*WARNING, LONG-WINDED STORY, SKIP TO LAST LINE FOR POINT OF THREAD*

man, I am not looking forward to tomorrow

I have yet another surgery at 7:30 am tomorrow. you'd think after going through so many I'd be used to it, but I'm not I don't know why, for all intents and purposes this should be fairly simple, I've been told by the surgeons to be optimistic about this. Relative to the other surgeries I've had this particular one should be a walk in the park.

basically I have a clogged tear-duct and drain.
problem?
it's on my blank side, the part of my face that doesn't have an eye. Normally the surgeon would weave a new tube through my eye-socket (I think) and string it into my nose without making an incision and is usually a very quick and simple procedure. But the lack of an eye makes this a lot more complicated apparently. he doesn't know what to expect, he'd rather not cut open the left side of my face, so he's planning on sending up a camera probe through my nose and weaving the tube that way. Again though, he's been reminding me constantly how he really doesn't know what to expect and so it's very cautious about the outcome.

this damn thing couldn't have been timed worse either, it's the end of Senior year for me and that means a lot of year-long projects are coming to conclusion around the same time as my recovery so I'm really worried about whether I'll be able to give my presentations on the required days or even take my AP tests which can't be post-poned.

at any rate, I'm gearing myself up for all this. the surgeon says that it should work out fine and I should I only be out for three days, which I'm really hoping will be the case. I also hope my own willpower will be able to muster me back to a functioning state and make it so this weekend is all I need to recover.

anyway, yeah, I'm feeling pretty anxious about this and was wondering who else here has been under the knife? how many times? Anyone else in my situation? I hope no on else is going in for something worse, but if you are, vent your aggressions here too if you want.

I have never been operated on or seen the inside of a hospital except when visiting. I have also never broken a bone in my body, despite my best efforts.

I can't even imagine what a full blown operation would feel like. Chill out and enjoy the hospital food ( I have a perverse delight in ingesting disgusting/unpalatable foods).

I can't calm you down about the surgery, but I can at least say that you shouldn't worry about school too much. Many (most?) universities will give special consideration if you have gone through surgery as a tenuous time like this. Especially since it sounds like you've had multiple operations. And besides, school's not that important anyway, so just relax and recover.

As someone who has undergone a whole lot of surgery in his life (principally to install a scleral buckle for my left eye and other surgeries on my right eye) I can certainly relate - there is certainly a palpable sense of dread or worry that can seem to fill you up, even if you've gone through several surgeries in the past. I would suggest that you talk to your teachers about the surgery and how it may put you out of commission for a while - the AP tests may give you trouble, but if my memory serves you can take the AP tests at a later date.

How'd you lose an eye?

And I've been under the knife once. Last September for my ACL after a longboarding accident (I went to a urgent care after i had the accident, they said nothing was wrong and gave me crutches. 3 weeks later, still on crutches. Went to a real orthopedic surgeon to get an opinion. Apparently I needed surgery soon or I'd have a messed up knee (no ACL, meaning running would be difficult, nothing to stop the leg from giving out.) for the rest of my life.)

Anywho, part of my tibia was ripped of, with my ACL attached. So had to get it sutchered down until it refused with the rest of my tibia.

I've broken a couple bones. Arm, Nose, Toes, Hand, Wrist. None were serious enough to have surgery though.

I'm only 14 though

My advice. Just go in there, be chill about it and soon you'll have the anesthesia knocking you out, wake up like nothing happened, besides a numbed pain.

I did nearly die once when I was six, collapsed and stopped breathing. Don't remember anything about that day, just remember coming to very confused in a hospital bed.

Basically, it involved a DVD of The Little Mermaid, a string of onions and a extra large tub of SPF+15 hand-lotion. We don't talk about it anymore.

So it happened while trying to solve a puzzle in Monkey Island?

close, very close

but no cigar

I was born with Fraser's Syndrome which causes random anomalies throughout the body. In my case I have no left eye (not functioning anyway) web-fingers, a narrow air-way in my throat, a massive hole in my skull (since been covered with a metal mesh) a mis-placed kidney, web-toes, major hearing loss, no bridge on my nose (I can't breath through my nose or smell) and other things I don't care to go into.

