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  • Getting Ready for Surgery

    Mary Lou,

    Crystal is so excited about her surgery. After being so disappointed about her cancellation and then getting her date back. We discovered that I have a friend, 30 miles from us, that has a daughter that had scoli surgery last September. We didn't even realize she had a problem. Anyhow, it has given Crystal someone she personally knows to talk to and share her feelings with.

    I, on the other hand, am uptight and nervous. Of course, this is my child and I think that is pretty normal. My husband doesn't say much right now. I know when his dad had to have a major surgery he was pretty quiet about it. I didn't realize how uptight he was until the day of surgery. Here we sat in the waiting room, I was pregnant with our last child and two toddlers. What a challenge. I am hoping he does okay this time, as it is his daughter and he gets upset when they are hurt and have to go to the emergency room.

    In addition to getting Crystal's March 15 date back, we are in the process of moving into our new house this week and next week. So, by the time we get everything into the new house, we will only have two weeks until surgery. I won't even have the boxes unpacked by the time we have to leave.

    She is admitted at 1pm on the 14th and has surgery the 15th. We probably won't leave until about 5am on the 14th beings we have cows that have to be fed and are calving also.

    I am actually feeling better as far as my other problems are going. I think what the Naturalpath gave me to use has helped a lot. I am feeling like I want to do things again. I want to be part of life again, instead of holing up in my house. My friends have even said and act and look like I am feeling better.

    We will keep you posted as the next few weeks go by. Crystal came home from school yesterday and home today with a cold. So are trying to get it taken care of. If she isn't better by Monday, I'll take her into the doctor. Not sure what they will do for a cold. She already take echinecia (SPELLING). I am going to put her on vitamin c today.

    'til later,
    Nikki

  • #2
    Nikki,

    Sounds like there has been a lot of changes in your house. Sounds like you guys have gotten a grip on "things". I'm glad. As for moving into the new house, you sure won't have time to worry so much about surgery, because you will be so busy unpacking!

    The vitamin c isn't a bad idea. Jamie's doctor actually had me start her on vitamin c as soon as she came home from the hospital. Under the circumstances, your doctor might give Crystal an antibiotic. I wasn't feeling too well a week or so before Jamie's surgery and normally I wouldn't have gone to the doctor, but I didn't want to run the risk of having to stay away from Jamie, etc. and the doctor agreed to be safe than sorry.

    As for your husband, try not to worry about him too much. My husband actually didn't even come to the hospital the day of surgery for a number of reasons. 1) made our other daughter more comfortable to have dad put her on the bus and reassure her that everything would be fine; 2) he does TERRIBLE in hospital settings; 3) he works for UPS and it is almost impossible to get off work in December; 4) my mom was with me the whole time. Don't get me wrong, my husband said he would get off work no matter what it took if I wanted him to do so. He would have driven me CRAZY waiting all day. Like I said, my mom waited with me the whold time and my sister-in-law stopped. My husband also called me hourly and was willing to come at any second if he thought I needed him.

    Is Crystal donating her own blood? If so, you might want to call ahead of time to make sure she can still donate if she has a cold.

    Take care and send me an e-mail if you need to talk or have any questions.

    Mary Lou

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    • #3
      Mary Lou,
      Things are so busy here, sometimes I don't know where to start. I almost forgot to feed the cows today because I had so many things on my mind. Now, how can you forget to feed the cows when you have to feed two ton of hay a day. I finally gave the keys to the pickup to my 14 year old and asked her to please get started on it for me. She was a jewel and got it completely done for me.

      I was really hoping with basketball season being over last Saturday that things would slow down for a while and we could get moved and settled in our new house. Oh well, I guess that is what I get for hoping.

      My husband was talking about not even being there for Crystal's surgery, simply because we have to hire someone to come in a take care of the cows. I told him we would just set out 8-10 big bales on Sunday night and they would survive until he got home on Wednesday.

