can’t be purchased at Walgreens.
Anyway, I’m trying to be prepared as best I can (we bought cheap new sheets for him to bleed gross nose blood on and everything), but I still have questions that haven’t been answered. It’s impossible to know how long the recovery will end up being, or how much pain he’ll be in. What I’ve wanted to know, though, is what KIND of pain he’ll be in so I know how to feed him. Will it hurt to swallow, or to move his jaw? Jello or burgers? Has anyone had this surgery or even any surgery that required general anesthesia and a day or two in bed afterwards? I don’t want to forget to have something on hand that he’s going to need to be comfortable.
And of course, there is the fact that he is going to be here for TWO WEEKS. I mean, I like the guy, people, but this office is small and I have to work all day. One of the reasons we get along so well is because we’re NOT together 24/7. Someone is going to end up getting a beating, and if I were a betting girl, which I am, I would put money on me seeing nothing wrong with taking advantage of his post-surgical state to keep him in line.
Wish him luck, Internet.
Your pal,
TJ
By Skraps on May 26, 2009
I just had knee surgery with general anesthesia 3 weeks ago. I took my son to the pool the following day for his scuba class. The doc said stay off feet for a week, and no work for 2 weeks. Surgery was on a Wednesday, stopped pain meds Friday, and was back at work the following Monday.
I guess it all depends on your pain tolerance.
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By Syl on May 26, 2009
TJ -
I’ve had multiple surgeries, but nothing on my nose, so keep that in mind…
WHERE the pain is is really a big factor as to how long it takes to bounce back. If it’s just his nose? Probably won’t be long. Areas that stay fairly still lend themselves to much quicker rebound time, since you’re not moving things around making them hurt more. If the pain radiates down into, say, his jaw, he’ll be feeling like crap for much longer.
A lot of it depends on his personal tolerance for pain & what painkillers they give him, too. I tend to take myself off the pain meds asap, just because I dislike feeling drugged, but I have a pretty high pain tolerance level.
BIG IMPORTANT thing for general anesthesia — keep the food/liquids very very simple and bland for a day or so, and don’t give him anything that will stain if it comes back up (I hope your jell-o isn’t red). I can ocunt one one hand the number of times I’ve barfed since I was old enough to remember, seriously…but even with my rock-solid stomach, anesthesia is nausea-inducing, so if Phil is the queasy type at all that may be an issue. They’ll give him antinausea meds in recovery, but those wear off faster than the nausea does a lot of the time.
Phew…sorry for the mini-novel. Best of luck to you both!
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By Awlbiste on May 26, 2009
One of my aunts had the old break the nose surgery several years ago and it took her a good 6 weeks to be completely recovered. I would think the fancy pewpew lasers surgery should be less painful and heal quicker. Source: THEY’RE FRIGGIN LASERS!
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By Nef on May 26, 2009
the only time i got geral anesthesia was for a leg surgery and was on morphine for 2 days and still in a lot of pain. i actually begged for them to take me off the drugs because with all the nausea everything i ate took 2 minutes to get back outside :P I’ll have the pain, just give me my food :P
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By Tom on May 26, 2009
Howdy TJ,
Get some bananas. They’re soft and squishy, plus high in potassium, very important because low potassium will make you sicker then a dog. Doctors call’em mush foods. Soups are good too. The ones in the nukeable cups are great. Only have to clean the spoon, lol. The ones in the sippy cans, pop the lids, nuk’em and put the sippy lid back on, They taste pretty good too. I know this cause I just got done having abdominal surgery last week, not related to nose stuff, sorry.
I hope Phil does well. You’re a good egg TJ. :-) Best of luck.
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By Shawn on May 26, 2009
If Phil is going to be bed-bound, I’d say make sure to get him one of those plastic urinals. They’re a godsend when you’re in pain and don’t have the patience to make the trip to the restroom.
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By mo on May 26, 2009
Hi,
I had laser surgery on my nose some years ago. Don’t know if it’s similar, they just burned away my… my English leaves me here, and online dictionary says Nasenmuschel is “nasal concha”. Sounds weird, anyway, they killed it and I could breathe a lot better afterwards. ;)
The first night was ugly, because I sleep on the side and every time the pain meds worked so I fell asleep, I turned and woke up because I had touched the pillow with my nose. Ouch. More pain meds. Fall asleep… ouch.
