It is currently 12:12am as I sit down to type this. I got home from the hospital about 11:30pm to chat with Lizzie for a few minutes and eat some of her leftover Chinese food.
My husband, whom I love ever so dearly, had his appendix removed this evening. Eric is 48 years old and has NEVER had surgery before. We have been married for 21 years (in November) and the man has basically been a picture of health. Apparently last night his stomach started bothering him. What else do you do when that happens? You eat a bowl of cereal! This didn’t seem to do the trick so he went to bed and was awaken at 2am with severe lower abdominal pain. What do you do when this happens? You get up and google “severe abdominal pain” and you quickly rule out appendix because your symptoms don’t match with the Mayo Clinic! Ok… (thank God for the internet right?!) Now keep in mind that I’ve slept quite peacefully and had NO idea he was having a sleepless night. This morning he didn’t look so good, but he had just gotten up so I was cutting him some slack. He told me about his night (thank you God for allowing me to be a sound sleeper!) and I said, “Well let’s get you to the ER” I think what he heard was, “Well let’s cut your body in half” because he said, “no, I just need to lie down” After taking the girls to school and returning home (side note: at the light turning onto our street the car in front of me was just sitting there when the light had turned green so I honked, only to follow the car INTO my subdivision and find out it was my neighbor! A sorry email was quickly sent), Eric was sitting at the kitchen table and said, “maybe I need some coffee”. I’m no rocket scientist but hmm…. after taking a few sips he went to bed. I went into our room and told him we were going to the doctor. He of course had to take a shower. By the time we got to the doctor is was about 10am. At about noon they called me back and told me that I was to take him directly to the Emergency room because they couldn’t rule out appendix. How could the internet have been wrong??? So off we go to the ER. Let me now say that I loathe the ER. We arrived at 12:30pm and after all was said and done, we got back to the real ER at 6pm. I would like to add that Eric did have to drink 4 glasses of something each half hour starting at 2pm so that did take some time. They gave him some pain meds and it was magical how happy he became! Now when they wore off…. he might have resembled a drug addict! The resident surgeon came and saw us and told us that it was in fact an appendicitis and that he would be having surgery at approx 10pm (this was 7pm). I was thinking that I would go home, spend some time with the girls, etc and the next thing we knew they said that people said they would stay and do his surgery and off he was! He was like a movie star being escorted to a premier! He went into surgery around 8:45pm and the doctor came and talked to me about 10:10pm. She said it all went well but when they got in the appendix was “grey” and “deadlike” so it was about to rupture. It was good that they caught it! I am truly thankful for that!
Here are some memorable moments from today:
After Eric got his first pain shot and was sitting in a chair with his legs propped up:
Eric: “oh my gosh, as soon as my head quit spinning, this is the best feeling ever”
”hey, I was going to ask you something but I forgot”
“hey, if it’s my appendix, do you think they can do it laprascopy?”
”this is really good stuff… you might find me wandering Detroit looking for this”
Honestly, I was just praying he would stop talking and sleep! The pain meds started to wear off…..
”wow, I really need some medication”
”I’m starting to feel like I did before the medication and that wasn’t a good feeling”
”Sharon, you need to tell them that I need some meds”
I gently reminded him about the lady in the room next to us that had literally been crying for HOURS in pain. I am not kidding. I felt so sorry for them. She and her husband had been there since before us and she was crying so hard. He reminded me that HE was in pain. I ignored him.
When we got back to what I call the “real” ER, it was all business. Two guys, I’m not sure what they were called but they weren’t doctors but they did all the prep work came in and were really quite funny! Eric was shooting his one liners right back at them and they were all having a great time until they left and he had told them that the meds had worn off and he was in pain again.
“Sharon, listen to them, they are out there talking, laughing and having a great time and I’m in pain”
Me: ”Eric, until you’ve given birth to three children and had an ectopic pregnancy that resulted in surgery, I don’t want to hear how bad your pain is.”
Eric: ”But I’m in pain right now and all they have to do is bring me the medicine”
Me: “this might be a lesson in patience. It could have been worse. It is your appendix. Big deal, you don’t need it anyway! We are not promised a life without difficulties so be thankful that this is all it is. Stop complaining about it, it could be a lot worse.”
