CD 12: Egg retrieval procedure

Please forgive me if this post makes less sense than usual, or rambles, as I am still awash with codeine!

Good news! We got 5 excellent looking eggs! I'm really happy with this and the embryologist said they all look the have good membranes.

By now, we may have a 7-hour-old! How crazy is that?

Started off this morning very early with a light breakfast at 5.40am (4hrs prior to OPU) and then napped until 7am. I got up, had a shower, got dressed and we packed up the car and drove over to the fertility clinic at 9am.

As normal we checked in and were given little slips of paper to take across to the other side of the building. Mine said OPU 9.40am (oocyte pick-up) and Hubby's said sperm sample! I told the receptionist that wouldn't be necessary or possible since Hubby had to have TESA sperm retrieval, but on closer inspection the form said "from andrology" so it must just have been a "defrost this please" note lol.

We were in the waiting room long enough for me to look through a couple pages of the morning paper, and then our old nurse came out to take us through to the Pre-op/post-op room with the armchair.

We got talking about diabetes and she told us how she has struggled with T2 and so has her family. It was nice to share with her, and Hubby showed her the Dexcom while I went to the bathroom.
Then started an onslaught of nurses, doctors, embryologists all checking my name and date of birth. I had yet more forms to fill out, and they must have told me all about everything at least thrice.
I was very impressed with the embryologist, T, who told us how she feels a great responsibility to take get time to search for the best quality sperm from a sample, since she is choosing the DNA of our potential future children. We asked her when exactly would the ICSI fertilization take place, and she said she would start the process at 2pm, carefully washing the eggs, then putting then in an acid solution to remove the outer membrane. She would then take her time looking for good quality sperm to fertilize all the eggs with. She reckoned that 2.30pm should be about fertilization time! :D

---- I had a break from writing, got a bit tired! ----

Anyway, after the doctor tried to come in several times only to find the nurse and I were busy chatting (she took my blood pressure too - slightly raised for me), she was finally able to put in the cannula for the IV. I only told her afterwards what a drama it was last time!

It made a lot of difference having a plan to manage diabetes, and having the medical folks take it seriously. I made sure that I remained calm (and I truly never got stressed even when I got locked OUT of the OR! Lol) as it can affect my blood sugars and make them drop rapidly.

Getting the cannula in meant that I could have IV dextrose should I need it, and having the early breakfast ensured I had a "buffer" in the tank. But the Dexcom was the absolute winner on the day. Hubby could hold on to the receiver and manage it, we even practiced with him testing my blood sugar via fingerprick test the night before. We made sure to tell all nurses and the doctor that the alarms might go off and not to panic. We were able to discuss with Dr G how she would give small boluses of 20% dextrose should I go hypo.

I was now in my stylish white hospital-moo-moo gown and I clipped the insulin pump to the neckline. I was told to go to the bathroom one last time, and then it was show time!

When I came out of the bathroom the pre-op room was empty, but I could hear Hubby's voice behind the big wooden spaceship theatre door. They were saying "push the green button!" and once I figured out they were talking to me, I let myself into the OR!

Setup similarly to when Hubby had his sperm retrieval, the bed was on the left and I had to walk around him at the head of the bed, around the ultra-sound machine at the foot, past the hatch to the embryo-makin' lab, and climb on from the other side.
The stirrups were padded, but they still freaked me out a bit. I knew that there would be lots of scary equipment in there so I guess I was prepared for it. I hopped up (carefully this time!) and the two nurses, H and P, kept wanting me to shuffle down the bed. I got my calves in the stirrups and they laid a large white towel across me and asked me to shuffle the bottom of my gown/moo-moo up.

--- got tired again and had some dinner! ---

While one nurse attached a blood pressure cuff to my right arm, and a blood-oxygen monitor to my left index finger (which kept slipping, causing me to adjust it, causing the nurse to scold me for moving my IV arm hehe!), the other nurse was placing black drapes over my legs to keep them warm. They unhooked the "bum" of the bed and suddenly the towel didn't feel like enough coverage lol!