Don’t know if tying Phil to the bed is an option, otherwise he will hurt himself a lot if he moves while sleeping.
Other than that, it wasn’t that bad. I had two weeks off for this as well, but I think I felt kind of okay after 3 or 4 days. Hope everything goes well!
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By twww on May 26, 2009
His nose may (probably) be plugged up with absorbent material for a few days making mouth breathing a necessity. Keep that in mind when thinking of food choices.
No idea how the pain part will be.
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By DougE on May 26, 2009
Reading about this surgery reminded me that Wil Wheaton, (the actor/author/internetblogger) had blogged about his nasal surgery experience. Not sure if it was the same laser thing but here are the links I dug up real quick on it.
http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2008/02/just-nod-if-you.html
http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2008/02/is-there-anyone.html
http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2008/02/i-dont-want-to.html
http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2008/02/in-a-room-witho.html
http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2008/02/notice-whom-for.html
http://wilwheaton.typepad.com/wwdnbackup/2008/02/breathe-breathe.html
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By Kelly on May 26, 2009
I’ve had several surgeries that involved general anesthesia. The migraines I got from the anesthesia were worse than the lingering pain of c-sections and a hysterectomy. Apparently, I’m allergic to general anesthesia. And any pain medication stronger than Tylenol 3. I needed a vacation, so milked the “staying in bed” thing for all it was worth with the last surgery. My hearty appetite was back as soon as the anesthesia-induced migraines went away.
I just had laser surgery on my eye (ON MY EYEBALL!!!) two weeks ago. I was fine by the end of the day.
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By Donnie on May 26, 2009
Deviated septum correction and sinus polyp removal for me. Took me down for 10 days. A buddy had the deviated septum correction a few weeks later, took him 3 days to recover. The polyp removal probably had more to do with my elongated recovery but it’s just different for everyone. I recommend a large supply of bananas and Gatorade. Good luck Phil!
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By Flaime on May 26, 2009
My wife had deviated septum correct…she was down for about 7 days, but she wasn’t really recovered for about 3 weeks. I would recommend broth, bananas and something with electrolytes. Odds are his sinuses will be packed with gauze for a couple of days. Also, in Arizona, it’s very dry. He’s going to want a humidifier for night time cause his mouth will dry out for the first few nights and his nose will dry out badly for a couple of weeks after that.
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By Alan on May 26, 2009
Well, I don’t know about THAT type of surgery, but I’ve had cosmetic nose surgery (I broke my nose, things moved around).
Personally, only the first day did it actually bother me a bit, and I said “screw resting”. I got home, and two hours later, I was already sitting by my computer, no laying down crap.
By the week (heck, maybe less) there was barely any bruising left. Though my nose remained slightly sensitive to touch for a while afterward (not painful, just bothersome if I were to touch it with a bit of pressure).
I also didn’t bleed much, just the first hour or two a couple of blood drops would slip down.
On the other hand, my mom had also had cosmetic nose surgery, and she took like 2 weeks before the bruising was gone.
So yes, it varies a LOT from one person to the next. But he should be fine.
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By Anna on May 26, 2009
Second the broth/soup, jello, bananas, gatorade thing. You might also look into sorbet/sherbet – the most heavenly thing I remember about anaesthesia recovery was my mom bringing me a big bowl of lime sherbet. That and the entire pound of malted milk balls I ate one afternoon, but that’s another story.
Sprite/Ginger ale is another good thing to have around. And if you’re the cooking type, boil some tiny pasta in fun shapes (like alphabets or stars and planets) in good chicken stock (like kitchen basics). tastes good, easy to eat, and some good nutrition in there too :)
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By Dzargul on May 26, 2009
I had the fun ol’d ‘break the nose’ surgery about 10 years ago(I, know…I know…a lifetime). At the same time they also removed my uvula(that hangy thing at the back of your throat).
The only advice I can strenously give is this: If they inform Phil he needs to take it easy to avoid breaking open the stitches, take them very seriously. Seriously as in ‘Phil should not place his head blow his waist or lift more than about 15 pounds’ seriously.
