My 5 days in the hospital…

As my 1 year anniversary came and went quietly, I was definitely reminded of the entire process of getting my Mind, Body & Soul prepared to have brain surgery which at the time was an incredibly surreal feeling.  Nevertheless, I checked into the hospital a day early to get my pre-op MRI done which pinpointed the exact location of the tumor and to get prepped for surgery with blood tests and IV drips, etc…

After I was admitted and got settled, some family and friends came by to visit and share words of comfort and support which I sincerely appreciated.  Yet, in my mind I was completely at Peace with what was about to happen because at that point, it was “In God’s Hands”.  Dr. Dye had explained the surgery procedure and possible side effects as the tumor was located in the left front side of my brain.  The process was to cut my scalp from my left ear to the top of my head and then down to the center of my forehead making a semi-circle, peel the scalp back, saw my cranium open and place it in a sterile environment.  Once my brain was exposed they would remove the tumor then secure my cranium with 4 titanium plates and screws for the re-fusing process which would take up to 1 year.  Then use 1.5 inch long stainless steel staples to close the incision on my head so it would heal.  Just for the record, No I don’t set off the security machines at the airport – LOL…

Later that night around 9:30 p.m. as I was saying goodnight to my parents, I was informed that I would be the first patient up for surgery that next morning at 7 a.m.  Needless to say, I didn’t sleep at all that night and watched the sun come up to brighten the overcast day.  My mother walked through the door around 6 a.m. with a look of Love, Anxiety and Helplessness on her face as she smiled and asked me how I was doing?   Around 7 a.m. I was told my surgery had been pushed back to 1 p.m.  It was a slight relief, but at that point I just wanted to get it over with.  Then, at 11 a.m. the operating room nurse came in, told me it was time to go and got the process started by asking me my name and birthdate.  I looked at my mother and my aunt Gracie, told them I loved them and was wheeled out of the room.  At that moment, all I could think about was the wait I endured waiting for my friend Elaine to come out of surgery and what my family was about to go through waiting for me.

After we got downstairs, the nurse put the gurney against the wall right outside the operating room doors where I waited for almost two hours while the room was being sterilized.  At some point I fell asleep and was awaken when they started rolling me into the operating room.  It was 12:52 p.m., the room was cold and it all became as real as real could get with the team of doctors conversing,  me asking questions about the instruments they were going to use and the anesthesiologist interrupting everyone so as to ask me my name and birthdate.  I was just about to ask my surgeon to take a picture of the tumor, but before I could get it out, I was waking up in the Intensive Care Unit 6.5 hours later.

When I woke up, my mother was standing on my right side along with two of my other friends.  I think I cracked a couple of jokes and fell asleep again.  As everyone was leaving we all smiled, but I could sense another sleepless night was about to begin.  This time it was because the anesthesia was wearing off and OH MY GOODNESS!!!  The pain coming from my head was beyond indescribable, unbelievably intense and so enormous that morphine injections and vicodin did nothing to ease my condition.  After the surgeons made their rounds and checked on me the next morning, I was moved to my room where I spent the next three days enduring the pain while taking phone calls from friends, family and those who came by to see me.

I finally came home on May 16th which I welcomed as I was leaving behind the beeping IV machines, having my vitals checked every 4 hours, no sleep, blood draws every day and the horrible hospital food.  When I got home, I looked at my swollen head in the mirror, patiently took my first shower since surgery and laid down to rest.  While laying down in my own bed it was so quiet and comfortable, but it was also at that moment I realized, the easy part was over and the hard part was just about to begin – My Journey after Brain Surgery.

Below are two pictures of my MRI scans.  The picture on the left is pre-op with the tumor and taken on 5/12/10 and the other picture on the right is post-op taken on 9/7/10 where I’m tumor free.  The scans are reversed as the MRI machine scans your head from the top down.

This next shot is my post surgery hospital glamour shot – LOL…