The doctor appeared at the foot of the bed and asked me my weight, she then used this to calculate the dosage of midazolam and fentanyl. The nurse gave me these (and some augmentin antibiotic since I'm T1) and warned I would start to feel loopy. I got a rush of cold choking feeling all up around my neck and got a bit worried, but everyone quickly reassured me that would just be because the medication was cold.
Hubby was right by my side and kept his hand on my right shoulder. :D

The drugs took effect very quickly and I got loopy really fast! I was intent on watching the ultrasound screen - I really wanted to see my eggs! - but it was all mostly hazy. I don't remember seeing the hatch or hearing the embryologist to my right at all, although she was well within earshot.

I felt the ultrasound probe and then the doctor told me to take a deep breath and she went in for the right ovary. There was pain which made me wince, but it was over relatively fast. Two eggs retrieved on the right. I knew I'd seen 3 there the other day so my brain was still working, sort of. I was awake enough to make jokes and be surprised at how awake I was. The sedation was pretty light, but I was really loopy.

Another breath, now the left side. This one was a lot more painful, and it got worse in the seconds following the needle going in, a kind of wrenching movement. I described the nature of the pain later to Hubby as being similar to when you get an intra-muscular injection in your arm, well think of a wider needle, and then imagine you get a really bad cramp in the muscle the moment of the injection. Yes it hurt, but it was very short lived feeling and I got instant relief once the needle was out. I later learned we got 3 on the left side.

It was over! We had eggs! I was really happy to be through it, and to know that it was a calm, happy, exciting experience. Yes there was some pain but it wasn't too bad and it felt like it was only a total of 30 seconds.

It seemed like after all the activity, there was a lull for a minute. The doctor and nurses seemed to vanish out of the room (probably just out of my line of sight) and I recall a kiss with my Hubby and him telling me he loved me and how brave I was. It was pure relief.

Nurse H took my blood pressure one last time and then re-installed the end of the bed and helped me take my legs out of the stirrups. I was unhooked from all the monitors and the nurse put a pad in my knickers and then got me to slide into them while half sitting up.

Then came the slow ascent to sitting up, swinging my legs down to the left. They made me wait until I was steady enough to stand and then Nurse H helped me up and held me steady from behind by each upper arm as she walked me back to the pre-op/post-op room. I sat in the big armchair and she wrapped me up in one of those flannel blanket sheet things. Nurse P brought in a tray of tea, coffee for Hubby, and plain biscuits. The embryologist popped in to say there were a total of 5 high quality eggs retrieved. Dr G came in on a couple of occasions to check on me. Two nurses and the doc all explained on separate occasions how to use the progesterone suppositories which I have take for 5 days at least! Eew!

Oh, the embryologist wrote her direct dial number down as I have to call her at 10am tomorrow (Sat) morning to learn how many have fertilized.

She will also call us on Sunday to advise whether a day 3 or day 5 embryo transfer will be best. Looks like we will be back in Hamilton on Monday or Wednesday!

We waited about an hour then I was awake enough to leave and we went to get lunch at our favorite kitchen. I picked up the prescription for codeine and then we set off home. I took another 2 codeine tablets after the one at the clinic, but the ride home was fairly loopy and dozy, although we were both pretty happy about how well things went.

After the clinic meds and the initial Codeine wore off I got some sharp stabby cramps so took another tab. I have had mild to moderate cramps for the rest of the day, although not too bad. I can walk carefully but no long distances - by which I mean walking from the house to the car is plenty!

It was great to get home and see the pets. My friends and family were all texting me supportive texts, and after a yummy dinner cooked by Hubby, he dropped me around to my parents and my Mum cut my hair for me! Win!

Please cross your fingers, wish me luck, say a little something, or think a happy thought for good news from the embryologist tomorrow! Thank you! :D

Why I'm so happy to have mens underwear in my handbag

Today we have had our first successful experience with fertility treatments: the second surgical sperm retrieval procedure was a success!!! :) Hooray!

