Kara29
05-21-2009, 11:58 PM
See my facebook site for more information of the PNE Cushions......
If I had to do this operation with Dr. C again I would change some things that are too personal to put on my facebook page:
This was the TIR approach to the PNE Decompression Operation:
It's good to know from one patient to another what I thought could be done better.
I have videos all around this page from the start of leaving my house right up until yesterday which is like around post op- 2.5 weeks. I encourage you to go and look at the pictures and videos. We stayed at the Residence Inn for around 2 weeks because I needed a big Freezer for my ice packs to fit into. Plus I had to stay a little over 10 Days, 3 Days in the Hospital and 7 Days locally and to go back for post op.
I went with my Mom and Grandmother. We had separate rooms with a kitchen, living room, dining room, and fire place separating the two rooms, so my Mom and I could stay in our own room and chat all night or read or watch a movie while my Grandmother could go to bed early with the lights all off and no noise. There was a pull out couch as well for quests. The beds were King Sized and could fit 3 people if needed.
I encourage you to ask him in you can do some sort of light bowel prep before the operation weather it be an enema, a suppository, or something yuckier. I had poop leaking out of my butt for 3 days and I was really, raw and embarrased. I've been through so many operations but this one was the most humiliating and painful to have a huge chunk of stool sitting at the opening and you can't push it out b/c you will have an epidural on both sides, most likely and you won't be able to go to the potty to clean yourself up. Of course you are talking to someone who has backup up stool due to heavy use of narcotics to try and control the pain. Pack an emergency bag the night before with everything you may need from toothbrushes to baby wipes and make sure someone that is with you has access to your medications back at the room in case the hospital doesn’t have what you need or are most comfortable with.
Also make sure everyone communicates about your current meds so that when you get to your room after the operation, you will have your meds all ready for you and you won't have to go through withdrawl, like I did. I went a whole day before they finally got around to giving me everything and I about had a nervous breakdown over it b/c I felt like the stool would not be t be leaking out of my butt so fast had they been on top of my meds and didn't have to start the withdrawl process, This is not the time to go off of your regular medication routine b/c it's vital that you keep you as calm as possible so you can heal well and correct because you don't want to do it all over again. My Butt was so raw from them wiping me every few minutes and the nurses got tired of me too, constantly ringing to clean up my mess and there were time's I'd have to sit and wait while they finished other patients. This was not acceptable to me, so I am saying from one PNE Family Member to another; ask about the light bowel prep. He may brush it off but I wouldn't want to do it ever again and I've gone though a lot worse with operations in 10 years. I just did not want to put it on my wall for everyone to see the gross parts of what we are going to go through. There were times where the stool would be at the very opening and it would be large and hard, it felt like I was sitting on an egg. The nurses would have to try to come and pull it out or dig it out in some cases. Take Stool Softeners way before the operation happens so that you don’t have to go through that, you don’t want to tear or have the sitting on an egg feeling. It’s the most awful feeling I think I have ever had and again, I’ve been through A LOT! I take Phillips Colace 3 times a day and it's working pretty well so far.....occasionally, I wll still need to use a mini enema/suppository to get things started but I am hoping with time, that this will go away. So with the right communication with your Doctor about this bowel issue and your own preparedness for it, hopefully, you won’t run into the same problem I did.
Ok Ladies and Gentleman,
I've taken the photos and now I will explain...........There are a few spelling errors in the slideshow but I am in too much pain to fix them now. It's taken me over two hours to put this together...........
If you are someone who benefits from putting ice inbtween your legs for pain relief this is for you. Just make sure your Doctor is OK with it first. I don't want anyone to get hurt.
The BEST WAY I've found in 10 years for ice packs is the following......I hope that some of you can get some use out of them and be as happy with them as I am. What I do is, I take my pain meds first and then put one of these between my legs and then rest. They last anywhere between 4-6 hours. I cover myself with a blanket if I am visiting a friend.
http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r...t=8222fc53.pbw
Let me try to find the links for you for the PNE Cushions (otherwise they are all called different names) like hemriod cushions to donut cushions, to after birth cushions. So that when you are ready to sit, you'll have your choice as you heal. I encourage you to order these several weeks before your trip so that you have them all if you need them while you stay at the hotel or traveling. One thing is really important to remember, while you may be able to drive there, you can’t drive home or at all for 12 weeks to allow for maximum healing of the nerves. And on your way back home, sitting is really limited, in fact, I didn’t sit at all, I had my Grandmother’s HUGE BACK SEAT to lay down in on the whole way home. If that isn’t an option maybe if you are flying, you could ask for some sort of medical note from the doc explaining that you can’t sit on your flight home and could they make accommodations for you in first class, maybe?
I got the 18” Poliaire Square Custom Comfort Donut
I suggest getting the one with the larger opening to leave more room for the butt and vaginal areas to heal, some of the have tiny little holes that seem like they may not be worth it.
One of my favorites has the memory foam in it and while it may be too hard at one point in your recovery, It may be beneficial later on or depending on what sort of seat you are sitting in too.
