i’m a week out of surgery today. thank you to everyone who has reached out and checked in, brought food and flowers, and just sent warm thoughts our way.

i went into surgery excited, in a way, to get it done.

at the same time, i was forgetful of the whole process. i got woozy when the nurse was trying to start my IV, so they covered me with wet clothes and reclined me further. the surgeon came in and said, “wow, we haven’t even done anything to you yet!” and he proceeded to draw in purple sharpee all over my torso and chest. like connect the dots, but with human tissue.

i was also forgetful about recovery. recovery is painful (see 8-inch bruise of my leg/booty here where they removed some fat). pain meds are really dizzying. sponge-bathing is only so thorough. being unable to lift things is lame. being able to sleep only on my back wedged between 4 pillows is a process (although i’ve managed to sleep until noon more days than not. it’s like i’m 14 again!). post-surgical compression garments leave much to be desired, both in their beauty and comfort. a surgical drain swinging from my body still reminds me of a grenade (except when it pops open in the middle of the night, waking me up with a solid dousing of bodily fluids. then i know exactly what it is). 

in other updates, thursday, friday and saturday are a blur. from my perch in the coveted chaise section of our couch or the multi-pillow nest in the bed, i organized pictures and caught up on the 71 drafts in my email inbox. but, i have zero recollection of doing any of those things, so i’m sorry to the recipients if they were nonsensical.

the el nino rain has been perfect ambiance in which to rest, although it causes a bit of stir craziness (the first time i went outside since thursday was monday…!). and because of the tube they stuck down my throat to help me breathe, i was left with barely a voice until monday. so it’s been a pretty quiet weekend all around.

mis parientes are here assisting and that’s been such a help, especially as we’ve passed around some persistent cough (as they say, families that cough together, stay together).

i *hope* to get the drain out tomorrow (i think there’s another song in here about drains, sung to the tune of prince’s “purple rain” but i can’t quite get the lyrics down yet).

and then we continue recovery, slow and steady, tapering off pain meds and antibiotics, moving my arm and walking a bit more each day, eventually graduating in a few more weeks to physical therapy.

so do me a favor–stretch your arms to the ceiling and do a couple rotations and enjoy that release. i’ll get back there too!
xom