It was such a dramatically different experience from last time; just about everything was different and the positive outcome feels like the icing on the cake.

How it went:

We drove up to Hamilton (3.5hrs) yesterday afternoon and checked into our motel. Went and got some dinner, bought some books, and then watched some crappy movies on telly back at the motel.

Since we had got some Valium for Hubby, he took that and was snoring pretty soon. I had a lot of trouble getting to sleep, and would wake up heaps during the night. Woke up feeling like I'd been jogging all night, whilst eating soap (you know that taste? Yeah, that's sleepless night mouth taste for me!)

I was afraid that Hubby might not get up to the alarm in the morning with the extra medicine, so I set me alarm for 6.45 and since I was already awake, I got the first shower! Ha!

Watched breakfast news on telly, I ate some toast and Hubby made baleful-eyes at me since he was nil-by-mouth until after the procedure.

We packed up the room and loaded the car. I signed out of the motel and we headed over to the clinic.

This time when we arrived the clinic was alive with people (last time we got there before the staff!) and we signed in and went to the waiting room. Very quickly we were called back through to the yellow pre-op room with the lounge chair in it. We met the nurse who would be looking after us, Nurse H.

Then began the parade of introductions. First off Nurse H wanted the pre-op health questionnaire completed (last time we had all this done perfectly before we got there, this time? Meh! If they want it they will ask!). Then she did Hubby's blood pressure (188/something) so definitely high.

The embryologist, T, came and introduced herself and started explaining how she would be behind the little pop-hole in the room with the micro-scope. We told her we knew that and this was our second time... she hadn't read our chart! Not promising...

Next came the person who made the whole event possible: the anaesthetist, K. She was super cute and amazing, and instantly put both of us at ease. She had a great sense of humour (talked about propofol being "the Michael Jackson drug") and a relaxed attitude - and hey, you want the one with the drugs to be cruisy, right? :) Once Hubby relaxed I did too, and after she left we even laughed a bit!

Hubby had to change into the glamorous hospital moomoo:

Fortunately, Hubby's gown wasn't open at the back! Image from: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDJ1L1McEz83m-HvhjyrtQ9VtROnwZ7VKSmQLWGCvUCE61EDSVZW95m8iDf2M2YNADIXMRXImutO1Tz2Lk-GvxZKmhkxphoiIilm4ZK0QR_cTkdIpAq8w3OFV_Spo4YQXfT_wm-DIMNE-J/s1600/HospitalGown.jpg

The nurse came back and put a tray full of stuff to put the IV line in on the table, and went out again.

Then the RE arrived. Now, up until this point, we didn't actually know who would be performing this operation. We knew with about 90% certainty that it wouldn't be our original RE, Dr R, since when Hubby took the call for the appointment booking, the nurse had told him that Dr R wouldn't be doing it. So we thought, well then, it must be someone who won't make such a hash of it, surely!

And we were right. We got Dr S, the senior doctor at the Hamildog clinic! He was confident and his manner and calmness relaxed us greatly. Instead of going straight to TESE (biopsy, more invasive, incision, stitches etc), he said he would try both PESA (small needle aspiration from the epididymis) and TESA (large needle aspiration directly from the teste) first. He reasoned that since Hubby would be sedated, there would be no problem moving from one technique to another until we got some sperm, and this way he may even be able to get a sample without doing the biosy altogether.

The anaesthesiologist came back and said that she wouldn't insert the IV line until Hubby had walked into the OR and gotten on the table, in case he fainted. I asked if I could come too, and did Hubby want me to? Yes? Ok. So through we all went.

It felt a bit surreal, here were were again, people in the same places as last time. Except this time we had K the anaesthetist sitting on Hubby's left, and different people in the role of Doctor, nurse, and embryologist. Others in the room were: Hubby, myself, and other nurse (same as last time for surgery assistance).

K got the IV line in very quickly, and Dr S prepped "the area" with drapes and sterile swab. Hubby and I joked about no matter how much they warm that liquid up, you can never get used to that feeling!