This seemed to make him pause for a second. It reminded me that we are not promised a life without trials or struggles. We need to remember that there is someone else who is hurting or struggling more than we are. We need to look at the situation and see it for what it is. An appendix? What the heck does it do for us anyway? Nothing but possibly give us some trouble and surgery to have it removed! It’s not cancer. Thank you God! So many things to be thankful for so instead of thinking “why me?” we need to think “Thank you God, it could’ve been worse”
On a side note, Eric’s fever spiked before surgery and in the recovery room he got quite sick and freaked out. He later told me that he might not have been so nice. I’m sure they understood! They told me where he would be after recovery so I went there. When they wheeled him into the room he said, “Are the girls here?” I said, “No, they are at home” and he said, “Ok, I don’t want them to see me like this.” The nurse that had him in recovery looked at me, put her hand to her heart and about lost it! She mouthed, “that was so sweet”
He is. I’m thankful that he is my husband and the father of my girls and that he takes such good care of us! I’m not sure what kind of nurse I’ll be…. I’m afraid I’m not a very good one. Hopefully that won’t be another blog.
Arriving at the hospital Wednesday morning:
Eric looks so much better! He was telling me that he was up and going to the bathroom and was walking down the hall with the IV thing only to have walked all the way with his “friend” and realized that he wasn’t hooked up to an IV!!! That must have been a sight!
The doctor came in and talked about the surgery. She said she was amazed at how bad the appendix was (but hadn’t ruptured) and how high his fever was right before going into surgery. She said that when he came out of recovery, apparently he was trying to get off the bed and telling people to “stay away from him”! She said he at one point started swinging! Eric just laughed as he had no recollection of this! She said, “We see it a lot, especially in men”!
Some more memorable moments:
I went to the pharmacy to get Eric’s Vicodin perscription and wow, this hospital is amazing! The gift shop is UNBELIEVABLE, the coffee shop is AMAZING! They have a spa and salon…… had I only known sooner! I did buy some hand lotion because I’m sure hand lotion from the hospital is so much better right?! When I got back to Eric’s room I gave him the prescription and told him it was $3. His response, “Did you tell them we’ll take a lot more at that price?”
Talked with Emily and had some fun conversation.
Emily: “How’s dad feeling?”
Me: “Oh he’s fine”
Eric: (in the background) “Emily don’t listen to her, the only reason I’m fine is because I’m on Vicodin. I’m not fine I had surgery last night”
Emily: “Mom, be nice to dad when you get him home. When he asks for tea, get it for him, don’t leave it in the microwave like you would do with me.” (I think I see some therapy in her future!)
Emily: “Mom, don’t tell dad where my Vicodin is”
Me: “You have Vicodin?”
Emily: “Yes mom, when I went to the hospital for my back and they gave it to me but I never took it but don’t let Dad know!”
Me: “I don’t even know where it is”
Emily: “I think it’s on the table next to your bed.”
*I feel this conversation is wrong on so many levels!!
My husband, whom I love ever so dearly, had his appendix removed this evening. Eric is 48 years old and has NEVER had surgery before. We have been married for 21 years (in November) and the man has basically been a picture of health. Apparently last night his stomach started bothering him. What else do you do when that happens? You eat a bowl of cereal! This didn’t seem to do the trick so he went to bed and was awaken at 2am with severe lower abdominal pain. What do you do when this happens? You get up and google “severe abdominal pain” and you quickly rule out appendix because your symptoms don’t match with the Mayo Clinic! Ok… (thank God for the internet right?!) Now keep in mind that I’ve slept quite peacefully and had NO idea he was having a sleepless night. This morning he didn’t look so good, but he had just gotten up so I was cutting him some slack. He told me about his night (thank you God for allowing me to be a sound sleeper!) and I said, “Well let’s get you to the ER” I think what he heard was, “Well let’s cut your body in half” because he said, “no, I just need to lie down” After taking the girls to school and returning home (side note: at the light turning onto our street the car in front of me was just sitting there when the light had turned green so I honked, only to follow the car INTO my subdivision and find out it was my neighbor! A sorry email was quickly sent), Eric was sitting at the kitchen table and said, “maybe I need some coffee”. I’m no rocket scientist but hmm…. after taking a few sips he went to bed. I went into our room and told him we were going to the doctor. He of course had to take a shower. By the time we got to the doctor is was about 10am. At about noon they called me back and told me that I was to take him directly to the Emergency room because they couldn’t rule out appendix. How could the internet have been wrong??? So off we go to the ER. Let me now say that I loathe the ER. We arrived at 12:30pm and after all was said and done, we got back to the real ER at 6pm. I would like to add that Eric did have to drink 4 glasses of something each half hour starting at 2pm so that did take some time. They gave him some pain meds and it was magical how happy he became! Now when they wore off…. he might have resembled a drug addict! The resident surgeon came and saw us and told us that it was in fact an appendicitis and that he would be having surgery at approx 10pm (this was 7pm). I was thinking that I would go home, spend some time with the girls, etc and the next thing we knew they said that people said they would stay and do his surgery and off he was! He was like a movie star being escorted to a premier! He went into surgery around 8:45pm and the doctor came and talked to me about 10:10pm. She said it all went well but when they got in the appendix was “grey” and “deadlike” so it was about to rupture. It was good that they caught it! I am truly thankful for that!