Also the ICN Has a Cushion that a lot of PNE Patients find helpful: https://www.icnsales.com/Chair-Cushions-p-1-c-16.html
If anyone has any other suggestions, please let us all know…….I’m not at the sitting stage yet so I may even order another one……….oopps…. I think I am addicted to PNE Cushions! No just want to do the right thing and have more than one option. Your Doctor may have some suggestions too.
And one more thing I can’t live without are my ICE PACKS Made out of Premature Diapers. I’ve made a slide show to show you how I make them. At the very end I have not added yet but I put a black knee high stocking over the plastic so that I don’t get a yeast infection and sometimes I still do it also helps to protect the skin against freezer burn and the chafing that the plastic bag can do to you. You can buy these at any drug store or supermarket for a box of like 10 pairs it’s around $5.00. You can stock your fridge with them so that you don’t have to get up in the middle of the night to make them or while you are in a lot of pain. I had the hospital make them too and store them in the hospital freezer that way no matter what shift was working, there would always be some available. I did this even when I had my epidurals so that I could decrease the swelling I knew would be waiting for me when they wore off. Those of you who end up with a foley catheter, may not be able to use the ice until your epidurals are out. Here is the slideshow minus the stockings: Ok Ladies and Gentleman,
I've taken the photos and now I will explain...........There are a few spelling errors in the slideshow but I am in too much pain to fix them now. It's taken me over two hours to put this together...........
If you are someone who benefits from putting ice inbtween your legs for pain relief this is for you. Just make sure your Doctor is OK with it first. I don't want anyone to get hurt.
The BEST WAY I've found in 10 years for ice packs is the following......I hope that some of you can get some use out of them and be as happy with them as I am. What I do is, I take my pain meds first and then put one of these between my legs and then rest. They last anywhere between 4-6 hours. I cover myself with a blanket if I am visiting a friend.
http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r...t=8222fc53.pbw:smile tee:smile tee
One Hour At a Time (This is a huge operation to recover from and even thought you think you can do some things that were listed as something as simple as not driving......listen to that because, even though you may feel better and like you can do a lot of things, your nerves still need up to 2 years to heal, so take the instructions from your Doctors seriously. I drove yesterday and today, I realize why I should not have done that yet..........my Brother in Law is coming soon to take my car away (my sports car) so that I am not tempted to go out and drive it.
Also some Doctors around the country may have different reasons for the recouperation time and post of instructions, so if you are confused about this, call your doc ahead of time and ask them about it and to explain it.
Good Luck, I'm here for you PNE Family!!! (I just have to communicate with you via the face book way b/c I am not supposed to have even sat this long to have typed this up but I felt I needed to say some things that may help some of you who have this operation already scheduled and coming up.
Kara
If I had to do this operation with Dr. C again I would change some things that are too personal to put on my facebook page:
This was the TIR approach to the PNE Decompression Operation:
It's good to know from one patient to another what I thought could be done better.
I have videos all around this page from the start of leaving my house right up until yesterday which is like around post op- 2.5 weeks. I encourage you to go and look at the pictures and videos. We stayed at the Residence Inn for around 2 weeks because I needed a big Freezer for my ice packs to fit into. Plus I had to stay a little over 10 Days, 3 Days in the Hospital and 7 Days locally and to go back for post op.
I went with my Mom and Grandmother. We had separate rooms with a kitchen, living room, dining room, and fire place separating the two rooms, so my Mom and I could stay in our own room and chat all night or read or watch a movie while my Grandmother could go to bed early with the lights all off and no noise. There was a pull out couch as well for quests. The beds were King Sized and could fit 3 people if needed.
I encourage you to ask him in you can do some sort of light bowel prep before the operation weather it be an enema, a suppository, or something yuckier. I had poop leaking out of my butt for 3 days and I was really, raw and embarrased. I've been through so many operations but this one was the most humiliating and painful to have a huge chunk of stool sitting at the opening and you can't push it out b/c you will have an epidural on both sides, most likely and you won't be able to go to the potty to clean yourself up. Of course you are talking to someone who has backup up stool due to heavy use of narcotics to try and control the pain. Pack an emergency bag the night before with everything you may need from toothbrushes to baby wipes and make sure someone that is with you has access to your medications back at the room in case the hospital doesn’t have what you need or are most comfortable with.
Also make sure everyone communicates about your current meds so that when you get to your room after the operation, you will have your meds all ready for you and you won't have to go through withdrawl, like I did. I went a whole day before they finally got around to giving me everything and I about had a nervous breakdown over it b/c I felt like the stool would not be t be leaking out of my butt so fast had they been on top of my meds and didn't have to start the withdrawl process, This is not the time to go off of your regular medication routine b/c it's vital that you keep you as calm as possible so you can heal well and correct because you don't want to do it all over again. My Butt was so raw from them wiping me every few minutes and the nurses got tired of me too, constantly ringing to clean up my mess and there were time's I'd have to sit and wait while they finished other patients. This was not acceptable to me, so I am saying from one PNE Family Member to another; ask about the light bowel prep. He may brush it off but I wouldn't want to do it ever again and I've gone though a lot worse with operations in 10 years. I just did not want to put it on my wall for everyone to see the gross parts of what we are going to go through. There were times where the stool would be at the very opening and it would be large and hard, it felt like I was sitting on an egg. The nurses would have to try to come and pull it out or dig it out in some cases. Take Stool Softeners way before the operation happens so that you don’t have to go through that, you don’t want to tear or have the sitting on an egg feeling. It’s the most awful feeling I think I have ever had and again, I’ve been through A LOT! I take Phillips Colace 3 times a day and it's working pretty well so far.....occasionally, I wll still need to use a mini enema/suppository to get things started but I am hoping with time, that this will go away. So with the right communication with your Doctor about this bowel issue and your own preparedness for it, hopefully, you won’t run into the same problem I did.