I helped put on the blood pressure cuff on his right arm, and the surgery assistance nurse worked to get all the proper needles ready for the PESA, TESA, TESE procedures. Nurse H coordinated with the embryologist through the pop hatch to get dishes (petri dishes!) ready for the samples.

K started the sedation and Hubby's eyelids started to flutter. He was trying very hard to tell me something about getting the camera, I think, to take a photo of the procedure. But he was out like a light and snoring gently in no time. I rubbed his shoulder and told him I loved him as he went to sleep, then warned the doctors that they were about to be treated to some snoring! They assured me they were used to it.

First try was the PESA, with the smallest needle into the left side. This produced a small drop of fluid and T the embryologist found I non-motile sperm in it. Dr S proclaimed that this meant there were in the right spot, but would have to look further with TESA as the epididymis would probably not provide very much.

Next up was TESA, with the wider-gauge needle into the left teste. Very soon (and without half as much effort as last time! No squeezing, no worried looks! So little blood!) Dr S had the first piece of tissue. I could see if from where I was sitting as it was transferred into the petri dish. Nurse H passed it through the hatch, and T found 3 sperm in it, although she must have later complained that the tubules (where the developing sperm live) were very thin, since Dr S told her that there were more samples coming.

A butterfly needle and syringe, used for TESA. Image from: http://www.ferretlove.co.uk/sub-q5-.jpg

Dr S went in with the TESA needle again and got some more tissue. When the needle came out it obviously had a sample on the end of it, and when they flushed air through the line, another sample came out! That's right! Another 2! He said that this amount of tissue was equivalent to what we could expect from an open biopsy anyway, and since there had been a total of 4 sperm found already he was happy to leave things at that. Hubby would not need the biopsy! I had to ask and check again!


Twice Hubby began to rouse but K just gave him some more sedative each time. The first time he tried to lift his head up a little bit and the second time was when is right arm fell off the side of the bed (!) - yes I know. The same bed, much, much too small for an adult man! Aside: last time the RE partially blamed the difficulty of the procedure on Hubby being overweight. Well, firstly, way to lay the guilt on Dr R! Good God woman, don't you have any compassion? And secondly, Hubby has worked really hard and has lost 10kgs in 3 months. So there!

The snoring. Well, yes, there was some snoring happening, and at one point I recognised the breath-motions that indicate sleep apnea to me. Normally I would roll him over or give him an elbow in the ribs to get him to take a proper breath. But of course, I couldn't really wiggle him during surgery! So I just asked them all if his breathing was ok, and Dr S assured by that his blood-oxygen was great, and K said that the "abdominal breathing" looked strange but that is was just deep sleeping breathing. I wasn't sure, mainly because he had an oxygen mask on his face and whereas before it had been fogging up with each exhale, now there was no fog at all. K lifted his chin with her finger and his airway opened and his took a great noisy snore, with fog, much to my relief. I must admit I didn't believe them when they said his breathing was fine, but it was resolved quickly and they listened to me and checked his vital signs so it was all good. I just know his snores so much better! lol!

To recap so far: 1 sperm non-motile found during PESA, 3 sperm found during TESA 1, 2 more samples received but not counted yet from TESA 2.

Once Dr S indicated that the procedure was over, things went very quickly. I was stunned (hard to explain the feeling. It wasn't relief, it wasn't happy, it was still so surreal that it was over and some had been found, but mixed with a very strong concern about how Hubby would feel upon recovery.

