OMG, I am crying at this, I am laughing so hard. Good for her! (and I hope she didn’t hurt your Grandpa!).
By now, your procedure is over. You need fluids, rest and patience. Be prepared for gas, and some pain (may be disguised as “discomfort”). That’s all normal.
Hope all went well.
Just a note: I didn’t have surgery today, I had “pre-surgery”. Which I thought was going to be more than it was. Turns out they just drew some blood. :smack: The actual surgery is in a week.
My husband didn’t help at all; he recounted the story of the last time he was in the pre-surgery waiting room. He said, “We were sitting here, waiting, they came in and took my dad away. Then after a while, we took Grandma back home.” My eyes grew wide. Grandma lives in Everett - that’s quite a drive from the Ballard Swedish Medical! I asked, “It took that long for your dad in pre-surgery?!” :eek:
Finally, it dawns on him. “Oh, no, his case was urgent, they had to take him away that day and operate on him!”
The nurse came back and saw me sitting in the chair, looking a little ashen, and she asks if anything is wrong.
“No,” I tell her. “I was just scared that I was going to be ‘taken away’ today, and I didn’t know what would happen!” Having heard our conversation from the other room, she burst out laughing. But, you know, she still didn’t tell me what was going to actually happen, just had me sign some papers and fill out questionaires.
Just blood today. Next week come the knives.
That sort of happened to me with my last pregnancy. I was about a week late and the doctor told me to go into the hospital to have a nonstress test to make sure the kid was all right so far. When I got there they told me they had an open delivery room and my doctor thought I should go ahead and start an induction right then.
My husband had to go home and get my suitcase and drop our daughter off with the friends she was going to stay with.
I’ll start sending you the good vibes now for your procedure next week!
My mother had exactly the same kind of surgery, it went smoothly, and now she can’t even point out her scars. Does that make you feel any better?
Yes. Now I can definitely get that Victoria’s Secret modelling job. I was worried for a while, there. 
It does make me feel better.
I worked for a company that makes the ultrasonic scaples used for minimal invasive surgery like gall bladder removal.
You want horror stories I’ll tell you about the lax quality control procedures.
Just kidding. The FDA regulations are very strict.
My buisness partner had his removed a year ago and says it changed his life. We can go out to lunch again and he can enjoy 99% of the menu, and I don’t lose him in the bathroom for half the afternoon anymore. So he can get back to work dammit.
I’ve also had the laproscopic hernia surgery. The recovery was painful but I think that’s just the nature of the beast with hernias. The drugs are fantastic until they wear off. In the operating room, the last thing I remember saying was, “I thought this stuff was supposed to make me sleepy.” Then I woke up in the recovery room.
I also had my thumb operated on once. I woke up near the end of the surgery while they were closing up. Apparently I hadn’t regained all of my mental faculties because I kept trying to sit up to see what they were doing. It didn’t occur to me that sitting up might move my hand while they were trying to put the stitches in. Did I mention that the drugs are good?
My wife had her gall bladder removed and thought it was the best thing in the world.
I can’t speak on the issue of gallbladder surgery personally, but I’ve had four major surgeries (two abdominal procedures and two procedures on both of my legs). The first few days post-op were never my idea of fun, but it wasn’t a horrible ordeal either.
The only bad part was that I was quite nauseated for several hours after each surgery thanks to the anesthesia. Post-op nausea is a fairly common side effect, especially in young women, so if you are prone to vomiting make sure you discuss it with the anesthesiologist. There are things they can do to try to reduce the risk of post-op nausea (didn’t work for me, but I think that’s because I have an especially sensitive stomach).
However, even with the nausea, it really wasn’t that bad. I’m sure it will be a big relief for you once it’s over and you don’t have to deal with the pain of your gallbladder anymore.
The only story I have was getting my wisdom teeth pulled, all four of them at once. But I’m a wimp, so I was a blubbering mass of sobbing the night before I had it done. I was curled up with my teddy bear (yeah, I know) just sobbing for half the night. (Did I mention I was 20 at the time?) I pulled it together, though, and managed to be “very brave” for the dental surgeon guy, even though inside I was screaming. I was vaguely worried that I “wouldn’t wake up” from the general anasthesia, but there was no way in HELL I was gonna be awake for a procedure like that – just a cleaning is a bit much for me.
They put in the IV thing, and the dentist turned to me and said: “How are you feeling?” And I said: “I’m starting to get --”
Next thing I knew, I was waking up afterward. I’m told they’ve rarely had anyone conk out so fast.
(I know people tell horror stories about having wisdom teeth pulled, but it was practically painless, even recovering, for me. Which is good, because I’m very allergic to the good drugs, so I would have had to make do with advil, regardless of how much pain I was in. But my father, who was feeling very sympathetic, heard me ask for one of the Wheel of Time books and got me all of them that had been written to date, which was a lot. And they’re all bricks, too. So I slept and read for days afterward, and I was in such a muzzy state that the writing even seemed really good!)
