Spring's Surgery and other stuff

Below there more information than you will probably ever wanna know about my surgery I had on Thursday. I went in at 11:30am to Sacred Heart Doctor's Bldg - Day Surgery and at 1:05pm they wheeled me into the surgical suite, I laid down on the bed and then the next thing I know I am being wheeled into the recovery room. They gave me local sedation, they called it the "michael jackson drug". I think it was about 1:45pm. They told me when I could pee, I could go home. So about 2:30pm after slugging down a couple glasses of apple juice I went to the bathroom by myself - much to the chagrin of my nurse. She caught me right before I closed the door - I guess I was supposed to wait for her to ask me if I had to go & take me. Since she didn't have time to put their special little "measure my pee pee cup" in the toilet, she said we might have to wait until I went again or do an ultrasound to make sure I emptied my bladder. So, they ultrasounded & it was bone dry, just like I told her. So, I was able to go home at 3pm and Dave picked me up around 3:15pm.

I realized when the doctor said the surgery would just feel like I had been riding horses for a couple of days - it wasn't the procedure that caused it - it was the fact that my feet were put up in stirrups and my knees were at my ear lobes and my knees were jacked wide open (I wasn't awake, I just know from doing these procedures. So, the soreness I felt was from the positioning. I only felt my stitches inside once, mostly it felt like I had been wearing a Tampon for way too long! This was a breeze compared to birthing an 8 pounder vaginally without any meds!

However, I was VERY tired...probably from surgery but most likely from all the stuff I have been doing for others this last month. So, I slept all Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I did venture out to eat and pee. I would bring the food back to my bed & eat it laying down.

I did go to half of church today. Was glad to sit on the cushy chairs. Now my back is causing more trouble than my "surgical area".  I worked on organizing Marley & Graysons room - going through all their clothes & seeing what fits and what doesn't and putting their initials in everything. Marley & Jasmyn went and visited their dad in rehab yesterday. Jasmyn said there were some pretty scary people in there. Only 4 people are their voluntarily (Ken included) the others (mostly for drugs) are court ordered to be there. Jasmyn had to drag Marley off her dad - he didn't want to go.  Then they went to a birthday party at Jump & Bounce. Thursday during my surgery they spent the day playing with Ayden and had sooo much fun (I wasn't quite in the mood to hear ALL about it at full volume on the way home from the hospital - but lucky me - I got too!!). 

Grandpa Dar & Grandma Tami came by at 4pm and picked up all the kids and took them to Chuck-E-Cheese. Its hard to say who had the most fun - the kids or the grandparents! Jasmyn fell in love with their little dog Sparky and really wants a dog. So, Tami told her she can dogsit once they move up. I suggested she volunteer at the animal shelter thats so close she can ride her bike too.

So, if anyone wants to send letters to Ken (Curtis) he'll be in rehab until November 3rd. The address is PO BOX 9977, Spokane, WA 99209.  We heard back from the apartment complex and since he doesn't have a rental history in his name in the last 3 years he needs a co-signor, but it has to be a relative of his or Marley's. Marley's grandma Carol Ann called him today and she may be coming up to visit him on October 30th.

So, below is more info. than you'll ever wanna know (unless you too suffer from peeing your pants when you laugh, sneeze, run, jump on the trampoline, etc, etc, which is caused from having children):

MonarcTMSubfascial Hammock


The MonarcTM Subfascial Hammock treats female stress urinary incontinence by placing a narrow strip of mesh in your body to support the urethra. The Monarc uses what is called a transobturator approach to place the supportive mesh. The transobturator approach avoids the retropubic space, the area of loose connective tissue between the bladder, pubic bone and abdominal wall. With this approach, narrow mesh carriers are passed through an area near the groin at the obturator of the pubic bone. The mesh is then attached and pulled into place under the urethra.

Once placed, the hammock cradles your urethra and gives it a point of support.

Most patients are continent immediately following the procedure and can resume normal, non-strenuous activities within a few days.

The Monarc offers several benefits:

•Patients generally recover quickly and experience immediate continence.

•It is minimally invasive and suitable for a wide variety of patients.

•Incisions in the groin area are small.

•Can be used in patients who have retropubic scarring resulting from prior pelvic surgery.

•The hammock can be loosened or tightened during and immediately after the procedure.
 
Placement of the MonarcTM is a minimally invasive procedure that typically lasts less than 20 minutes under local, regional or general anesthesia, depending on what you and your doctor choose.


In general, placing the Monarc sling involves the following steps.
1.Two small incisions are made near the groin at the obturator of the pubic bone and one in the vagina.

2.Narrow sling carriers are passed through the groin incisions and exit through the vaginal incision.

3.The mesh is attached to the sling carriers, and placed under the urethra.

4.Sling carriers are removed.

5.Mesh tension is adjusted.

6.Incision is closed.
 
The Monarc Subfascial Hammock is a single-use procedure kit that includes two stainless steel needles each specifically designed for right-side/left-side. The needles are designed to move away from the obturator canal, avoid the retropubic space and minimize blind needle passage.


The Monarc TOS series allows physicians to select from three needle types to better accommodate individual patient anatomy:

Standard Monarc - Tight, centered helical passer for small to medium or large patients

Monarc+ - Wide, centered helical passer for larger patients

Monarc C - Passer for physicians who prefer the C shape