Here are some memorable moments from today:
After Eric got his first pain shot and was sitting in a chair with his legs propped up:
Eric: “oh my gosh, as soon as my head quit spinning, this is the best feeling ever”
”hey, I was going to ask you something but I forgot”
“hey, if it’s my appendix, do you think they can do it laprascopy?”
”this is really good stuff… you might find me wandering Detroit looking for this”
Honestly, I was just praying he would stop talking and sleep! The pain meds started to wear off…..
”wow, I really need some medication”
”I’m starting to feel like I did before the medication and that wasn’t a good feeling”
”Sharon, you need to tell them that I need some meds”
I gently reminded him about the lady in the room next to us that had literally been crying for HOURS in pain. I am not kidding. I felt so sorry for them. She and her husband had been there since before us and she was crying so hard. He reminded me that HE was in pain. I ignored him.
When we got back to what I call the “real” ER, it was all business. Two guys, I’m not sure what they were called but they weren’t doctors but they did all the prep work came in and were really quite funny! Eric was shooting his one liners right back at them and they were all having a great time until they left and he had told them that the meds had worn off and he was in pain again.
“Sharon, listen to them, they are out there talking, laughing and having a great time and I’m in pain”
Me: ”Eric, until you’ve given birth to three children and had an ectopic pregnancy that resulted in surgery, I don’t want to hear how bad your pain is.”
Eric: ”But I’m in pain right now and all they have to do is bring me the medicine”
Me: “this might be a lesson in patience. It could have been worse. It is your appendix. Big deal, you don’t need it anyway! We are not promised a life without difficulties so be thankful that this is all it is. Stop complaining about it, it could be a lot worse.”
This seemed to make him pause for a second. It reminded me that we are not promised a life without trials or struggles. We need to remember that there is someone else who is hurting or struggling more than we are. We need to look at the situation and see it for what it is. An appendix? What the heck does it do for us anyway? Nothing but possibly give us some trouble and surgery to have it removed! It’s not cancer. Thank you God! So many things to be thankful for so instead of thinking “why me?” we need to think “Thank you God, it could’ve been worse”
On a side note, Eric’s fever spiked before surgery and in the recovery room he got quite sick and freaked out. He later told me that he might not have been so nice. I’m sure they understood! They told me where he would be after recovery so I went there. When they wheeled him into the room he said, “Are the girls here?” I said, “No, they are at home” and he said, “Ok, I don’t want them to see me like this.” The nurse that had him in recovery looked at me, put her hand to her heart and about lost it! She mouthed, “that was so sweet”
He is. I’m thankful that he is my husband and the father of my girls and that he takes such good care of us! I’m not sure what kind of nurse I’ll be…. I’m afraid I’m not a very good one. Hopefully that won’t be another blog.
Arriving at the hospital Wednesday morning:
Eric looks so much better! He was telling me that he was up and going to the bathroom and was walking down the hall with the IV thing only to have walked all the way with his “friend” and realized that he wasn’t hooked up to an IV!!! That must have been a sight!
The doctor came in and talked about the surgery. She said she was amazed at how bad the appendix was (but hadn’t ruptured) and how high his fever was right before going into surgery. She said that when he came out of recovery, apparently he was trying to get off the bed and telling people to “stay away from him”! She said he at one point started swinging! Eric just laughed as he had no recollection of this! She said, “We see it a lot, especially in men”!
Some more memorable moments:
I went to the pharmacy to get Eric’s Vicodin perscription and wow, this hospital is amazing! The gift shop is UNBELIEVABLE, the coffee shop is AMAZING! They have a spa and salon…… had I only known sooner! I did buy some hand lotion because I’m sure hand lotion from the hospital is so much better right?! When I got back to Eric’s room I gave him the prescription and told him it was $3. His response, “Did you tell them we’ll take a lot more at that price?”
Talked with Emily and had some fun conversation.
Emily: “How’s dad feeling?”
Me: “Oh he’s fine”
Eric: (in the background) “Emily don’t listen to her, the only reason I’m fine is because I’m on Vicodin. I’m not fine I had surgery last night”
Emily: “Mom, be nice to dad when you get him home. When he asks for tea, get it for him, don’t leave it in the microwave like you would do with me.” (I think I see some therapy in her future!)
Emily: “Mom, don’t tell dad where my Vicodin is”
Me: “You have Vicodin?”
Emily: “Yes mom, when I went to the hospital for my back and they gave it to me but I never took it but don’t let Dad know!”
Me: “I don’t even know where it is”
Emily: “I think it’s on the table next to your bed.”
*I feel this conversation is wrong on so many levels!!
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