Yesterday I had two appointments back to back. One at 8:30 with my surgeon to go over the last 10 months of testing, and one at 10:30 down in north D.C. for a pre-op anesthesia consult.
Unfortunately my 8:30 appointment didn’t take me in till 9:45, so I didn’t get out of there til 10:20 for my 10:30 appointment an hour away. I called and told them I’d be about half an hour late, and made it down there in only 30 minutes 😡 Thank goodness for HOV lanes that end at 9am and lots of fast traffic.
Surgeon appointment was good. He had not received my bloodwork from the lab yet, but he said everything looked to be in order. He did another hands-on check, which is always uncomfortable. I asked him if he ever got disgusted by the work that he did, and he said “No, I love it. I get to give people a second chance.” I could hear the passion in his voice, I liked that.
They also took my “before” picture (I still plan to take some of my own, probably tomorrow when I’m home from the filter surgery because it’s too dark by the time I get home or get up in the morning anymore).
The drive down to D.C. was pretty uneventful. I was able to find the hospital okay, so hopefully dad will be alright to come pick me up.
The hospital essentially went over all the instructions pre-surgery, gave me some special soap to wash with the morning before surgery, took some blood to verify my blood type, and really pounded into my head the issue of possible death. That’s naturally upsetting. Apparently I should also bring a copy of my Will with me to surgery. I know they are trying to protect their butts, but I really don’t want to focus on death, I would rather focus on living.
I had a small cry on the way home because it really is difficult. I mean I could very well be dead by the end of the week. People keep saying not to think about it. Really? You expect me not to? Even things outside the surgery are difficult and occasionally it all compounds together. I just want to be focused and careful and follow instructions explicitly to get through this without incident, and get back on track.
Good news though, I’ve lost another 11 pounds since last month for 21 pound total lost since August. I wanted to lose 20 pounds before surgery to reach a certain goal by March. I’ve also felt much better and my knees hurt less since I’ve been on the pre-op diet.