What I didn't expect was for him to come around quite so quickly. He started to wake, and I made sure to tell him that is was over, that he was very brave, and that is was a success. He asked "It's over already?" "Yes," I said. "Haha!" he laughed, which caused everyone in the OR to smile. He made other noises about not remembering anything once K put the IV line in, but he was very focused when Dr S leaned in and told him that the procedure was a success and we had found sperm. Hubby was still lying down, but moved to shake his hand and say thank you. Goodness, so polite and collected and still pretty much out of it! :)

Nurse H encouraged Hubby to sit up carefully and swing his legs over the bed. I pointed out the hatch to the lab, where we could see the embryologist working over several pinkly-tinted tiny petri dishes with her microscope. He commented that his "boys" were all in there now, and that they better do well. Nurse H, K, and the other nurse all made noise about them being both boys and girls, since he gets to decide! Cute! It was a very friendly and happy atmosphere. Nurse H got him standing up carefully, and then we all walked the short passage back to the pre-op / recovery room.

Hubby must have asked me how it went upwards of 7 times, and I remembered that one of the effects of the sedation was that he would have some confusion and loss of memory for a while. I joked with him that it was like talking to a goldfish. He told me it was great to get good news over and over because each time was genuinely the first time he'd heard it!

At various times an ice-pack, tea, and biscuits arrived. Hubby was instructed to get into his tight "supportive" underwear soon, and put the ice-pack on the op-site. Of course, he was grinning and forgetting and I was kissing and hugging him too much and it was hard to get him to actually put pants on. That is where the title of this post comes in. He'd brought the wrong undies, so I dashed down to the car and grabbed the tighties plus the tramadol = first lot of undies in the handbag! He got changed, drank tea, we took photos (sorry, not going to post those here, they're just for us), and I told The Story Of How The Sperm Were Found several more times.

Nurse H came back and took a blood pressure reading, removed the cannula, and read out the post-op instructions. All in all the procedure itself took about 15 - 20mins, and we were able to walk out and go find a cafe to fill up a ravenous Husband at about 10am.

He has minimal bruising, a small amount of swelling, and with tramadol, neurofen and panadol has been pain-free the rest of the day.

UPDATE: the embryologist called at 3.30pm and told Hubby that they managed to get 10 straws frozen! One was thawed and it looked amazing, apparently "couldn't be better"! She said it was enough for 5 x cycles! Wow! We did a verse of this song to celebrate:

So, it has been a very good day!

More blood tests tomorrow

Oh! *looks at clock* Actually, I meant later TODAY! haha :P

I will finally get the last of my pre-fertility-clinic blood tests done. All that's left for me is Day 2 FSH, LH, and Oestradiol, and Hubby's immunology tests. It's been a drama for me to get this test done, as the world and my body seems to always be conspiring against me.

First it was just plain old forgetting. My first "Day 2" occurred the day after the ob/gyn dropped the whole IVF bombshell in my lap. So I was not really in the right headspace to remember ANYTHING at that stage. The next Day 2 I just plain old forgot. Trust me, I was kicking myself when I realised I had missed that opportunity! :S

Next up, I had the hysteroscopy operation, which triggered an early period. So I didn't know when exactly Day 2 was. Sigh.... more waiting.

That brings us to today (ok, it's the middle of the night still :P). And I am proud to have remembered! Now... if only my ob/gyn will get my referral letter written and sent....  :)

In Other News
or, to congratulate you for reading through such a damn boring post :P

Have you seen Dumbo Feather, pass it on? It's a half mag/half book and I luuuurve it. I saw the publisher, Kate Bezar, speak at a conference 2 years ago and I've been on the lookout for Dumbo Feather ever since. Sometimes it can be hard to find, but it's worth it when you do! Unlike most mags, it's not full of glossy yucky ads. It's not full of beautiful people. And it's not full of "filler" body copy. It's a beautiful tactile size on quality matte stock, with gorgeous photography and best of all, 5 interviews/essays/articles per issue.

Have a great weekend! :D

Photos of my hands - after 8 cannula attempts

I asked Hubby to take a couple of photos of my hands... they are damn sore after all the IV cannulas the nurses and anaesthetist tried to put in when I was going low. I was in pre-op, before surgery, and of course that meant I hadn't eaten for about 7+ hours. So when I went low, I couldn't eat as that would cancel the surgery, so they had to rush to put an IV in. But my veins collapsed, with low blood pressure, low blood glucose, lots of stress, lots of bleeding!

