Surgery info - Who do you call?

[CC18]

Hi All,

Going in for my first lap & excision next week (finally), but because I'm a person who likes plans, I just wondered who you'd suggest calling hospital wise for more information.

I only have the general number and the wait list number neither of which seem right, but I basically want to know the sort of time I'll be there (so my partner can actually plan around it without sitting around) and to let them know I'm vegan so if they try to insist I eat/drink something first I don't need to remember to check it's suitable.

I'm also aware I'm not at a specialist endo hospital, so in general any advice on what to expect would be useful too, but not really the main point of this post!

Ta muchly

[tinkerbell971]

Have you not had a pre op? You need to have a pre op before your surgery and that’s where you can ask all questions x

[CC18 in reply to tinkerbell971]

Yup, 2 in fact and the second time I was told to give a urine sample as it'd been way over 12 weeks since the original...where I was rushed through and only got minimal answers for the questions I did manage to ask and rushed out unfortunately. So far not had a great experience...

In the second preop it was literally for the sample and that was it

[Emma511983]

You should have had your pre op and had blood tests completed.

I just had my lap and I was going in as an all day patient. I had to be at the hospital for 8am and they said that they cannot tell me where I would be on the theatre list, but the latest I would go down for surgery was 4.30pm and the latest I would be discharged was 22.30pm.

I was told the latest I could eat was at 3am on the morning of the surgery (light snack) and I could drink a few sips of water before 7am. After 7am it was nil by mouth.

Once I had fully come round after the lap I was made to drink a cup of tea and eat some toast before they would discuss discharging me.

My advice is you take something to read and your phone is fully charged because your partner won't be allowed on the ward whilst you wait to go down to theatre and it is a waiting game. They gave my family the telephone number for the ward reception so they could ring after I had text to say I am going down. The op should take around 1hr. From being in the recovery room to being discharged took about 3hrs.

I went to the hospital in my gym leggings but I was so swollen after the lap that I ended up going home in my night dress and dressing gown. Be mindful what clothes you wish to travel home in when you pack. I would also advise you take a plastic bag to sit on in the car as it will act like a slide to help you out of the car and also a pillow to hold against your stomach in case you drive over uneven surfaces. Drink loads of peppermint tea to help with the amount of gas they pump into your stomach. The gas will cause some discomfort after the op so try to get rid of it as quickly as possible. Its now been a week since my lap and I still have swelling and gas trapped in my stomach.

Good luck

[CC18 in reply to Emma511983]

Thank you

Yup, pre-op was done twice and nobody seemed able to answer me but thanks for the heads up on your experience. Think my best bet is just to hope I get somewhere sensible with the hospital switch board to get my final questions answered

Hope you heal up soon and get rid of the last of that gas so you can be comfortable

[amy100]

you should get a letter with instructions and time to be there. could prob ring the ward before your admitted and say you need vegan diet.

[dundee70]

Have you not had an admission letter telling you what time to arrive and when to fast? If not, call the waiting list secretary today to get one. She knows all those details and it is her job to ensure you do too!

[Lizbot79]

I’ve got my first lap tomorrow so this information is really helpful thank you. I’m so scared, I’ve been on edge since I got the date. I’m supposed to be going on a train journey to the Lake District on Wednesday, 5 days post lap - does anybody know whether I’ll be well enough to go?

[Emma511983 in reply to Lizbot79]

I am now 1 week in recovery and feel really good. I would encourage you to literally do nothing when you are discharged in order to feel good for the train journey to the Lakes. I think I went out too early after my op and really did suffer for it. As a result I have spent the last 3 days in bed and now feel great. I wish I had not gone out when I did but instead continued to rest. I did attempt to only take pain relief when I felt I needed it and was advised by a nurse not to do that as you are not really managing your pain. I then opted to take co-codamol as per the instructions from the hospital at regular intervals and that really did help. I haven't taken any pain relief for like 3 days now.

Obviously everyone's recovery is different. Just do what your body is telling you to do and be sensible. My body was really swollen and badly bruised on one side and that was causing me lots of pain, my clothes were way too tight and this caused pain when I wore my gym leggings when I did venture out. I also had a 20cm by 15cm cyst removed from my right ovary so I think that made one of my incisions particularly big, incredibly swollen and painful. My other incisions caused me very little pain, but my third one was the one that did cause lots of pain. My mother and partner have been amazing and have ensured that I wasn't being daft trying to do things. Allow people to do things for you and take the time to fully recharge.

All the best for tomorrow

[Lizbot79 in reply to Emma511983]

Thank you Emma, I feel a bit more positive. Hope your recovery is complete soon x

[Flynn_Maverick]

Hello! You should be able to call the ward in advance to ask any questions - I always find the pre op nurses worse than useless and don’t answer any questions anyway!! As a fellow vegan 💚 and having had three ops now - take a pack up!!!! Even in private hospitals you don’t get fed!! this time I took a cool bag with loads of fruits, jelly and soya yoghurt which I did need as they didn’t have a clue what a vegan was despite being told at pre op. Vegan jelly is really good as you’ll have a bit of a sore throat afterwards and it helps soothe it. Mushed avocado too is okay. But I’ve never been catered for despite advance notice - at three different hospitals - just to warn you!! Also don’t worry about not having someone there on the ward, I know some hospitals are funny but I’ve always had the parents and partner team waiting with me all day. In fact we were waiting the last time as the previous op overran and I was booked in for a Friday evening, I think my surgeon was bored so came in for a natter with my dad and partner for a good twenty minutes haha 😂 I was like helloooo terrified patient here stop talking about football you’re removing bits of me soon!! 🙈 anyway good luck! Pester the hospital until you get through to someone who can answer your questions!!! Lots of luck and wishing you a speedy recovery xx

[CC18 in reply to Flynn_Maverick]

Thank you! Officially more helpful than the hospital has been at all! Appreciate the advice and well wishes

I've stocked up in prep so lets see what happens...

[Flynn_Maverick in reply to CC18]

Good luck! Hope it all goes well x