Day 445: Hiding from the heat

It was predicted to be 39 degrees C today. Knowing what the heat does to my arm swelling, I spent the afternoon hiding indoors, which is not at all like me. Thankfully the heat never hit and my arm stayed the same. I feel a bit like I wasted a beautiful day, but a visit to the beach would've been unpleasant since I still shouldn't swim post-op and my sleeve/glove would've been very not. Ahh, the joys of this journey. At least I know that this, too, shall pass.

I did have the upside of seeing Remie's dance concert in which she did a tap dance (she's been doing tap and jazz) dressed as a pirate. She had a great time.

Nick and Alex spent last night camping locally at Manly Dam with Cubs. Remie and I were there for a bit yesterday but spent the night at home. Camping was not in my repertoire 10 days after reconstruction, and Remie decided she wasn't going to stay if I didn't. Instead we went out for sushi and she slept in her IKEA circus tent on the very old mattress from her cot. She was happy.  And I was happy sleeping in my own bed as comfortably as is possible at the moment on minimal pain killers.

Day 441: Serial numbers and slow time

Upon awaking, I redeemed on of my "get a cup of coffee" certificates Alex had given me. It was a great way to start the day. Nick was on morning duty before his afternoon departure to Singapore, so I enjoyed moving slowly.  I'm definitely feeling better every day, though I am still very vague.

I had to drop Wanda (the Honda) in for a service, so Rach picked me up and we had a great morning of coffee, walking, juice and shopping. Melinda came by for a lovely visit this afternoon, and the rest of my day was admin.  I'm getting a few things done as I'm around the house lots at the moment.

The strange thing I did today was to file the card that has my details and the serial numbers and details of my implants "in case there is ever a recall".  I didn't know my girls would have their own ID card. I wonder if I should have one for my hip as well...

Deanna dropped by a yummy dinner that we all 3 demolished. I've enjoyed a very quiet house this evening and will drift off to sleep peacefully.

Day 440: Peer support volunteering

I was awake early after not sleeping particularly well. I got moving and helped get the kids ready for Nick to take them to school. After a bit of admin, I headed to hospital for my final meeting of my first breast cancer seminar as a peer support volunteer. Today's topic was "Life after treatment" and we had a good session discussing fear, worries and experiences amongst the 8 of us (5 currently undergoing treatment). It reminded me of how uniquely isolating this journey is when it comes to the post-treatment adjustment to one's body's fallibility and what that means for making the most of the finite number of days left.

I popped into Redlands, where the kids will go to school next year, to drop off Remie's library books and pick up some info regarding Alex's activities. It was lovely to be greeted by so many familiar and warm faces.

I spent the afternoon on a lounge chair out back, talking to Mum and reading. I did indeed get some rest.

When Rosalie and the kids got home, Remie was very upset. I ast with her for a bit and coerced her into the bath, which calmed her down. We spent time reading this evening while the boys were at Cubs, which is always really nice. It was a great way to spend part of my limited time left.

Day 439: Resting at home

I woke at 6.45a after a restless night to the kids chattering. Nick brought me a coffee and I started slowly as the kids played with Lego. Alex made porridge for brekkie and Rosalie came at 8a to help get the kids ready for school and walk them down.

I was around the house all day aside from a morning coffee outing to Little Manly with Rach. I sent my party invites and caught up on a few things before a long-overdue visit from Bill.  I tried to sleep after that, but the sound of concrete drilling wasn't really conducive. I pottered for most of the afternoon while Rosalie did pick up and sorted out Alex and food. My first driving effort went smoothly as I picked up Remie from dance.

I'm starting to get a bit more sore as I'm healing.  The tenderness of the drain sites is rapidly diminishing as the incisions are pinching more. All things considered I feel pretty good. My arm has returned to its pre-surgery size and me hand is the best it has looked since it blew up in August. I'd love for that to be a trend, but the predicted heat in the coming days is likely to cause it to swell again. Time will tell.

Day 438: Early release

I am home tonight after getting out of hospital this morning 2 days earlier than expected. It was so nice to have the day at home in fresh air. Now I just need to remember to rest.

I woke about 6a and went back to sleep until the catering woman brought in my brekkie at 7.30a. I savoured my final breakfast in bed, then packed and had a shower. Emma, my nurse, came in with 2 Endone in preparation for pulling the final drain.  She was back in 30 minutes to do the deed, reminding me to breathe the whole while. I've never had bamboo slowly shoved under my fingernails, but I imagine it would feel like that. Ouch.