Ok Ladies and Gentleman,
I've taken the photos and now I will explain...........There are a few spelling errors in the slideshow but I am in too much pain to fix them now. It's taken me over two hours to put this together...........
If you are someone who benefits from putting ice inbtween your legs for pain relief this is for you. Just make sure your Doctor is OK with it first. I don't want anyone to get hurt.
The BEST WAY I've found in 10 years for ice packs is the following......I hope that some of you can get some use out of them and be as happy with them as I am. What I do is, I take my pain meds first and then put one of these between my legs and then rest. They last anywhere between 4-6 hours. I cover myself with a blanket if I am visiting a friend.
http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r...t=8222fc53.pbw
Let me try to find the links for you for the PNE Cushions (otherwise they are all called different names) like hemriod cushions to donut cushions, to after birth cushions. So that when you are ready to sit, you'll have your choice as you heal. I encourage you to order these several weeks before your trip so that you have them all if you need them while you stay at the hotel or traveling. One thing is really important to remember, while you may be able to drive there, you can’t drive home or at all for 12 weeks to allow for maximum healing of the nerves. And on your way back home, sitting is really limited, in fact, I didn’t sit at all, I had my Grandmother’s HUGE BACK SEAT to lay down in on the whole way home. If that isn’t an option maybe if you are flying, you could ask for some sort of medical note from the doc explaining that you can’t sit on your flight home and could they make accommodations for you in first class, maybe?
I got the 18” Poliaire Square Custom Comfort Donut
I suggest getting the one with the larger opening to leave more room for the butt and vaginal areas to heal, some of the have tiny little holes that seem like they may not be worth it.
One of my favorites has the memory foam in it and while it may be too hard at one point in your recovery, It may be beneficial later on or depending on what sort of seat you are sitting in too.
Also the ICN Has a Cushion that a lot of PNE Patients find helpful: https://www.icnsales.com/Chair-Cushions-p-1-c-16.html
If anyone has any other suggestions, please let us all know…….I’m not at the sitting stage yet so I may even order another one……….oopps…. I think I am addicted to PNE Cushions! No just want to do the right thing and have more than one option. Your Doctor may have some suggestions too.
And one more thing I can’t live without are my ICE PACKS Made out of Premature Diapers. I’ve made a slide show to show you how I make them. At the very end I have not added yet but I put a black knee high stocking over the plastic so that I don’t get a yeast infection and sometimes I still do it also helps to protect the skin against freezer burn and the chafing that the plastic bag can do to you. You can buy these at any drug store or supermarket for a box of like 10 pairs it’s around $5.00. You can stock your fridge with them so that you don’t have to get up in the middle of the night to make them or while you are in a lot of pain. I had the hospital make them too and store them in the hospital freezer that way no matter what shift was working, there would always be some available. I did this even when I had my epidurals so that I could decrease the swelling I knew would be waiting for me when they wore off. Those of you who end up with a foley catheter, may not be able to use the ice until your epidurals are out. Here is the slideshow minus the stockings: Ok Ladies and Gentleman,
I've taken the photos and now I will explain...........There are a few spelling errors in the slideshow but I am in too much pain to fix them now. It's taken me over two hours to put this together...........
If you are someone who benefits from putting ice inbtween your legs for pain relief this is for you. Just make sure your Doctor is OK with it first. I don't want anyone to get hurt.
The BEST WAY I've found in 10 years for ice packs is the following......I hope that some of you can get some use out of them and be as happy with them as I am. What I do is, I take my pain meds first and then put one of these between my legs and then rest. They last anywhere between 4-6 hours. I cover myself with a blanket if I am visiting a friend.
http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r...t=8222fc53.pbw:smile tee:smile tee
One Hour At a Time (This is a huge operation to recover from and even thought you think you can do some things that were listed as something as simple as not driving......listen to that because, even though you may feel better and like you can do a lot of things, your nerves still need up to 2 years to heal, so take the instructions from your Doctors seriously. I drove yesterday and today, I realize why I should not have done that yet..........my Brother in Law is coming soon to take my car away (my sports car) so that I am not tempted to go out and drive it.
Also some Doctors around the country may have different reasons for the recouperation time and post of instructions, so if you are confused about this, call your doc ahead of time and ask them about it and to explain it.
Good Luck, I'm here for you PNE Family!!! (I just have to communicate with you via the face book way b/c I am not supposed to have even sat this long to have typed this up but I felt I needed to say some things that may help some of you who have this operation already scheduled and coming up.
Kara