      My concern about him not being there, is that Crystal really wants him there. She draws a lot of strength from her dad when she is scared. He has always been the one to calm her when she has a severe asthma attach.

      As far as donating blood, the hospital wasn't too concerned about it. But, they said they would send me a packet in the mail. Still waiting for it. They apparently recycle her blood in surgery now and said they usually throw away the donated blood. So, they weren't really concerned about it.

      Crystal is feeling much better today. Craig is supposed to bring home some sudafed from town for her. I asked the nurse about these things. She told me that as long as she was off all pain relief, etc., by the two week mark, she could take them. She takes Aleve for the pain in her back. The nurse told me to finish her ten days with it and then no more until after surgery. I almost want to keep her home from school until after surgery, but she would drive me nuts. She is to busy and to social to be home that long. I think part of her not feeling so good yesterday, is that she set into panic mode with the thought that if she doesn't kick this cold, it will be fall before she can have surgery.


      Well, my little one wants the computer so I better sign off for now.

      'til later,
      Nikki

      Comment


      • #4
        Hi Nikki,

        Our daughter is having surgery March 9th in NYC with Dr. Boachie. My whole family sends our well wishes and prayers to your daughter and family. Let us know how she does, and maybe our daughters can chat on spinekids.com!

        Hugs and kisses to you!

        Susanna
        Susanna
        ~~~~~~
        Mother of a 17 year old daughter. Her "S" curve was 40 degree thoracic from T3 to T9, and a 70 degree rotatory thorcolumbar from T9 to L4. She was operated on March 9th, 2005 by Dr. Boachie-Adjei at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC. She was fused from T11 to L3, using an anterior approach, and the major curve corrected to 20 degrees. She's doing great!

        Comment


        • #5
          Hi Mary Lou,

          My mom is a nurse, and she actually suggested we talk to the doctor about adding vitamin C to her IV, as she feels very strongly it expedites healing. Have you heard or read anything about this? I think I'll post a general message as well.

          Thanks, Susanna
          Susanna
          ~~~~~~
          Mother of a 17 year old daughter. Her "S" curve was 40 degree thoracic from T3 to T9, and a 70 degree rotatory thorcolumbar from T9 to L4. She was operated on March 9th, 2005 by Dr. Boachie-Adjei at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC. She was fused from T11 to L3, using an anterior approach, and the major curve corrected to 20 degrees. She's doing great!

          Comment


          • #6
            Susanna,
            Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. Crystal is fighting a cold right now. I am taking her to the doctor tomorrow. So, she needs a prayer for a recovery from this cold so her surgery doesn't get cancelled, as well.

            She has wanted her back fixed for years, and to be this close and have a cold has got her worried. If she doesn't kick this cold, then it will be Oct., Nov., Dec., before she can get it fixed.

            She is excited about her surgery and scared at the same time. She says she isn't scared, but when we talk, she cries. Her dad is real quiet with her about it right now. She asked him tonight, while he was helping her take her bed apart, if he was scared about her surgery. She told me that she knew he was because of the way he became silent and changed the subject. I know he is uptight about it, and has every right to be. She is his little (although a teenager) girl. I try to be strong and supportive to both of them.

            I did call the superintendent of her school, as so many of the kids are sick at school right now. He told me that she needs to kick the cold and not come back to school until after surgery. This is simply because so many kids and teachers at school are sick. She picks her school work up once a week and goes in to have an appointment with him on Mondays to keep her exposure down from all of the bugs going around. It was so nice to have a superintendent that was concerned about this.

            Anyhow, kind of stressful with this cold and then we are also moving into our new house at this moment. Should be completely moved by Saturday evening. Getting that done will help relieve the stress level for the entire family.

            Well, it's late here and I am having trouble sleeping tonight. So off to bed again to try and sleep. Glad I have all of you to write to in the middle of the night when I can't sleep because my mind won't shut off.