This photo was taken 5 days after my operation.

My right hand is the sorest. Photo 6 days after op. The IV that I accidentally ripped out was in the upper right "quadrant"

Yes, I ripped the IV out when I went low, blacked out, and started a mini-siezure! I was given some Hirudoid cream (which I think smells vile) but it worked. I've run out now, and the bruising is really starting to show... I'm getting some "interesting" looks at work. I don't bother explaining cos it's such a long story!

My operation went well...

... or, How I ended up with puffy clown hands!

WARNING: this is a long one. Also, it has some icky bits which I don't recommend if you are not a fan of blood, needles, surgery etc. It also may not be the most wonderful piece of prose you've ever read, due to my feeling absolutely whacked, and having sore hands. You've been warned.

Today is Friday, and I've been relaxing and making feijoa relish with my Mum after my hysteroscopy operation yesterday.

Here is the story from Thursday morning...

I had to wake up at the unholy hour of 6.30am to eat my (tiny) breakfast of 1 piece of toast and cup of tea. Because my surgery was scheduled for 12.00 I was on strict instructions to limit food intake. I ate my brekky, take my normal dose of Lantus, and a smaller dose of Humalog, just 3.5u, and crawled back into bed with hubby and kitty.

Cue a rude-awakening by the painters who are doing a marvelous job of making our house look all pretty. I'm hungry. I don't normally get hungry, cos I eat pretty consistently at the same times every day. I watch my hubby as he prepares delicious looking marmite on toast for his breakfast. Oh that smells gooooood! I mix up a drink bottle of sugar water, the only carb I will be allowed to take should I go low. This follows me everywhere I go.

We go to town and do some errands, with me checking my blood sugar roughly every hour. I've never had such a stable day in all my life! I'm flatlining at about 11 mmol/L.

We get back home just in time to pack a few bits and pieces and head up to the hospital for my check-in. We walk up, cos we live that close :)

I'm first on the list as we check into the day ward, and the receptionist is bright and cheery. She tells me I have a list of people who will come to see me (like my anaesthetic team, my ob/gyn), and we are directed to a waiting area. I just have time to sit down and start doing a quick blood test when my name is called.

The nurse takes us into a little room where she takes my pulse (99 bpm), blood pressure, and checks my chart. She figures out I'm diabetic because I'm still in the middle of my blood test! Luckily, she has a bit of experience with "brittle diabetics" before, and everything she says is just what I want to hear: "You know your body and your diabetes best, so we will just follow your lead", "Hubby knows about your diabetes? Yes? Good, we will get him to stay with you.", "Yes, you can use your own test kit" :D I like this nurse :D She offers to tell all the other nurses of my situation, and then says "No, I will organise it so that I'm your nurse all day!" Yay! Someone who understands! (unlike my anaesthetist! more on that later...)

Oh yeah, and because I'm having "gynie" surgery, she asks me to take a pregnancy test. I mean, that's kinda why we're here! Getting ready for visiting a fertility clinic! haha :P

I have a shared room, but at the start it's just me. I have a gorgeous mumu of a hospital gown to change into, and lovely nurse brings me warm blankets to snuggle into. Hubby stays with me and we read crappy womens mags and wait and wait and wait. I'm testing my blood sugar about every 30 mins now. Sitting at about 8 - 9 mmol/L. Couldn't be happier with that.

I'm a bit apprehensive, but it's more the boredom of waiting. We find a half-done crossword in the back of one of the mags and get stuck into that when my South-American anaesthetist arrives to check on me. Then my ob/gyn comes by and I sign the surgical consent form. Everything is going swell. Everyone is happy. Apart from my surgery getting delayed due to an emergency cesarean, everything is going according to plan. My blood sugar is about 6.8 mmol/L when I hear my name called.

Suddenly it's all go. I meet what feels like 17 new people all at once. Everyone introduces themselves with their first name, which I immediately forget. I put on a hair-net, and get wheeled into pre-op. Hubby comes too, on special orders of lovely nurse.