Netty arrived at 9.30a as she'd offered to pick me up (and Remie had no interest in driving back to hospital!), and we ended up hanging out for an hour until my Endone script was filled and my paperwork was done.

Remie and Nick were excited to see us when we got home (Alex was out at a Cubs event). After lunch, Nick dropped Remie at Rach's for a play with M while he ran errands. Netty and I hung out and read the paper. Rach and Jen popped in for a visit and Jen even brought snacks and punch. What a great relaxing afternoon.

Nick, Remie, Alex and I went out to for dinner (they had planned it so I just went along) once Alex got home. It's an early night for all and some return to normalcy tomorrow, though we'll still rely on all the help we have lined up.

Day 437: 2 of 3 out

I woke about 7a after an awesome 10 hours of sleep. I took the opportunity to be lazy and stay in bed after brekkie. I got in the shower and had a walk about 9a, then talked to Mum, Sandra and Joe. I was still tired so I lay back in bed reading and dozing until an official-looking man popped in. John from pastoral care and I had a nice chat. He left saying that he'd been supposed to cheer me up but felt I'd helped him.

Nick and the kids arrived about 11.30a. Remie came with 20+ hand made "Get Well" cards from each if the kids in her class. They were so sweet they nearly made me cry. She was very proud of them and felt very pleased to be showing me. She also brought me a new Beanie Boo, Zigzag the zebra, to keep me company. Alex came with a puzzle for me to solve and a couple of card games.

We went to the cafe to get lunch for them then came back to my room to wait for my lunch, which included 2 lemon sorbets for the kids. They thought it was a great treat. After they'd finished, they pulled the curtain in front of the door to do a show. Shortly after they started, Dr. Andrew walked in.  He had no idea he'd come in the middle of a show and it was all quite entertaining.

He checked my drains and said 2 could come out. He also asked if I wanted to go home tomorrow or Monday, to which Alex immediately responded "Monday" (I think he didn't want to tidy his room). I said tomorrow so that'll be it. My lovely nurse, Emma, came in with 2 Endone to prepare me for the drain removal.

The kids' continued their show and we all had a good laugh. We then played Uno after which they departed (I think they were afraid of the drain removal). It was so good to have them here.

Emma was fantastic at pulling out the drains, but it was still terribly unpleasant. I flopped back into bed to read and lay still to keep the pain to a minimum. Ally popped in for a quick hello, which was a
lovely surprise. Then Archie came by for a visit and we had a great chat about how we old parents are going to need to lighten up and be flexible as our kids approach the teen years. Yikes! That makes drain removal seem easy.

Since then I've been lolling about, watching TV, going for a walk and reading. I'm tired after a not-very-busy day, so it'll be off to sleep soon.

Day 436: Recovering nicely

I had a typical first night post-op: lots of checking in and waking up. I made a deal with my night nurse that if I didn't use my PCA he wouldn't come check on me every hour. I got 4.5 hours of uninterrupted sleep, which I thought was pretty good. He woke me about 6.15a to do checks and turned the "spotlight" over my bed on. When I protested, he called me a diva. I held on to my retort as I didn't think picking a fight with the nurse was a good idea. When he got uppity about my low blood pressure (89/48), I suggested he use the manual machine. When he wasn't happy with that, he finally looked at my chart to see the reduced parameters. Sheesh. He then did a finger prick test for my glucose level and all was fine.

After brekkie and FaceTime calls with Mum, Sandra and Joe, then Sue then Maegan, I got in the shower. Nick arrived just in time to hold my 3 drains - lucky him. Claire, the breast care nurse, dropped in to check on me and remind me to take it easy. Nick and I signed Alex up for next year's school sport and sorted a few other things before Ruth arrived with a yummy veggie juice. She and I had a quick walk after Nick headed to work then settled into the guest lounge where Ilona then Chris joined us. After they headed out and I had lunch, Deb popped in with another refreshing juice as it was 37 degrees out.  I was thankful to be in air conditioning for once.

I managed some rest when Deb left before Nick came in on his way home. He stayed for my dinner then went to put the kids to bed. The kids and Rosalie got Skype working so we had a good catch up.

My arm is still more swollen than before surgery, but it has come down quite a bit since yesterday.  I can't properly manage my massage due to the pain so I suppose I'm just going to have to wait.

Now I'm sitting out in the "Healing Garden" appreciating some fresh air. I think I'll read a bit and try to get to sleep early.