If you know me, you know I'm sort of a helicopter mom when the kids go down and need medical attention; it's almost as if they become toddlers again, and it's up to me to protect them and make sure the doctors and nurses take them seriously when they say they need help. It's 100% unnecessary, I know -- I do know. Please, don't tell me how horrible I am; I can only imagine. However, I will say that I was told today by two different nurses that I wasn't nearly as bad as some other moms! That made me feel better - I guess.
Laura came into my office in the mid-afternoon yesterday, probably around 1:30, and she told me she needed to go to the E.R. Okay, we went. I dropped her off because I had food coming from Kroger, and I had a bed being delivered from Sam's, so I just dropped her off and went back home to make sure nothing was stolen - not such a helicopter mom at that moment; more like a drop-you-off-see-ya-later kind of mom. Not my finest hour, but this blog is about Laura, not me.
She did such a GREAT job - she overcame so many hurdles that have stopped her for so very long. She was confident, yet nervous, but steadily improving at being both independent and standing up for what she believed she needed. She was able to do all the talking, answered all the questions, and then, when they told her they were going to take out her gallbladder, she didn't really flinch. She sighed, thought it through, and knew it was the best thing for her health.
After that moment, and before they took her to the room where she would spend the night, she conducted extensive research. She watched YouTube videos on gallbladder functions, their purpose, the reasons they may need to be removed, and she also read about the surgeries. We both learned a great deal. She was really into looking through the sites and figuring out what she needed to do for herself afterwards. We're both hoping it will cure most of her gut and digestive issues!
Today, around 7:10, I got up, got ready, went to the hospital, and waited for her to be prepped for surgery. When they took her down for the surgery, she was wheeled out of her room in a bed, not a chair - that was different. They took her down into the tombs where they do surgeries, and they told her what to expect. She did the countdown, and boom...she was gone! The surgery took 48 minutes, and after about another hour, she was brought back to the room where she had rested before.
The surgery was at 9:10, and she was back in the room by 9:50. She was back in the room around 11:30, and I left her at 11:50 to pick up her prescription from CVS, let the dogs out, and receive my new bed - it was able to be pushed back, thankfully. Just as they delivered it, she was told she needed meds and needed to rest another 2 or 3 hours so the doctors could see if the meds were working. She complied, and when I arrived back, she had her food and had been up a couple of times to use the bathroom. Way to go, Laura!
She was released around 2:45 p.m. and home by 2:50 -- yes, we live that close to the hospital. We even passed another hospital before arriving at the one she prefers to go to. When I brought her home, her dogs were overjoyed to see her - they had truly missed her while she was away, even though it was only for about 25 hours. Gone is gone in their minds. She was given a really big tail-wagging welcome. The cats had barely noticed but seemed to accept her presence.
Right now, at 4:30 p.m., she's resting, I'm finally resting, the dogs are resting. You just don't rest well when your kids are in the hospital or not feeling well. It's hard to get the mind and heart settled if they're not in the right place and all their functions are working as they should. She's been examining her little tiny incisions with amazement; it's awesome what they can do these days.
Her doctor was a tall, athletic woman about Laura's age. She and her husband are both general surgeons, performing at least one gallbladder surgery a day each. Laura was just a number, but they treated her so very well. Integris deserves a huge thank you and a giant 5-star review. Every nurse, every P.A., every doctor, every worker was just fantastic. It wasn't the "Big Baptist" hospital, but what we call "Deaconess" (the old Deaconess Hospital that was acquired by Integris two years ago — it still remains Deaconess in our minds).
GREAT people, and very good service. We highly recommend. Thank you, EVERYONE, who prayed and cared for her. We appreciate that for sure.
Photo Credit: Integris.com
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