Post-op Fun

I managed to get some sleep the night after surgery, only to be rudely awakened in the morning by a nurse insisting that I move from my bed to a chair.  This seemed a little rushed to me, and was a fairly complicated process considering that I was intimately connected to multiple pieces of equipment. 

First off there were the wires running from the monitor above my bed to various patches on my chest and the pulse oxygen monitor on my finger.  Then there were the multiple IV bags connected to the central line on my shoulder.  I had 3 tubes coming out of my chest to drain excess fluid from around my heart and lungs, leading to 2 reservoirs that collected said fluid.  And finally there was the tube running between another device and my genitalia. 

And that was how I spent the weekend, into the chair first thing in the morning, back into bed at night, fighting a plethora of tubes and wires the whole time.  I had frequent visits from the respiratory therapists, and an initial visit from the physical therapist with exercises I could do in my chair.  There was talk of getting the chest tubes out the first day, but that didn't happen, one of the few things that wasn't rushed.  I understand they were anxious to move me from ICU to the Intermediate Care Unit (IMCU), but there weren't any beds available over the weekend. 

However, on Monday a bed became available in IMCU.  So, my chest tubes were removed, and it seems I seriously shocked the staff by actually watching the tubes as they were pulled out of my chest.  Then the IV and the central line were removed, and control of my own urination was returned to me.  Finally, I was wheeled down to IMCU and installed in a room, where my chest leads were hooked up to a transmitter.