The bitch is back

Yesterday afternoon Mother and I (with a cousin) went back home after a 4-night stay at the Philippine General Hospital. The first procedure (ERCP) was done as scheduled on Wednesday while the second procedure (Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy or LapChole, as called by the medical and nursing staff) was done on Thursday instead of Friday. I don’t know the reason for the change in schedule because I had forgotten to ask why. 

Both procedures were deemed ’successful’, if output was the indicator. The ERCP yielded 2 gallstones that were blocking the bile ducts (explaining my jaundice and the false positive result on the Hepa-C screening) and the LapChole got enough gallstones to fill a one-inch glass vial. They were as big as mung beans, with the color green so dark it was almost black. The flushing that I did 3 times wasn’t really enough to treat my condition. As my doctor said, surgery is the most effective way to treat cholelithiasis (stones in the gallbladder).

The ERCP left me with a sore throat (because of the big tube inserted into my throat) and dry mouth (maybe from the sedative) after the procedure but otherwise I was okay. Of course I remembered nothing from the time I was sedated till the time I woke up, before I was taken back to my room.

But the LapChole was another matter. I was injected a sedative before I was wheeled into the operating room. I then spent about 20 minutes chatting with the nurses because I wasn’t drowsy at all. It was only after I was given the inhaled anesthesia that I fell asleep. This was around 2PM. I woke up around 6.30PM in the recovery room, with an urgent desire to pee. I waved a hand and a nurse went to me and I whispered I had to pee. My mouth felt dry as hot sand. The I went back to sleep. I woke up 3 times more to pee and then went back to sleep. I was taken back to my room around 11.30PM.

I spent Friday in varying states of pain. Whenever one has abdominal surgery, the first 2 important things that need to happen are farting and being able to sit. This is to prevent the most unpleasant complication of abdominal surgeries, called adhesion (literally, the state where the internal organs stick together). Standing up and walking causes the internal organs to return to their normal positions after surgery. Unfortunately, both of these things are also excruciatingly difficult to do. So there, lies the rub. But, painful as they seemed, I was able to do these things.

One thing I learned is that you’ll never know your real threshold for pain until you have surgery.

Friends started to visit me yesterday, which was good because I seriously think that the sight of me in pain is only for the eyes of few people (my immediate family). Ted, Hav & Vic dropped by in the morning. My friends from college came by around noon, bringing food I had no appetite for. I’m on a full diet throughout my stay in the hospital but I had no real appetite.

I was only able to eat what I would call a full meal at home; Father cooked a sour chicken soup.

I still have one more appointment with my surgeon on Wednesday, to remove the tube that drains blood and fluids into a grenade-sized plastic bag that hangs unobtrusively from my belly. Post-operative medications aside, I am fine.

And if I feel consistently this way in the next few days, then I can whole heartedly say that the bitch is indeed back! Thanks to those who wished me well; you know who you are, darlings! To those who didn’t, all I can say to you is, ‘Belat! Buhay pa ako!’ 

Bato sa buhangin

or, stones in the sand

Last Saturday I received the results of the blood exams that will be needed by the doctor to complete his diagnosis. I was incredibly relieved to learn that my second test for Hepatitis-C came back negative. When I first took it last March, I tested negative for Hepatitis A & B and tested ‘mildly’ positive for Hepatitis-C. There was also a recommendation for me to take the test again after 3 months. Between then and last Saturday, I tried to learn what I could about the disease. When I was a nursing student, Hepatitis-C was called non-A or non-B hepatitis. I observed one of the symptoms in my body and this somehow helped me to accept the real possibility that I might really have it.

Mother had absolutely no idea what Hepatitis-C was; her immediate question after I told her I might have it was, ‘How did you get it?’ This was a question that I didn’t know how to answer. My aunt, who’s a nurse, apparently cried when Mother told her about it. 

So when the test came back negative, I didn’t know what to feel. Mother and Aunt were vry happy. As for me, it was like this weight was lifted off my chest, but at the same time, I was worried too. If my jaundice was not caused by Hepatitis-C, then it meant that my gallstones were not a simple matter.

