Surgery Day

Today is the day I had my surgery. I was blessed to have the company of my husband and my best friend. When I first got there, they put me in a temporary room where I put on my gown, did some blood work, and answered some questions about my health history.

I could feel the nerves start to get the best of me. That is the worst thing that I do; I think too much. So they allowed me to have one Xanax to ease my nerves a bit. It helped a lot. The next moment they come in and tell me that it is time to go. They wheeled me through some halls and then I kissed my husband before I went in. Then, they stopped my bed right in front of the operating room. I was so happy that they didn't bring me in there. I think seeing all of that equipment would overwhelm me. So, I see the Dr walking down the hall to say hello and to write on my left side. I guess this is to ensure me that they will operate on the correct side. He smiled and assured me that I was in good hands. I remember a lady there holding my hand and telling me that everything will be alright and to put my trust in god. Then, the anesthesiologist arrived and introduced himself and told me that he was going to give me my cocktail. That was the last moment I remember before surgery.

My surgery took 3 hours and was completely successful. My memory is a little fuzzy on the after surgery part. But, I do remember waking up and feeling the difference in my breathing already. I was actually laying on my left side and I had NO congestion. This was a first for a long time! Then, I remember them saying that my blood pressure was getting really low and they needed to take me off a certain medicine. I normally always have low pressure so this didn't surprise me.

Then, they wheeled me into my room. It was the cute guy that my best friend and I were talking about earlier! LOL. I remember telling him that he smelled good LOL. As, he was wheeling me around I felt really dizzy. I remember feeling the cool air of the AC vent as I was wheeled into my room. I asked him to stop right there for just a moment so I could make the dizzyness go away. After that, I went to sleep and that is all I remember of that day.

My CT Scan

Well, I had my pre-op CT Scan. Here you can see where the sequestration is on the left side. I have an appointment with the surgeon next week to start planning the surgery.

The Begining of the End ... (end of PS, not life)

Since is this is my first post, I thought I would give a little bit of my background and what i have experienced so far.

AS long as I can remembered I have always had asthma (mainly when I was sick) and reoccurring bronchitis and pneumonia. I also remember getting these sharp pains on my lower left side and it was so painful that it was hard to breath. My mother took me took the doctor and all they would say was that I had bad posture. Really? Posture, are you kidding me? Back in those it seemed so hard to get a doctor that would go that extra step.

Then, when I hit my 20's I decided that since I was paying my own insurance now that I would push a little harder to find out what was going on. I knew it wasn't normal to get this kind of cough all the time and cough up this much phlegm. It would get to the point where I would have to to go to sleep with a cup next to my bed just in case I needed to clear my chest so I could get a decent sleep. So, I had Kaiser ... for those of you who are familiar with Kaiser know how much you have to push them. After pushing for a CT scan, I finally got one. I then saw a Pulmologist and he told me that I have a Pulmonary Sequestration (PS) and bronchiactisis (which is caused by the PS. He never told me what the resolution was. I kind of felt like his little experiment. Every few months he would ask me to have my blood taken and spit in a cup. So, I continued to be his lab rat because I didn't know any better. Anytime I got sick he would load me up with antibiotics until the next flare up came.

Then, I moved to Idaho. When I moved there my lungs went CRAZY! Maybe it was because the change of environment, or the smell of cows, or that they put me in an office next to a mold infested room? So, I found a lung doctor there that wanted to confirm everything Kaiser told me. So, he ordered a CT Scan, but this time I got the die put inside to help. He also had me do a pulmonary function test. The CT Scan confirmed I had a PS and the function test confirmed I was trapping air and I had an obstruction (PS). So, he told me that he will continue to give me antibiotics until my body stopped reacting and then we would decide if we needed to do surgery.

Then, I moved back to California. But, this time NO KAISER! Yay! i had Blue Cross and they didn't hesitate to tell me that I need the surgery. He told me that if I didn't do the surgery I would run the risk of the artery bursting and life isn't going to get any better, so I might as well get the surgery. He asked that I get one more CT Scan, a Pulmonary Function Test, and a blood test before I can talk to the surgeon. I have already had my function test, my CT Scan is next week, and then I meet with my doctor the next week after that. I am very nervous for the surgery, but I am ready to end all of this coughing and phlegm.

So, I will post often as I go through this surgery. Hoping this will help others who may go through the same thing.