In recovery

I had surgery on Friday to remove the hanging skin over my eyes.  Further down the road, there will be another one to raise my eyelids.  Usually this type of surgery is considered cosmetic and is not covered by insurance.  In my case, it had become a quality of life issue.

Prior to scheduling surgery, my surgeon had me play all kinds of Star Wars type games!  Really!  The first round, I was instructed to push a button as soon as I saw a dot across the domed shape screen.  Then my eyelids were taped up and we did it again.  This was to measure the improvement this surgery would have on my field of vision.

As with most surgery, you are denied anything by mouth after midnight on the day of surgery.  When I called to find what time I was to report on Friday for pre-op, I was told 10:00 am.  ARE YOU SERIOUS???  Are you telling me I have to go that long without coffee???  Surgery was scheduled for 11:30.

Some people like their coffee in the morning.  Then there are those of us who can be really nasty if we don't get our coffee. . .

My friend, Nancy, drove me to the hospital and stayed with me the first night at home.  Someone said they felt sorry for Nancy having to deal with me without coffee.  So I walked up to the check in desk and proclaimed, "Give me a cup of coffee and no will get hurt."  All that got me was laughs.  They just don't understand.

Enter the pre-op stage.  Multiple people walk up to me and ask me the same questions.  I was told this was a safety measure.  But when you are coffee deprived, you invent ways to get even.  After about a dozen times of being asked the same questions, when asked, "Can you explain in your own words the procedure you will be having today?"  my response was, "Well, they are going to rearrange my face."  The young woman laughed at me.

The surgery went very well.  I had very little pain following the procedure.

It will take awhile for the swelling to go down.  I'm told to lay low for a week.  I should be able to return to work on Friday.

I am blessed to have a world class hospital with exceptional health care professionals handling my case.  My surgeon, Mithra Gonzalez, is well known internationally for this type of surgery and he not only is a great surgeon, he is a very nice individual and was patient with me when I had a lot of questions.