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Tuesday 10 March 2015

Home at last and photos of me in hospital

Home sweet home! I actually didn't get out until Saturday because I have a urinary tract infection, so I had to wait for the lab analysis and get the right kind of antibiotics for it. It was disappointing, but I knew I wouldn't have been comfortable back home until it was at least semi sorted, and was just glad it wasn't caused by something more sinister. It's quite common after this kind of surgery and/or having a catheter in place, apparently.

Here are some photos taken on my OH's phone of my posh private room. It's a newish hospital with no wards and only single or double rooms anyway, but my level of supplementary health cover meant I could have the top of the range room. I won't bore you with how the system works here, as it's rather complicated, but I was happy to have this room. Here are some pics showing it the evening before my surgery. Even tea and coffee making in the room and a fridge/mini bar! The second photo shows the other end of the room so you can see how big it was.



Several days later here's a pic of me still in intensive care, although I had lost the oxygen tube up my nose by then. Those heart monitors really stick, and I had to get my OH to remove the residual glue with white spirit when I got home. To start with I was linked to an epidural machine, heart monitors, two IV lines for drips, oxygen, a catheter, and drains from my wounds. I think that was it!

I was only without food for two days before they started giving me light meals, but I managed to lose about 5kg (11 pounds) over four days, which is quite incredible (I didn't know my arse was so heavy, haha!). Thankfully I'm slowly putting it back on again.


Three days after surgery I was back in the posh private room, but really noticed the difference in level of care between the normal part of the hospitalisation area and intensive care. But it was great not to have nurses coming in every hour through the night checking on me, cos you don't get much sleep. By this time I was on solid food and getting bigger and bigger meals which were a bit offputting to start with, but I have to say the hospital food was very good, and during my stay I saw more veggies than I've been served in 17 years of eating out or in French peoples' houses. They truly are a bizarre race of people who just don't seem to eat (or serve) vegetables, other than chips and the occasional baked tomato, or if you are lucky, my favourite, pommes de terre dauphinoise, yet all manner of veggies are sold in supermarkets and markets! I still don't know what they do with them....


My family bought me pretty flowers to brighten up my room and I had a nice visit from a virtual friend, who I met on Facebook some while back, as she and her husband were in Rennes visiting their sister in law, who was in another hospital. They brought me yummy chocs. An unlikely manner of meeting someone for the first time, but hopefully in the future we'll have a happier get together in healthier circumstances!


A few days later once I was up on my feet and after I had had a blessed shower and washed and blow dried my hair! I had no idea I was going to be allowed to shower with stitches in, but boy it felt good and I looked and felt human again! In my last four days I started venturing out into the corridors with a physio who got me climbing stairs, which wasn't as hard as I'd imagined. I also had a good walk around in the afternoons when my OH came to visit. One sunny afternoon I even ventured outside to get a few rays of much needed sun.


My Photoshopping friend, the one who did the arse tours graphic, came up with this little gem. :-)



And now back in more familiar circumstances! No I am not working outside, only walking or supervising my OH doing a few garden jobs. I really am incapable so there is no chance of me overdoing anything for the time being. The earliest PSB is sprouting really well, so I supervised cutting a bagful for some friends who are coming to visit this afternoon. We haven't eaten any yet, because all things cabbage related, along with many other veg, are on my list of things which give you gas, to be reintroduced into my diet one at a time. So I'll have a little taste soon, and see how it goes. Even if we don't eat much of it this year, it won't be really wasted, as I'm thinking ahead to when it's in full, glorious flower attracting all manner of bees..... And that's one kind of photography I can do upright, as the flowers grow tall. They are a welcome blast of colour too.


Here's one of the 'Rudolph' variety in full glory. Yes I even took a few photos yesterday, but just using my little P&S camera. I'd forgotten how difficult it is in sunshine without a viewfinder, to see what on earth you are shooting.


Now I just have to take it easy and do as much gentle walking as possible, and get myself better slowly. The only possible blot on the horizon is if I have to have further chemo, but I'm still waiting to hear back on that.

