What do I do now? + Surgery No. 2 Pictures

I'm out of the hospital! I got out yesterday and I spent a great day with my cousins. I got to take a nice shower (I'm really good at delaying hospital shower requests. Nurses can be persistent but I just do not want to know what kind of other operations or diseases people in those showers have had, no matter what disinfectants they may use. Sorry!). Interesting fact: doctors paint iodine on before surgery to reduce the risk of infection. Since I'm still recovering, I get tired easily and suddenly, but the thrill of being better usually overcomes the urge to nap. I walked a couple blocks with no trouble this morning, more than I could hope for just out of the hospital!

My main problem is getting up after I've been lying down. Since the stomach muscles required to get up are a bit much for my incision, I have a rolling method that is slightly ridiculous but effective. I am taking Percocet (oxycodone + tylenol; ask me for a review of narcotic drug classes and I can fill you in, or read a previous post about pain medications) around the clock because my incision starts hurting otherwise. Gradually I will decrease how many I take at one time and the frequency. I am going to the bathroom many times a day, but that is totally normal right after surgery and over time it will decrease. As it is, with no pain, I could deal.

I miss the nurses from Floor 5 North of UCSF! I got to know most of them and they took such great care of me. They also made me feel glamorous by telling me often how great I looked (aka: you are looking better than the other patients on this floor...the octogenarians).

Today I encountered an unsettling feeling: What do I do now? For the past couple years, I have always had a goal associated with my disease. It was usually among the following: get through today; get through this week; get through this semester; make it until surgery; make it until the next surgery, etc. Now I just have seemingly infinite time ahead of me. Suddenly the mentality of not being able to do certain things and limiting my expectations is gone. I am no longer a sick person; I'm a recently sick and recovering person who has no idea what to do other than read scifi books. So...I registered for the GRE. I got physical disability accommodations for extra bathroom breaks. This will give me a goal. Plus I have lots of time to study, if you haven't noticed. I didn't expect to have trouble adjusting to being normal but I guess that any adjustment, even if it's one for the better, can be troubling and simply take time. Once again, I have to welcome the change and resist the fear of the unknown future.

Now what you have all been waiting for:

Staples!!! And that's all the evidence of six feet less of intestine in the world.  It's slightly orange from  the iodine. 

This is pretty terrib...ly funny! Drunk leering pregnant lady recovering from a colectomy?

Sleepover buddy

My family breaks me out of the hospital

First meal out of the hospital