It feels odd being wheeled about. I can walk fine. We go out the doors of day ward, though the lobby area, and into pre-op. I get put into a new cubicle, which is much more high-tech than the last one. Many more buttons on the wall behind me! There are people in the other cubicles who are in various stages of readiness for surgery.

I want to do another blood test, but a nurse grabs my left hand and begins to search for a vein to put an IV line in. Hubby is on my right, and I ask him to do my test for me. We had a little practice in the day ward. Nurse inserts the cannula. Wiggles it around a bit. "That's starting to hurt a bit" I say. Hubby can't get any blood out of my finger. I feel a bit sick. The nurse is still wiggling the cannula. The back of my hand swells with blu-ish coloured blood. "I feel sick" Hubby tries another finger. The cannula has failed. They can't get the line in. Another nurse, and my anaesthetist appear. Everyone is swarming around me. A test of 4.8 mmol/L. I'm dropping like a stone. They try my right hand. I am getting giddy and the room is starting to swim. They try vein after vein. I am going low. "Sugar!!!!" I call. And "Ow ow ow it hurts" as they put countless cannulas into the backs of my hands and wrists, trying desperately to get a line in so they can give me dextrose.

The room spins, I feel VERY sick. My head falls back. Black. The most comfortable, familiar dream. Then I fall out, fall back onto the bed. "Is it over?" No. I had blacked out, and woken with a start, I hear hubby say "I think she's having a siezure", the anaesthetist says "she can't be, she's only 4.8, that's not low enough to be seizing". I'm lower than that. At this stage I have about 5 punctures in my hands. I can't hold a finger-pricker, I can't bend my fingers, there is massive swelling and bruising.

Because I went hypo, and I was stressed, and cold, my veins just basically closed up. Each time they would get the cannula into the vein, there was no pressure to push blood into it, the vein collapsed, so the line would fail. When the cannula was pulled out, blood would suddenly gush under the skin, and puff my hand out all blue. When I awoke from my black out, hubby said I kicked out, and ripped cannula number 5 out of my right hand somehow. So at this stage, I'm still very low, just come back conscious, and still have no line in. Two more tries. One on my left hand, another on my right. There is intense pain in both hands. I think I throw up about here sometime. They don't get me a dish in time and I wear it. "Sorry, sorry" I say. I feel terrible. Absolutely awful. Like there is a buffalo sitting on my chest, and a magnetic storm in my brain, and custard and vinegar in my stomach. Hubby holds my head, he's all I see.

The anaesthetist takes a breath. Asks for a larger grade pink cannula. Puts in in my left arm, further up this time. "Protect this, wrap it up good. We can't lose this line" she orders. I am pumped full of the strongest dextrose they have. And a electrolyte/dextrose drip is installed. Cue spew. Well, I just had a hypo! Everyone breathes a sigh of relief. Hubby tests me again, I'm up to 8 mmol/L in less than a minute. Amazing stuff.

And then it's time for hubby and I say our "I love yous" and I get wheeled into the operating room. I still feel quite out of it. The OR is not far away, just across the corridor from the pre-op room. I remember the ceiling was grey, the room was cool and airy, there were blue flat panel displays on the right wall, and enormous gleaming white contraptions coming from the roof. Huge lights. I wasn't scared. These people were all friendly and professional. I say "I feel sick" (yes, I know I should be saying "I'm gonna be sick", but give me a break!), and again, I wear it. They get me a bowl, I apologise for making their lovely room smell so bad.

The anaesthetist explains that she is going to give me something to calm me down. She tells the others in the room that I am diabetic "and she's very emotional" I want to rip her head off. No, I'm not emotional. I've just had a f*cken hypo you b1tch! But I am all calm on the outside, and the sedative is so good. The nausea goes away, I regain full cognisance, it seems. I half sit up and see my ob/gyn at the end of the bed. He will be my surgeon today.

