Sunday 23^rd March – Operation Day!

I went in at 7am and was second on the surgical list. Once the “gin and tonic” had been slipped in (this was how the anaesthetist put it) I was out for the count and the next thing I knew I was coming around in a smaller room with a nice warm blanket around my head. They gave me a spinal, put me fully to sleep and I had a nerve block in my leg.

For the next 24 hours I was relaxed in a really nice way and could not feel anything. This made whizzing around on the walker a breeze. It was so nice not to be in pain. I was told the pain was coming, but at this point I was naïve enough to think it might swerve me and they were all being a bit dramatic.

The hospital stay itself went smoothly. I ate when they fed me, took my medication when they told me to. A pump was fitted to my feet which was working on preventing blood clots, which thankfully it did and there was a cooling pad on my knee which helped keep the swelling down. I slept a lot but did have visitors so was able to make conversation for short bursts of time.

The focus for the medical team was to monitor my temperature, blood pressure, oxygen levels etc and to administer a cocktail of pain medication; this was well in hand whilst I was in hospital. It was hard to sleep for long periods because of the obs, but it was necessary, so you just have to roll with it. My daughter bought me a lovely new throw which I really appreciated as it made me feel more at home and helped me sleep. I did take a suitcase in with me but didn't need most of what I packed.