About a week after my surgery I figured I was good enough to shovel snow despite being warned to take 2 weeks. Long story short(and grossness cut out) I ended up back under anesthesia while they put the stitches back in to stop the profuse bleeding.
Not. Fun.
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By Vronak on May 27, 2009
Good luck to Phil and his nose removal surgery!
Good luck to TJ for not decking him after the first four days!
We’ll keep you both in our prayers :)
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By Capn John on May 27, 2009
I had my sinuses scraped for polyps when I was about 18 and still remember it vividly two decades later.
After the surgery do not, I repeat, DO NOT BEND OVER AT ALL!!! At least not for a couple of days. I knocked my box of tissues on the floor, leaned over the side of the bed to pick it up, and the best that I can describe it is a SHOOMP! as a huge weight shifted inside my sinus cavity. I immediately flopped back onto my bed as the room spun around me, or maybe I spun, but it was a good couple of minutes before I could summon the nurse to come and pick up the box for me.
Also Phil may (or hopefully, may not) have his sinuses packed with wadding (he probably will though). Mouth breathing for a couple of days? No big deal. Snoring? Yeah, he’s gonna be doing that. Eating/drinking for the couple of days afterwards with your sinuses stuffed full of surgical gauze?
Try this experiment right now. Yes you, at home (or at work), try this right now. Pinch your nostrils and hold your nose closed, now drink some water while keeping your nose completely blocked off. That’s sort of what eating & drinking is like after nasal surgery if you have your sinuses packed with surgical gauze.
Follow the doctor’s advice and heed Dzargul’s warning: Phil is cleared for two weeks off work, so TAKE IT EASY!
Here’s wishing Phil an uncomplicated procedure, and a very speedy recovery.
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By sara on May 27, 2009
My husband had that exact same surgery a year or so back, and he bounced back VERY fast. A few days. I say enjoy the vacation Phil!
Someone wrote to get the urinals if he’s gonna be bed bound… he isn’t. He might be a bit woozy at first, give him a hand getting there the first day or so, but he’ll be fine and tbh, those things are just nasty. Do you want to empty urinals?
Best of luck to Phil, and enjoy the time off!
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By Melchoir on May 27, 2009
I’ve been under general anesthesia twice. Once for Wisdom teeth extraction years ago and once for a combo of tonsil and cyst-in-the-nasal-passage removal on the day after Christmas 07. I considered having my deviated septum fixed on that last go-round, but the surgeon recommend that we not do too much at once. My warning may be late for Phil, but as a general rule, you may want to ask for anti-nausea meds up front. When I had my teeth pulled, I couldn’t hold anything down for almost an entire day. Only after I got some anti-nausea meds could I eat again. When I had the T-and-Cyst removal, I made sure everyone in the whole hospital knew that general anesthesia rips me a new one. While I was out, they attached a patch behind my right ear that helped reduce the nausea. My recovery was a bit quicker, but I still was very nauseous from simply moving my head when leaving the hospital. Regardless, it is extremely important to have a large pitcher to catch and food you can’t hold down.
Also, depending on how you adapt to GA and pain meds, you may experience odd sleep cycles. I ended up sleeping for about 6-8 hours after my second surgery, and then stayed up for over 26 hours. Also, check for any remnant patches they use to monitor your vitals. The doctors left one on me, and I didn’t even notice until about 20 hours later. I am sure the hydrocodone didn’t help.
Good luck.
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By Liz on May 27, 2009
What is behind the driving phobia? You’re rendered yourself so dependent on this man. Goodness!
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By TJ on May 27, 2009
@Liz: We’re pretty dependent on each other, actually. So he does the driving. I cook his food. He kills spiders. I keep track of all of his upcoming events. He washes dishes. I clean the bathroom.
AND HAVE YOU SEEN THE WAY ARIZONA PEOPLE DRIVE?
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By Bernie on May 29, 2009
You are missing the point about driving. Once you know the area and where you are going driving will seem less chaotic.
Also the amazing thing about nasal surgery is the amount of gauze packing they can fit up your nose!
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By Chad on May 29, 2009
When I had my gallbladder out two months ago the nurses at the very last minute mentioned “You may have trouble peeing.”
What they should have said was “For the first two days you’ll spend 15 hovering over the toilet every time you *try* and take a pee.” Turns out general anesthesia also relaxes the bladder.
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