            'til later,
            Nikki

            Comment


            • #7
              Nikki,

              I'm so glad I'm not alone with this! I have not been able to sleep all week. The ER's around here are filled with people with the flu, and since none of us could get a flu shot because of the vacine shortage, I am so worried. My husband was sick all last week, and I feel like I'm fighting something, but I've been doing zinc and echinacea and vitamin C and hoping to stave it off. I might talk to her school as well and see what they think about keeping her home.

              Today we're having a snow storm, so one less day when she might be exposed to something. She's driving me nuts because she's bored. It's going to be fun when she's home for 4 weeks!

              Susanna
              Susanna
              ~~~~~~
              Mother of a 17 year old daughter. Her "S" curve was 40 degree thoracic from T3 to T9, and a 70 degree rotatory thorcolumbar from T9 to L4. She was operated on March 9th, 2005 by Dr. Boachie-Adjei at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC. She was fused from T11 to L3, using an anterior approach, and the major curve corrected to 20 degrees. She's doing great!

              Comment


              • #8
                Susanna and Nikki,

                I hope everyone in your families are healthy soon and stay healthy! I think I told you this before, so forgive me if I did, but Jamie was told to start Vitamin C upon discharge from the hospital, but I've never heard of it being put into the I.V. Have you thought about starting it now? I've found there are advantages to having surgery in the winter, but dealing with sick people is not one of them!

                What Crystal is feeling right now sounds just right. She is probably so happy at the thought of all of this being behind her soon, but on the other hand, it is a major surgery and that is very scary! Try your best to stay calm around her because trust me, if you are freaked out, they will be freaked out! I hope you guys have been able to settle in to your new home and that at least that will be one less thing to stress about.

                Try not to be too hard on your husband. Is there another person that you daughter feels comfortable with who could go to the hospital with you? I know my husband would not have done well waiting all day, in fact, he almost passed out when he saw Jamie for the first time and I know that would have been worse had he been sitting in the hospital all day instead of working. Talk to him, I'm sure he is as scared as the rest of you are.

                I don't know if any of this helps, but please know that you are not alone in this. In a few short weeks you will both look back at some of these posts and think to yourselves, what was I so worried about?

                Mary Lou

                Comment


                • #9
                  Mary Lou & Heather,
                  Took Crystal to the doctor this morning. She is at the tail end of her cold, but has gotten a sinus infection. So she is on antibiotics for 10 days and cough syrup as needed. Doctor reassured me she would be healthy enough for surgery on the 15th.

                  Actually for my husband. He is starting to come around for her. He will be there for her at the hospital. He would be disappointed in himself if he wasn't. Once Crystal is out of surgery, he'll be fine.

                  We found out today, and Crystal doesn't know this yet, that she is being installed at the Grand Page for our Grand Officers for Rainbow for Girls in the State of Oregon. She is the Worthy Advisor for our Rainbow for Girls here in Union County. The reason we found out is because she was supposed to go to the State Initiation on March 5th. Craig & I had decided that she probably shouldn't go and take a risk of getting run down and sick 10 days before surgery. It will be a huge slumber party the night before. Now we don't know what to do, because it will be announced on the 5th and the girls are supposed to be fitted for new formals. Yeah, my little wrangler jean wearin' girl wears formals twice a month. She doesn't even know about being installed as Grand Page this coming June. The Mother Advisor called Craig today and asked why we weren't letting her go and then told us the problem. I guess they are going to talk to the Supreme Deputy and try to figure out the dress fitting.

                  I sure hope Crystal doesn't plan on having a boyfriend for the next two years. She installs her middle sister as Worthy Advisor of our assembly next January. She gets installed as Grand Page this June, which means six months of doing a dual office. Then Spring 2006 she is crowned as the East Queen for the East-West Shrine Games in Baker City. All of this plus basketball, volleyball, FFA, and her responsibilities at home, her animals, and most of all her surgery in a couple of weeks.

                  Well, I need to get to moving some boxes.

                  'til later,
                  Nikki

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Nikki,

                    Glad to hear Crystal is on the mend. Stay well and try to get some sleep tonight!

