gall bladder: I can go back to work

I had my follow-up appointment with the surgeon today. He examined me briefly, stated that I am not at all jaundiced (a question that hadn't even occurred to me), removed the remaining bandages, and cleared me to return to work, exercise, baths, and all other normal activities. I do have a prescription (currently at the drugstore) for Percoset, because I am still having some pain, especially in the evenings.

Having walked about 3/4 of a mile total from home to A train, and then train along Central Park South to the doctor's office, and been only slightly tired from that, I decided to get on the subway and have lunch in Chinatown, a bowl of Pho at my usual place. That was tasty. Thence along Walker Street to the A train, and back uptown. I dropped off my prescription, stopped at the supermarket for a few things (now that heavy lifting is officially okay), and walked home through Inwood Hill Park. I'll probably go back to the gym on Thursday, and do a relatively light workout (meaning mostly lower weights, not fewer exercises).

I'd say I walked about two miles today, and am in quite a good mood, I think from a combination of the walking, the nice weather, and the good news from my doctor. I thought briefly about buying lunch from a cart and eating it in Central Park, and then realized that what I needed, after being sick at home for two weeks, was city, not park, because most of my walking had been in Inwood Hill Park.

All that said, my upper back (between my shoulders) hurts a bit right now, and my side was aching this morning. So I will still be careful, and I will probably not sleep on my side for a while (sleeping on the left side has been making the right side, where the incisions were, hurt).

[Addendum: I have just taken off my shirt and bra and looked at the incisions. There's one fairly high up (a little below where the band of a bra would be) that's about an inch long and still visibly red, two smaller and paler ones on the right side of my abdomen, and I can't yet tell what the one in the navel looks like. Maybe after a thorough wash.]

gall bladder: I can go back to work

I had my follow-up appointment with the surgeon today. He examined me briefly, stated that I am not at all jaundiced (a question that hadn't even occurred to me), removed the remaining bandages, and cleared me to return to work, exercise, baths, and all other normal activities. I do have a prescription (currently at the drugstore) for Percoset, because I am still having some pain, especially in the evenings.

Having walked about 3/4 of a mile total from home to A train, and then train along Central Park South to the doctor's office, and been only slightly tired from that, I decided to get on the subway and have lunch in Chinatown, a bowl of Pho at my usual place. That was tasty. Thence along Walker Street to the A train, and back uptown. I dropped off my prescription, stopped at the supermarket for a few things (now that heavy lifting is officially okay), and walked home through Inwood Hill Park. I'll probably go back to the gym on Thursday, and do a relatively light workout (meaning mostly lower weights, not fewer exercises).

I'd say I walked about two miles today, and am in quite a good mood, I think from a combination of the walking, the nice weather, and the good news from my doctor. I thought briefly about buying lunch from a cart and eating it in Central Park, and then realized that what I needed, after being sick at home for two weeks, was city, not park, because most of my walking had been in Inwood Hill Park.

All that said, my upper back (between my shoulders) hurts a bit right now, and my side was aching this morning. So I will still be careful, and I will probably not sleep on my side for a while (sleeping on the left side has been making the right side, where the incisions were, hurt).

[Addendum: I have just taken off my shirt and bra and looked at the incisions. There's one fairly high up (a little below where the band of a bra would be) that's about an inch long and still visibly red, two smaller and paler ones on the right side of my abdomen, and I can't yet tell what the one in the navel looks like. Maybe after a thorough wash.]

One more reassurance (gall bladder)

The doctor's office was quite efficient (I'm guessing surgeons don't have as many patient appointments as most other specialists), which meant that right at my scheduled time, the nurse showed me into an exam room, asked where the incisions were, and then instructed me to take my shirt off and put on a hospital gown, but that I could keep my bra on, and the doctor would be in in a couple of minutes. I had nothing handy to read, having left my magazine in the waiting room. So, as long as I had a couple of minutes waiting for the doctor, I took a moment to check my weight on the scale in the corner (the old-fashioned doctor's office kind where I could also have checked my height). I'm not 100% sure of the result, because the scale, and therefore I, was crammed into a small space between the exam table and some other object I forget, and that might distort things. Given that, it looks as though living largely on stored body fat for a week or so cost me no more than ten pounds, maybe less than five (I don't normally track my weight), so that's okay. I, adrian_turtle, and cattitude, had all been a little concerned: I'm supposed to get my energy and nutrients from food, but that was hard when I had no appetite.

One more reassurance (gall bladder)

The doctor's office was quite efficient (I'm guessing surgeons don't have as many patient appointments as most other specialists), which meant that right at my scheduled time, the nurse showed me into an exam room, asked where the incisions were, and then instructed me to take my shirt off and put on a hospital gown, but that I could keep my bra on, and the doctor would be in in a couple of minutes. I had nothing handy to read, having left my magazine in the waiting room. So, as long as I had a couple of minutes waiting for the doctor, I took a moment to check my weight on the scale in the corner (the old-fashioned doctor's office kind where I could also have checked my height). I'm not 100% sure of the result, because the scale, and therefore I, was crammed into a small space between the exam table and some other object I forget, and that might distort things. Given that, it looks as though living largely on stored body fat for a week or so cost me no more than ten pounds, maybe less than five (I don't normally track my weight), so that's okay. I, adrian_turtle, and cattitude, had all been a little concerned: I'm supposed to get my energy and nutrients from food, but that was hard when I had no appetite.