I've actually had over 72 surgeries which statistically means I would have spent half of my life so far in a state of recovery. Most of those operations took place in the first five years of my life though as I had many many fatal issues going on. Since then I've had operations but at a much less frequent rate, and this is yet another notch on the gun so to speak.

I had metal removed from my eye when I was a little kid, a fishhook removed from the other eye a couple of years later, I also had part of my forearm sewn back togther after going through a window. I had surgery to remove a fetal demise, I was five months pregnant, body/immune system attacked fetus, fetus died. That was pretty damn hard to go through. I had surgery with the birth of my daughter, and had a tubal ligation after the birth of my son. I also had a thyroid lobectomy a couple of years ago.
If oral surgery counts, I have had wisdom teeth removed several times.

My husband has had so damn many surgeries that he can't count them anymore. His first surgery was when he was a few hours old. He was born with a severe form of spina bifida, I stopped counting scars on him when I hit twenty. He's had ten outpatient surgical procedures since January, on his foot. He's scheduled for two seperate surgeries related to complications from his birth defect. Plus, he's also going to have his gallbladder removed within the next two weeks.
He's had numerous surgeries on his legs, spine, feet, knees hips, and innards.

I wish you good luck and a speedy recovery, Hagashager.

Best of luck to you, and thankfully you have a working mind.

Fortunately I never had to stay in a hospital except for the the day I was born... I was even born without wisdom teeth so no surgery to get them out.

If you don't mind me asking what are web fingers/toes?

You know spider-man? Nothing like that.

The only kind of procedure I have had is the removal of my wisdom teeth, if that counts.

I hope you have a speedy recovery, and are well for AP testing. Aren't those in about 2 weeks?

:rofl:

I only underwent local anesthetic when I had my wisdoms out. Then she attacked me a pair of what looked like locking pliers. I dribbled blood everywhere for the rest of the day. It was awesome.

Any chance of changing your doctor or hospital?

*shudder* Surgery. I had it a few times. First time when I was four - ear infection. Almost lost my hearing. Can't remember any of this, however, but my mum said there was blood and puss on my pillow, which was how we found the infection in the first place.

I now have this genetic form of "syndrome" which is harmless now, but is abnormal and kept on a close eye with the doctors. In my "later years", theres a chance of it becoming cancer. My specialist says theres a pill that can stop these "tumors" (ok, so its not a tumor, but I don't know what it is you call it), but it will affect my hormones and growth and health, so it wasn't given to me. I has surgery to have it removed, but it returned in an ungodly scale. The docotor believes that this will keep on coming back and I can't keep having surgery so very often.

I hope every thing goes smooth for you mannn

O____O

wow, kinda makes a man humbled

thank you, very much appreciated and I hope the best for your husband, it really sounds like an incredible amount he's got to go through in such a short span.

and to the poster who asked what Webed feet and fingers are, they're basically when flesh has connected your fingers and toes together like a Duck's feet. I've since had most of the webbing removed from my hands so I do have fingers, otherwise I wouldn't be typing this but they never bothered with my toes so it looks like I hove one giant flat foot.

g'luck Hager

I had chest surgery for a puncture wound, but since I was out of it, and didn't wake up until it was all over.. there was no time to worry about it (I remember the explosion, and the waking up in sickbay later. Nothing in between though)






I used to think I was tough, then I learned of this lady, named Mamagato, :biggrin: ......and I realized what a wuss I am :tongue:

I don't mean this offensively, but does it aid in swimming?

Hope everything went well. I've never had surgery myself though.

I had surgery for a broken leg when I was two years old. I had an operation on my middle finger once but it wasn't anything major. Good luck with your operation, I'm sure it will go well.

you'd think it would but no

anyway, I 'm back from the surgery, I feel like crap right now, but the surgeons said it went fantastically, they didn't need to do any incisions and they were really proud of their handiwork