True enough, when my doctor heard my history and saw the test results, he thought that not only do I have stones in my gall bladder but also stones might be blocking the passageways between the gall bladder and liver and small intestine. He gave me two choices: one, the invasive type of surgery that will cut me open and leave me with a tube hanging out of my abdomen for the next 4-6 weeks, or the non-invasive type which would involve 2 procedures that will cut small holes instead of a big incision to deal with the gallstones (laparoscopic cholecystectomy) and the blockage (Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography, or ERCP). Recovery for the latter is within1 week, and cost 3 times as much as the invasive procedure.

I decided on the non-invasive type, primarily because of the faster recuperation period. I will have to postpone the purchase of a new notebook that I had saved up for. But my health trumps any gadget–that’s for sure.

Tomorrow at noon I will be admitted into the hospital, where I would undergo ultrasound and some more preparatory procedures prior to the surgeries. On Wednesday the ERCP will be done, while the laparoscopic cholecystectomy will be done on Friday. The doctor said I can go home by Sunday.

I’m not really sure how I’m feeling now. I’m just hoping everything turns out well.

Manila

My second attack of gallstones did not last as long as the first, but the degree of pain I felt was the same as the previous, if not more. This time also, I wasn’t able to hide the fact that I was sick from Mother. Since learning to chat via Yahoo Messenger, the fortnightly phone call from Manila turned into a thrice-weekly conversation.

I had actually been planning to go to Saigon to seek consultation and if needed, have the surgery there as well. Actually, the second attack made me think that most probably, surgery will be advised by the doctor. I have asked FV Hospital for a quotation, and was ready to take it up when Mother strongly suggested that I seek treatment in Manila instead. Aside from having someone watch over me before and after surgery, having the procedure done in Manila has some monetary benefits as well, mainly from PhilHealth–the health insurance system for Filipino workers.

But going to Manila posed some challenges as well. The airfare, for one, has increased exponentially. The last time I went home (December 2006), a round-trip ticket with Thai Airways cost $475.00. Now it is $745.00. Being a freelance worker, I always pay for my expenses: plane tickets, visa, professional development, etc. Also, I was in the thick of finishing a project. Choices and decisions had to be made immediately.

In the end, I decided to go to Manila. I don’t clearly know why. I think my primary consideration was getting the best health care possible. Then, getting that care with my family around me. And perhaps also, the fact that it had been 18 months since I last came back home. Going back is one of the biggest decisions I had made recently.

So now I’m in my parents’ house in Manila, enjoying their DSL internet connection, writing this. I arrived last night, after spending 4 hours in Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok. During this long lay-over, I browsed the book shops where I almost bought 2 books. I decided to get a 30-minute foot massage from Chang and ended up getting an hour of foot, head, shoulder and back massage for just a few dollars more. Very glad that I did; I was very relaxed when I boarded the flight.

I was seated beside a 32 year-old seafarer who chatted me up for most of the trip. He wore an orange shirt that bulged with his muscles. We talked about our respective jobs. He showed genuine interest when I told him I worked in the AIDS field. His excitement was palpable. He admitted this and said it was because his wife was supposed to give birth in 2 weeks. This was their second pregnancy but she miscarried during the first trimester of the pregnancy. Then he asked me about my wife. He sounded really surprised when I said I was single. I didn’t elaborate anymore.

Men’s assumption of other men’s heterosexuality is always fascinating to me. I would’ve loved to make him squirm in his seat by saying I’m gay but I was too mellow from the massage to be naughty. A few minutes after dozing off, I felt his thigh and foot rubbing against mine. But when I looked at him I saw he was fast asleep. He’s just a fitful sleeper, as it turned out.

I lost him somewhere at the baggage claim section.

The drive  home was swift, and I was suddenly distracted with unwelcome thoughts. I suddenly felt afraid of what the consultation will confirm. Surgery suddenly became an ominous thought. I barely slept last night.

This morning Mother and I went to a laboratory for the series of blood exams that will be needed to complete a diagnosis. On Monday we will go to the Philippine General Hospital for a consultation. I have left next week open for a possible hospital admission. I am told that recovery is brief; I hope it really is.

Sometimes love just ain’t enough

Please pardon my silence for the last few days. I’m currently experiencing (more like suffering) a second attack of gallstones which I wrote about a few months ago here and here. It’s terrible, really.

I’m taking the same treatment I took before. Hope it still works this time.

You will hear from me when I am feeling better.