Where I had never gone before day 2 and 3

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April 4 – Friday - April 4 – Friday – The nurses came in around 10AM and gave me a huge jug of some kind of chalky liquid I had to drink. Half before 12 noon and half after 12. It was some kind of liquid laxative which was to help “clean me out” before the colonoscopy that afternoon. I can assure you it worked very well in that respect. I went to the bathroom for a BM several times till I was “clear”.
A Dr W. came by and said he was the Lung doctor, and would be checking out the results of the CT aniogram. He asked me what I thought he should be looking for. I told him I guess to see if the cancer had spread from my colon to the lungs. He told me his principal was “above all do no harm” which I liked to hear. So he said he might wait till they finished with my present surgery to deal with the dark spots in my lungs. From what I gathered no one seemed to think it was the cancer but something else possibly some mold or something. Dr W. said he would look at the CT scan results before determining anything.
I went downstairs for the colonoscopy around 5 but it was well past 8PM before they took me to do the procedure. They wheeled me on the bed I was in into a small room with an attached bathroom that was shared with another little room.
During this time waiting I became very adept at getting out of the bed and rolling my IV and getting into the attached bathroom several times, as the liquid they had given me to drink to clean me out was still having an effect.
They asked me if I minded if they had some students observe the procedure and I told them I didn’t.
Finally they took me in and had me lie on my side on the table and next thing I knew the nurse was telling me to wake up and how did I feel. I felt pretty good actually and even said no wonder people take drugs if they make them feel this good.
April – 04 – 21:56 – Back in my room again waiting on the doctor to come up and talk to me and Danny. Dr. M. who had done the colonoscopy said he would be up to talk to me later but didn’t come that evening.
April 5 – Saturday – Dr M. came by and said they had found a tumor on my colon and he had seen enough of them to know it was a cancer. I told him OK and I knew it had to be removed if it was “just a tumor”, but I still wanted to see what the lab said after they tested it to see if it was cancerous or not.
The surgeon Dr J.M. came by and said they were putting me on clear liquids and would have the surgery on Monday morning. He described the details of how they were going to do the surgery with me. It sounded simple enough the way he described it. They were going to make about a 4 inch incision vertically across my stomach and navel. Then they would fill the area with a gas to inflate it and insert a couple of cameras through a couple of holes they would cut. Then they would check things out with the cameras and pull the colon out through the incision at the navel and cut out a section of the colon that had the tumor on it, then sew the ends back together, and then put everything back in again. He said it with an air of someone who does this all the time, which he probably does.
After a bit the lung doctor, Dr. W. came in again and said he would wait on the current surgery to be over and recovered from before he would do anything with the dark spots in my lungs.

April 6 – Sunday – I had several visitors who came to wish me well. Some brought me balloons from the gift shop downstairs.
When I had checked in I had Danny bring me a suitcase etc to my room and so today had Danny take most of my stuff back home with him as after the surgery tomorrow morning I would be moved to another room. Before surgery people are kept on the 4th floor, and after surgery they are kept on the 3rd floor.
The liquid diet I was on wasn’t very exciting but I never felt hungry. I guess they must have had something in one of the IV’s that kept me from being hungry. I mainly chewed on cracked ice.
After my company left I set up my office, and read a sheet I had been given on making up a medical power of attorney. I made out a medical power of attorney designating one of my sisters and my brother Danny. The medical power of attorney said that if I was incapacitated that these two designated people could make medical decisions for me.
The church people here in the hospital gathered up a couple of witnesses to witness the signing and so that was done.
The Surgeon Dr J.M. came by and told me that my surgery was scheduled for 1PM on Monday. Recovery in the hospital should be 3 to 5 days if all goes well. And I was not to immerse myself in water (such as in a bathtub) or pick up anything over 35 lbs. for two weeks. I would be on a "soft food" diet for a week as well after I got out.
Later in the evening I waited in my room and thought things over. I had absolutely no fear or doubt about the operation. I had confidence in the surgeon and the rest of the hospital staff.
To me the main thing still was if the tumor turned out to be cancerous and if so had the cancer spread to the liver or lymph nodes. If that was the case I had the choice of going through Chemo or dying, neither of which appealed to me. Or even worse, going through the trauma of Chemo and dying anyway as a couple of my friends had done.
So to me that was the issue. Had the cancer spread or was it localized in the tumor.

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Photos

My office
After all my company left on Saturday I set up my office and took care of a few details.

Half now and half after noon
I had to drink this entire jug of liquid. Half before noon and half after noon. It was a laxative and supposed to clean me out which it very well did till I was running "clear".

Danny taking my stuff home for now.
I was going to be moved to another room after the surgery and so had Danny take my suitcase and all my stuff home to bring back later.

My Office
I invested my time waiting in reading the massive amount of documents that had been handed to me and I had signed and seeing what they said.

Just waiting and thinking.
In the quiet of the evening after everyone had left I thought things over.

Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Hospitals
Our thoughts are with you. It looks like you went through all of this a couple of months ago. I certainly hope you are feeling better now.

[Sojourner1208]

feeling better
Thanks, I feel great!!