Surgery Report

Realized I hadn’t given you guys one in a while, so here it is.

I went to see the surgeon on Tuesday for my 6-weeks post-operative checkup, and he took a look at things. As he said, “I’m not going to touch anything, because if that communication is healing up right now, my poking around won’t help. So I’ll just look.” So he just looked.

And his observations coupled with my observations through the past few weeks indicate that the communication IS indeed healing up, that all looks really good, the repair has been effective, and that I’m very unlikely to need to have any further surgery. We high-fived in celebration.

He and his nurse both agreed that I need to make more doughnut cushion covers and sell them in the lobby of his office.

Suffice it to say, I’m quite pleased.

And then this afternoon at church I saw a gynecologist friend who asked how I was doing. Most people at church when they ask that, I assume that they’re asking because they know. So I said, “I’m doing much better, thanks!” and then he wanted to know … better than what? So I told him. And he made faces. He understood what it meant to have lived with what I lived with for the past 3+ years, and he understood what the past 7 weeks have been for me and my family. He gave me a hug, and said, “Well, I’m glad you’re on this side of it.”

Un.
Der.
State.
Ment.

A month ago, I was not glad that I made the decision to go with this surgery. Today, I’m very glad. I went to church for the annual Lobsterfest with Alice in a stroller, and I didn’t have to do a mental cataloguing of the last time I had a bowel movement so that I could be certain that I wouldn’t have an embarrassing moment in front of lots of people.

That, in itself, is a HUGE victory. I was driving there, and I idly thought, “HowlonghasitbeensinceI…” and then I remembered… It doesn’t matter. My muscle works now. It’s weak, but it works, and it gets stronger every day. But the main thing? I have more than twenty seconds to find a bathroom now.

Thank God.