As for my bag? Well it's easy to change and won't be too big a deal, I don't think. My stoma makes some interesting noises and lets rip with some good fart noises occasionally, over which one has absolutely no control (hence being careful of the gas inducing foods), and my belly will never look pretty again and is quite lumpy and swollen at the moment, but I guess it will all settle down eventually. I wasn't going to be wearing a bikini ever again at my age, anyway! I have a special belt like a weight lifting belt to wear for the first month, making me look about five months pregnant, but which provides a good amount of support. I'm in discomfort around the perineal area where I am having my stitches out slowly this week over three sessions by the local nurses, who come out to give me an anti blood clotting jab every evening for 28 days after leaving hospital, and two blood tests a week..... all a bit of a palaver, but the best thing about my op - no pain when I poo any more!!!

By the way, how many people can say that the Mayor of their town or village has looked at their private parts? Well I can, cos guess what, our Maire's (mayor) day job is as a nurse! He's the most gentle of the lot too. No wonder they voted him in as our mayor!

16 comments:

  1. Hurray you are home, so good to see you up and about even if it's only moving slowly, you look really well considering what you've been through. Here's to a fast and pain free recovery.
    Lots of flower growing for the bees is a good idea, making the most of your garden. I'm going to look for some early flowering plants for the bees my self this weekend. Take care.
    Amanda xx

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    1. Thanks Amanda, it's great to be home. Saw a few butterflies the first few days but it's turned cloudy now. Never mind I can look at daffodils through the window which are cheery! xx

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  2. Welcome home Mandy, you look really well in hospital especially the first thumbs up pic. Hospital...... wow what a room! Like your PSB, and I must congratulate you on wearing the correct colour of jacket when standing by it.... pass on regards to OH for fine digging of that patch, if he did dig it. I have sown Broad bean and pea plants in pots ready to go out next week... and just picked first forced rhubarb.

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    1. Thank you Ian. Yup, gotta match your clothes to your veggies, don't you know! My OH did do all the digging, then covered one plot completely with geotextile weighed down with big stones, like you'd suggested. Only we had strong wind and it blew it all into a complete mess, so I think hoeing may be the order of the day! Have some seed spuds in a cupboard which haven't even been put to chit yet, I dread to think what has happened to them. I refuse to watch Gardeners World so that I don't get antsy about what I can't do! It's hard to chill sometimes. :-)

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  3. It's lovely to see you out and about Mandy. Lovely as your hospital room was I'm sure you were glad to see the back of it!

    I have a serious case pf psb envy! But it must be awful to see those lovely heads and not be able to eat them!

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    1. Thanks D-woman. Yup I got pretty stir crazy towards the end, it's so boring in hospital and French TV is awful too! Think we might eat some PSB tonight - I'll just have a little. Not going anywhere so a few gassy noises won't matter! :-)

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  4. I bet the cats were glad to see you Mandy.
    You look great in all the photos and smiling in every one, even in Intensive Care.
    Here's to a speedy recovery and we look forward to seeing you later in the year either in France or the UK.

    Philippa xx

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    1. Thanks Philippa. The cats gave me the cold shoulder to start with then started howling outside my bedroom door and bashing it to come in! I'm sleeping in the ground floor bedroom for now. It didn't take long for them to forgive me. :-) Look forward to seeing you too, and it was D and J who came by yesterday, as they'd been away and couldn't visit me in the hospital.

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  5. Good to see you back home Mandy.
    Should make for interesting conversations with the Mayor in future, I guess he can rely on your vote.{:))

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    1. Hi Roy and thanks. Have to admit I've never registered to vote for local elections, as I have never known the candidates or received any bumph in the letterbox to give any idea who to vote for. But now I've met him in his other capacity, he'd get my vote, so I think I'll register when I'm able. :-)

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  6. So glad you're home and looking so well. Won't be long before all the insects are back keeping you amused on the flowers. Glad to see you looking so well and sounding so chipper xxx

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    1. Thanks CT. It's been my online friends who have kept me sane and smiling through this time in hospital! And my dear OH as well of course. Looking forward to warmer weather and true spring by which time I'll be able to do a bit more..... :-) xx

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  7. Good to see you back home Mandy. You do look really good too.xx
    P.S your friend's good at photoshopping isn't she. :-)

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    1. Hi Deb and thanks. It's a he, and actually he can do some awful pisstakes, so I reckon I got lucky this time. When I'm better, he won't be so kind! :-)

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  8. Great to see you blogging too ... I'd missed that new graphic from 'you know who' a few days ago lol

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    1. Hi Rosie - wanted to put these pics here for my non fb friends to see. Looking forward to my blog getting back to normal, nature posts!

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