The Surgery - Part III

Want to read the beginning of this chronicle? Start with Part I.
Want to read about the experience of the un-anesthetized? Read Part II.
Want to read about getting JD out of recovery and into the car? Keep reading.

So, John Dear has come out of surgery and is in Phase I of recovery. As far as I can tell, it means he's still asleep from the anesthesia or from a post-surgery shot of morphine. The family is not allowed to see the patient until Phase II (sitting up, awake, able to eat and drink). Once in Phase II and the patient's pain has stabilized to a manageable level, the patient can go home. The hospital's estimate of recovery was about one hour.

Is that how long my darling spent in recovery? Nope!! Because hospitals are stupid and not willing to listen to anyone but a drugged-up, agreeable-due-to-drugs patient (not the mother and wife who actually know the guy's medical history), John Dear was in recovery for six hours! Recovery comprised of JD's sensitivity to morphine, 2 full courses of morphine given, sats (that is, the amount of oxygen in the blood) dropping, no stabilization of pain because the nerve block had worn off, AND AFTER THEY HAD PROMISED TO DO SO, NO CPAP!!!!! In the words of my 7-year old and present self, "They are all BUMS."

Eventually, we got JD's pain stabilized and were able to get him out to the car (in a wheelchair), although the nurses almost forgot to discharge him. In fact, they would not have given us discharge instructions had his mother not asked for them. And me, his wife, who was going to be staying with him, was told to get the car and was not given instructions!!!! Again, BUMS!!!!

**Please forgive the complete overkill of exclamation points in this post.**