                    Susanna
                    Susanna
                    ~~~~~~
                    Mother of a 17 year old daughter. Her "S" curve was 40 degree thoracic from T3 to T9, and a 70 degree rotatory thorcolumbar from T9 to L4. She was operated on March 9th, 2005 by Dr. Boachie-Adjei at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC. She was fused from T11 to L3, using an anterior approach, and the major curve corrected to 20 degrees. She's doing great!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      i was reading this post on everybody being worried about colds before the surgery. I was freaked out by it before my daughters surgery. Being a bit of a germaphobic to begin with i was so nervous before my daughter's surgery that she would get sick. Needless to say 2 days before her surgery my other 2 got strep throat. Thankfully nicole did not get it. But i was also annoyed while we were in icu, the nurse that was taking care of nicole had a bit of the sniffles, which i noticed and one of the night nurses as well had a cold. I was not happy about that and i was going to complain, but kept my mouth shut. I was just so scared that nicole would catch it. Again, she didn't. I tried beforehand to tell myself that if godforbid she did get a cold and the surgery had to be canceled then it wasn't meant to be at that time.
                      good luck to everyone with their upcoming surgeries and stay healthy.
                      jennifer

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Jennifer,
                        It is nice to know that I am not the only one that worries about colds and surgeries. The biggest issue we have with Crystal is that she has severe asthma. We work hard at keeping it under control and do a very good job at it. She has a slightly weakened immune system because of her asthma and seems to catch anything that goes around and it takes her twice/three times as long to get rid of it. She was in the hospital for a week the end of November with pneumonia, which just attacked her on Thanksgiving day.

                        The other problem is that Crystal has constant back pain, and has dealt with back pain since she was 5 years old, and really needs this surgery. If it doesn't happen on the 15th of March she will have to wait anywhere from 6 months to 1 year to be rescheduled because her surgeon is so busy.

                        When I took her to the doctor today there were three other school mates in the doctor's office too. I told the doctor she needed to do a special for our school today because of that. Every student at school seems to have this crud going around and they are anxiously awaiting spring break to break the cycle of it. So, we really don't want to keep exposing her and reinfecting her. Her doctor even agreed with the superintendent about keeping her home until surgery.

                        So, what do we do. We pray about it that she is healthy the day she goes in for surgery.

                        By the way, I understand the staff being sick thing. When we were at the doctors office, almost every staff member was coughing and hacking. When Crystal had to cough, she coughed into her shirt to keep her germs to herself. Her doctor thanked her for containing her germs and wished the staff and patients would do the same. I guess it is a habit she got from me. I guess I just figured no one else wanted my germs, so I'd keep them to myself.

                        Anyway, I hope she is on the road to recovery.

                        'til later,
                        Nikki

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                        • #13
                          hi nikki
                          hope your daughter is doing better. I'm missed in the posts when is her surgery
                          jennifer

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Jennifer,
                            Crystal is scheduled for surgery March 15, 2005. She is admitted to the hospital on March 14, 2005. So, we are anxiously on countdown and trying to get moved into our new home at the same time. Ugh. Way to much to be done.
                            Nikki

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              I worried about Jamie staying healthy before her surgery as well. In fact, I ended up on an antibiotic about one week before her surgery and was really freaking out because I didn't want her to get sick and also I didn't want to be banned from staying in the hospital. It all worked out, thankfully.

                              I sometimes wonder about hosptials. Here Jamie was not even 24 hours after she left the o.r. and they put a young lady in her room with her that had a severe infection! I know they said they didn't have any other rooms, but wouldn't you think maybe they could make better arrangements? Thankfully the girl's Mom was very good about everything. She kept after the hospital staff to make sure the bathroom was kept clean, they washed their hands a lot (as did we, of course) and all went well. That was a big part of why we were so happy to get out of the hospital.

                              Make sure you wash your hands often in the hospital, after all, there are a lot of sick people there!

                              Mary Lou

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