appendix free -- that's me!

It's been almost a week since my appendix was removed. Feels like three weeks. I've not had much energy or opportunity to post, but here's a quick recap. I felt unwell last Sunday afternoon, and by Sunday night I knew something was seriously amiss in my belly. Monday morning Tom took me to the doctor's office, where they did some lab tests and decided I likely had appendicitis. So across the street to DCH I went, where the rest of the afternoon was spent getting blood drawn, IVs started (in my dehydrated veins), and then a CT scan.

By Monday evening my mom had arrived and I was in a room. The surgeon came to visit and said, "It's coming out tonight." And at about 11:30, surgery commenced. I returned to my room at about 2:00.

Tuesday I was troubled with post-surgery pain and a high fever; it stayed in the 102.5 range most of the day and spiked to 104. A miserable day, despite the morphine and visits from my boss, Dr. Blum; my cousin Ron; and my oldest friend, Meredith. (She's 103. Not really. But she has been my friend for almost 32 years.)

And then came the call that an agent wanted to show our house the following day.

I spent Wednesday largely by myself while Tom tried to get the house ready to show, and then he entertained the carful of animals while the people were in the house. I felt better than the day before but still not fantastic. And someone made an appointment to see the house on Thursday morning, so Tom got to do it all again the next day. (And this one was for a 2.5-hour stint. Poor Tom.)

Thursday my mom came down early and was present when my drain tube was removed. The darn thing was about 14 inches long and stung as it was pulled out! But much of the pain and irritation I'd had since the surgery was alleviated almost instantly once the tube was gone. I got to go home Thursday afternoon.

Since then I've slept a lot and worked out the stiffness in my limbs and back, generated by trying to not use my abs. Compensating with legs and back makes for a lot of aching. Today my folks and Grandma came and brought us lunch, plus plenty of leftovers to feast upon for the next few days.

And that's it in a nutshell.

One more thing: The folks who came to see the house on Wednesday came back for a second visit on Friday evening. No word yet though.

--Jennifer
Oooh, look, shiny things stuck in my arms!