D-Day.

I am feeling so excited and anxious at the same time! Can't believe that it's already tomorrow! What if I develop some complications during the surgery or the recovery period? No wait, stop it girl. Put your trust in the Lord and commit to Him everything.

Those were the thoughts that ran through my mind the night before the surgery, and even till I was in the OT. 

23 June 2014

6.30 AM - Alarm rings. I wash up like it's any other day; wake my parents up, and had a short prayer before we left the house.

7.30 AM - The car zooms out from the lot, we reach the hospital at 8.

8.30 AM - Our queue number gets called and my mom settles all the administrative matters with a trainee officer. Could see my mom getting increasingly dominant as the clock ticked.. but oh c'mon, everyone starts somewhere :) Still, I'm glad to have my mom settle all the paper work for me. I just need to plonk myself on the bed heehee!

9.15 AM - Time for the lab tests samples to be given: my pee and more blood drawn from me. Don't really know what they're testing for though hmm.

9.30 AM - The hospital porter (I didn't know they had that) brought mom and I up to the ward for more admin procedures to be done by the nurse. It was a really decent ward. No frills, plain but tastefully and warmly done. Totally my style. Mine was a 4-bedder and right next to a window. Soooo pretty :)

9.50 AM - Time to head to Dr Tan's clinic! Mom signed a indemnity form from the hospital holding herself responsible should anything happen to me outside. Our appointment was supposed to be at 10, and we really had to speedy gonzales there. 

10.05 AM - Waited for a tiny bit before being called by the clinic's nurse to go in. Saw Dr Wee and Dr Tan for the last time before the surgery. On a side note, their clinic is really nicely done. Each consultation room has a view outward towards a settlement of bungalow and terrace houses amidst rather lush foliage on a hill. A really calming view for the patient and it brings in natural light too.

10.45 AM - We leave the specialist centre and Dad, Mom and I sit at the void deck to eat breakfast. Well, excluding myself. I was just watching them eat.

12 PM - We return promptly to the hospital at 12 and I was so dying of thirst. I could feel body telling me that I was heaty and really needed water, but yet, I couldn't drink!

1.45 PM - The nurses bring my surgical gown to change into and a bed to wheel me to the OT. 

2 PM - Surgery is supposed to start, but the anesthetist is late. Dr Tan comes over to greet me with his 'hello deaaar' (rather odd, but sweet), and assure me that this was a big decision to make, but a good one at that. I had no idea why I kept tearing throughout waiting to enter into the OT. Perhaps it was the lack of familiarity in environment and I couldn't see well because I couldn't bring my glasses in. But most of all, I think I was deep down afraid of unprecedented things that could happen during the surgery. Can this be called pre-surgery depression?

2.45 PM - the anesthetist FINALLY arrives and looks at my file and asks for my weight. His speaking had this really annoying atas accent, an impression made worse by him making me wait so long >:/ I was tearing all that while :(

2.50 PM - Was wheeled into the OT and transferred myself unto the operating table. Totally went against my fantasies. I thought I was going to be lifted by brawny doctors and nurses haha! The anesthetist begins to sedate me although he was just supervising a junior staff. When she pressed the wrong spot he went: "No, not here! Hereeeee." He told me that the table had a bed warmer installed so I'd be toasty warm and i replied "Oh, cool." My head began to feel so heavy and I knew that the drug was taking effect. It was like the gravity pull on my head was 5 times heavier just on my head, and at the same time, I felt like blood was rushing away from my head. 

6.15 PM - Dr Tan called my mom to inform that the operation was successful. 

7.30 PM - Dad, mom and sis arrived at the ward to see my bloody state (as I look at the pictures my mom took). I remember continuously drifting in and out of sleep and the nurse asking how much pain I felt on a scale of 10. I signaled to her 5-6/10. That night, I woke up countless times because I couldn't breathe and kept wanting to suction all that bloody gunk out. My throat was so hoarse, partly from the tubing inserted during surgery and my continuously breathing from my mouth. I saw my mom sleep over and having to wake up each time I did, to observe the nurse help me and be on standby for any more help needed. I felt so bad that she didn't have a good posture for sleep - she was sleeping cramped up on two chairs.

Recount to be continued..