A nurse asks if I feel able to scoot across to my right, to the operating table. I get halfway, and the sheet covering me gets stuck. :P Cue various nurses feeling under me to get the caught bit free!

A pillow under my shoulders, lie down. A soft oxygen mask over my nose, but too low so the soft bit squashes my nostrils. I ask for it to go "up, up" and they move it off my face a bit. Soft eyes of the nurse to my right. A black padded extension on my left for my arm to be strapped to, with the IV line in it. It reminds me of the tables you see in movies with the lethal injection. But I'm not scared. Just calm.

The nurses want to know about one of their colleagues, who I know and said hello to in the pre-op room, before all the brouhaha. We went to kung-fu classes together I tell them. Didn't you know? Oops, looks like I've spilled the beans! "Was he good at kung-fu?" they ask. Yep. "Just think of something nice, like kung-fu maybe? Oh, no! Not fighting! Just think of something nice..." I think of my hubby and my kitty. Gentle soft thoughts.

That was at about 2.00pm. I awake in the recovery room, which happens to be the same cubicle as the pre-op. Hubby isn't there. He's supposed to be there. I can't get the energy to ask for him though. A male nurse asks if I have any pain? A little cramping. He gets me a warm blanket all folded up, and places it on my tummy. I've very impressed, since he's a guy and all. But I don't open my eyes. Another nurse asks me if I would like to do a blood test. Yes. It's 11.9 she says. Is that ok for you? Yes. The blood pressure cuff keeps automatically inflating, and stirring me out of sleep.

I don't remember the ride back across to the day ward, but I remember waking up and getting a kiss from hubby. He looks shattered. I'm sick some more. They say something about my pulse, it's down at about 65 bpm. Tests are hovering around 12 mmol/L. Feel yucky, drowsy, dozy. It's about 4.30pm.

All afternoon is spent sleeping and waking to do tests. The lovely nurse asks if I want to eat something, and suddenly I do. She brings two sandwiches, and gives me the wrong one, plus a cup of tea, one sugar. Don't feel like eating. If I move my head, bad things happen. If I don't eat, they won't let me go home. If I am sick again, they will keep me overnight. I nibble on the luncheon, relish and cheese sandwich. It is the most delicious thing I've ever tasted.

I ask Hubby if he's had anything to eat? Here, have my sandwich, you have to eat something! Lovely nurse comes back and thinks I'm making remarkable progress hehe :P

The afternoon is boring. Poor hubby stays by my side. I suddenly seem to get all better, and start talking sense. Lovely nurse agrees, and says that she will bring me some wash cloths. Hubby will walk home to get the car, and a coat for me, since it has started snowing on the mountain.

I am left alone to figure out how to get dressed with an IV still attached. I can't figure out how on earth I'm supposed to put my bra on with one hand. I am very pleased to be standing up and not too woozy. Just do everything slowly. Socks first. Pink t-shirt tangled in IV line. Jeans on. Sneakers. Hmm, can't do the laces with these sore hands. Tie some knots. Busting for a pee. Still attached to the bed!

Hubby returns, his footsteps are the best sound. He asks if I will be ok to go get some dinner. Burger King? Yep! Just what I feel like! He chases down the lovely nurse, and she comes back and untangles and unhooks me. IV out! Yahoo! I get bandages and cream for the bruising, and ice-packs. Coat on. Pit-stop, and then out we go to the car.

And that is my day in the hospital. We escaped around 6.30-ish.

Now I am sitting here typing this v-e-r-y slowly, watching American Idol, seeing Crystal singing I'm Alright by CaddyShack. (Did you know she's a T1?) And I feel fine. No cramps, no pain except for my hands. A bit tired. A weekend ahead of me :D

Morale of the story is this: If you ever EVER have to go in for surgery, and they ask you to stop eating before hand, ask for the IV to be installed as soon as you check in. That way, if you go low, or hypo, you can immediately get some dextrose pumped into you. In my case, something to calm me down wouldn't have gone astray either!

Thanks for reading, hope I haven't put you off your oats! Have a great weekend :D