Mary and anesthesia do not get along

After the two doctors talked to me in the waiting area, I waited for a while and then decided to have lunch in the cafeteria. When I was done, I called the operator to learn Mary's new room #. As I walked into the room, I heard her asking the nurse to find Patrick L-a-m-e-y. I was stuck behind one of those cart thingys but I announced myself. At that point, Mary closed her eyes and relaxed. Let me see, that was probably 3:00-ish.

Its now after 7PM and Mary has spent most of the time with her eyes closed and lightly sleeping off the happy juice. She has asked for and gotten more fentanyl because she still has pain in the abdominal area. She has walked to the bathroom, drunk a tiny carton of apple juice and generally just been out of it. In other words, her normal recovery from anesthesia.

She is on an IV with potassium in it, has these amazing massaging airbag things on her calves and thighs to minimize the risk of blood clotting, has an oxygen tube up her nose, a meter on her finger and is currently propped up in a sitting position via one of those hospital beds that bends in a million different ways. She was given a regular meal consisting of an iceberg lettuce salad, some form of grey meat with brown gravy on it, a slice of a sweet potato, a medley of corn, peas, carrots and beans and some form of yellow custard for dessert. She drank the apple juice that came with it and has not touched anything else.

We've seen one internist and otherwise it appears to be a typical Saturday night in a hospital. Really quiet, not much going on other than the routine stuff.

This room also has a floor to ceiling window and it faces west towards the Santa Cruz mountains. It is a great view, actually. We get a beautiful afternoon sun and, fortunately, window blinds to cut the heat when it gets to be too much--like today. Mary's bed is the one closest to the window. The sun is setting behind the mountains right now--the computer clock says 7:35PM.

Shift change is at 7PM so Mary's new nurse should appear anytime to introduce herself and take vital signs. After that, I'll go rescue the dogs and find my own dinner.

Later,

Pat