When my boyfriend was a kid, they operated on one of his balls because they thought he might have cancer. He didn’t, though. But he still has the scar!
I had gastric bypass surgery in November, 2004. First surgery ever. I still have my tonsils & appendix. Just try to go with the flow; if you have faith in your surgeon, that should be a big help.
Be prepared for a lot of gas post-op; they inflate your belly area with gas to enable the laparascopic procedure. Walking is the best thing for this.
As far as scars - I have six very small ones - the largest is maybe 1/2" long. I’ve been scratched worse by one of my dogs on occasion.
You will be fine
VCNJ~
I had my gallbladder out last year. I went to the Day Surgery, and everyone was great! When they took me to the operating room, they kept asking me questions; when they woke me up, I thought I had just dropped off and they were shaking me awake to ask me more questions. Nope, I was done. I didn’t puke until they gave me a Darvocet on an empty stomach.
I had searched some older threads for advice, and I second what FairyChatMom says: sleep in the recliner for a couple of days. Good advice, that.
I was eating a steak dinner two days after surgery, and that weird pain I would get below my right shoulder blade is gone!
Good wishes for your speedy recovery in advance!
I didn’t get home from the in-laws until today. MIL’s colonoscopy was not good news. Hubby wanted to go home to Sequim with them for overnight, in case she needed anything.
Anastasaeon, I will be around all next week. I’ll e-mail you my phone # just in case.
You are the sweetest of all the sweetie pies in all the world, picunurse. I’m serious. It’s no darn wonder you’re a nurse. 
I should be okay, my husband is taking extra days off. The doctor told him he didn’t have to do that, since I would be fine, but my husband is* also * one of the few sweetest sweetie pies - I’m lucky to know so many.
I’ll keep your offer in mind, picunurse, though you really seem to have a lot on your plate with your MIL, who I wish well - I hope she gets through this okay. I’m sending her good thoughts and wishes.
I recently had major surgery twice, once to remove my colon and once to repair a hole on my small intestine. These are big operations. They cut me up lengthwise from my solar plexus to my pubic bone. I have the longest possible surgical scar they can give you without cracking out the bone saw. And my experience is that surgery is nothing.
Ask for something to calm you down if you want to - it did very little for me and I skipped it the second time around, but try it. When they put you to sleep you’re gone in seconds, and the next thing you know (literally; I even had some retrograde amnesia the first time) you’re in the recovery room. Piece of cake. You’re probably going to feel pleasantly stoned, so just lie back and enjoy it.
What was tough for me was the things you don’t have to go through, since your surgery will be nowhere close to mine. So don’t be scared. There’s no reason. This is a routine procedure performed by professionals who do this kind of thing all the time. Just another day at the office.
This is actually very comforting to hear. It’s also a little funny, as it reminds me: after my evaluation last week, the secretary had me sign a few papers and we discussed how we were going to pay and all that good stuff, and she’s scheduling me in the computer. As she does this, she yells down to the doctor, and he comes out.
“Yes?” he says.
“How’s next Wednesday for you? The schedule would be hernia, hernia, hernia, then her gallbladder, and one more hernia. Can you do five?”
“Yeah, that’s fine. We’ve been finishing up early lately, that shouldn’t be a problem.” He smiles at me and goes back to his office.
And I just about die laughing. That’s awesome. What a work schedule that would be! “Let’s see, what’s on my list today? Four hernias and a gallbladder. Yes! Looks like I’ll be getting home in time for American Idol!”
God bless the surgeons of the world. Every last one of them.
Hear hear. They’re simply amazing. Just imagine having their job. You hold someone’s life in your hands half a dozen times a day, and you can never ever ever do a sloppy job or cut corners. You have to be on the ball from moment to moment, never letting up.
How they do it is beyond me, but they do. Day in and day out.
Yeah, I suppose most surgeons would be willing to take at least a few minutes to receive a blessing from an inferior being.
I’m a guy, so this might not apply to you.
I found the gas bubble to be fun. About 2 AM on the first night home from my gastric bypass, I felt that familiar rumble in my gut, and I let one fly. A half hour later, I was still tooting away.
When I was done, I had grossed out the cat, but I felt so much better. I’ll never fart that long ever again, unless I have more laparoscopic surgery.
As mentioned many times already, a recliner is your friend the first few days home.
Hey! I’ve been auditioning for Pope. I look great in the hat.
Although I do have to wonder if the real Pope would appear in a publication called “The Pope: Barefoot and Beautiful.” But I’m sure they can overlook that.
Bless you, my child. (Not bad, huh?)