The port.

I'm ported!! I got my port put in yesterday with no issues at all. I checked in at 10:00 am and they asked me about 600 questions about my medical history and meds and you name it. All that crap is in my chart but they feel better knowing they asked me THAT day. I must have been asked a dozen times if the thing was going to remain accessed, and answered a dozen times NO.

They got my IV going and took me back to the semi-operating room in radiology around 11:00. They cleaned my chest, I was blue from my ear to below my nipple. Pretty soon the nurse gave me some fentinal (sp?) and I watched the walls dance for a while. Then she loaded me up on versed and I had some weird dreams that I don't remember now. I vaguely remember them telling me they were going to give me lidocaine and it would sting, but I don't remember any stinging. I started to come out of it when they were finishing up and talking about whether or not they were leaving it accessed!! AAAAH!

They got me out of there and parked in the hall for a while. They wanted to check my blood sugar which was good since I hadn't eaten all morning. It was in the low 80s so I asked for some juice to hold me over until I got up stairs. They got me up to the out patient infusion clinic around 1:00 pm. They wanted me to hang out up there for 3 hours to make sure all was good. I ordered up some food and a ginger ale. I got a little sea sick when I stood up to go pee so I wanted the ginger ale to settle my stomach.

After I ate I fell asleep for a couple hours, then the new nurse came in to take my vitals. My friend's who were giving me a ride home got off work around 5:00 so I hung out a little longer than the 3 hours. Then I headed down stairs to wait for them. I wasn't getting good cell reception up on the floor. When my friends got there we headed home. We stopped at the store so one of the guys could get a perscription and I picked up a few groceries and something from the deli for dinner.

I didn't get much sleep because my apartment was too hot (87 degrees on the first day of fall??) and I couldn't get confortable. I like to sleep on my sides and I couldn't do that with the fresh port incisions. And that's incisionS...plural. I have a small one at the base of my neck. I guess they thread the tube down through there or something. I was still rather out of it when they explained it to me.

Things I have learned with this whole deal: 1: Wearing a bra is best. Without it gravity takes over, pulls my boob down and pulls on the port site. 2: Ice packs = great! I think I may bruise a little and I know I'm swollen. I can't even see where the dang thing is. 3: Vicodin is my friend, but I already knew that.