Day 3 A.S.
February 5, 2024
Right off, very early this morning, we started hearing chatter that we might get to leave. How is it that everyone in the hospital knows before the patient? Even the housekeeper said she thought we were leaving. Of course from my experience, the housekeepers know everything that goes on in the workplace worth knowing. At any rate, we were almost giddy. I reminded us that we couldn’t get too excited because the let down if we didn’t get to go would be injurious to our pschye. David is feeling ok this morning and had more of an appetite than they brought him to eat. We got the best tech we had all weekend and he was so attentive to David and brought him juice. It was the first time anyone asked if he wanted anything other than water and David was elated. He loves juice almost as much as I love a non-birthday, birthday cake. We walked a good bit and did breathing exercises. Coughing is painful but good and necessary. I asked if he wanted a “bath” and he said maybe later if we didn’t get to leave. I think he is tired of my baths and was ready for a good long, hot shower. We were still so tired, so after breakfast I closed the blinds, toweled the lights, and turned on some soft classical music for sleeping. I am working on the blog while he dozes. It is so peaceful and quiet right now.
It didn’t last long because the very enthusiastic PT duo came by and tested David on his get out of bed abilities and taught him how to put on his socks without bending or twisting. The same can be used for putting on underwear and pants. Then one of Dr. N’s PA’s came around and officially proclaimed this, A Day of Liberty. We had a nice chat and she gave us our instructions of the dos and dont’s of after surgery. David’s phosphorus and magnesium were low so he needs an IV of each before we can escape. This will put us at around 5 pm for leaving so we asked to get his pain meds filled in the pharmacy downstairs and decided we would stay in Atlanta tonight. We just went and walked some more and then I started packing up. I took a couple of bags to the car and came back and David got changed into his baby going home outfit. We set out to walk some more and wait on the slow IV. We saw Dr. McSubstitute in the hall and he gushed over how good David looked. He asked why we had not left and we said we were finishing the last of the happy hour cocktail then hauling ass over elbows out of there. Another one of the PA’s that actually assisted with the surgery came by and asked if he could see the incision. He told us he did the veritcal closure and explained how he did it. We told him everyone that sees it remarks on how beautiful it is. It really is a nice looking and clean surgical incision. He said he felt it was some of his best work and he seemed very proud and thanked us. It was very sweet. Around 4:30, the nurse said I could go and bring the car to the front of the hospital (about a 15-20 minute trek if that sounded like it was a quick little task, it isn’t). I took off with hair flying and the “best tech ever” waved enthusiastically to me as I passed by like I was on the last leg of a marathon. The whole way, David was texting me his progress with getting a wheelchair Uber to the front door. In no time, we were headed up 75 North to the hotel. Traffic was actually light enough that it didn’t take us long. David found it difficult walking to the room after taking the new pain meds but we made it. It just looked like someone with too many impressively organized bags walking a slightly intoxicated person to his room at 5:30 on a Monday afternoon. After two very long and hot, steamy showers (temperature wise because he ain’t about that life right now), we are settling in for the night and looking forward to some sleep. I only had to go back to the car twice to get something I forgot to bring up. Progress is progress.
