Chasing My Thirties Entry #5

Thursday March 27th 2025

When I was getting prepped for surgery on Tuesday my body must have known what was coming because it fought me hard both physically and mentally. First there was trouble with my veins and starting my IV so I had to get stuck twice in two different places and then I had a horrible hot flash that took forever for me to come down from, and it was just so embarrassing. I also didn't have the best attitude when I walked into the hospital so that didn't really help either. I was mostly filled with anxiety, anger, and a little bit of frustration over everything that's been happening. I guess a small part of me was also mourning the loss of my reproductive organs because I did get a little teary eyed as I was walking towards the surgical waiting room.

Surgery day was pretty rough. When I first came out of anesthesia I was in a lot of pain, so much pain that they maxed out my dose for IV pain medicine so they had to give me a pill on top of all of that to help settle me down. When I was moved into the recovery room back where my mom was waiting, I was still coming out of it but by then all the drugs they pumped me of made me feel pretty drowsy and nauseous, so I was not having a good time. It was not fun but I eventually was able to get it under control so it wasn't as bad by the time I got home.

Surgery was a success and my doctor mentioned to my mom that he found evidence of endometriosis, but I'm waiting to talk to him so I can find out exactly what he saw. I feel like once I hear it from him on what he found, I'll finally have the closure I need to move past this nightmare I've been living in.

You know, for someone who just had major surgery, I feel much more calm than I was prior to surgery. I think my immune system and my body as a whole are finally slipping out of fight mood and it's truly the most relief I've had in such a long time. Now I just need to get through this post op pain and recovery so I can get back to living my life. They had to pump my stomach with gas to perform the surgery and that's really what's bothering me the most right now, is the cramping from the gas. I was able to walk for a bit yesterday and I plan on walking more today, so I know that will help ease the pain.

Here I am coming up on nearly forty-eight hours post op and I'm starting to feel more like myself again. I was told the first two weeks are really the most difficult while my body absorbs the gas and my hormones adjust to the changes. Since I kept my left ovary I'm not expected to go into early menopause but I may have some hormonal fluctuations for the first few weeks but that's nothing new for me so I'm thinking I'll be just fine. It'll take me about two months before I'm fully healed which is perfect because that'll be right around Memorial Day, aka the start of summer. And I'm really looking forward to enjoying my first summer free of horrible heavy periods and ovulation pain.

I have so much life ahead of me that I can now enjoy pain free and I'm just so ready to get started. I also can't wait until I'm fully healed so I can get back to exercising again; it's been way too long since I've had a normal and consistent routine.

Huge shout out to the nurses and surgical staff at Summerville Medical Center for taking very good care of me and for all of their help in getting me through my surgery. I also want to thank my doctor for not only listening to my concerns, but for doing something about them so I can now have a better quality of life. I also want to thank my mom and Tim for taking great care of me and all my neediness until I'm recovered. I wouldn't be able to get through this without help, so I'm thankful to be surrounded by a lot of love.

Cheers to a fresh start and new beginnings.

-A