Well folks...if you missed my status update on Facebook yesterday, it looks like its all been brought forward...and I'm now officially waiting for my operation date 
Here in my grubby mits is a pink carbon cop of my Admission Request Form!
I should have posted here last night....but I'll confess I was a total emotional wreck yesterday and my head was all over the place....when a friend rang me yesterday to confirm my attendance on today's Festival Promotion jaunt I think I scared him silly, poor chap...I think he thought I was dying.
Its not as if I didn't know I was due to have this operation, I just thought I still had another 9 or so months to get used to the idea (as well as get thinner/fitter for the General Anaesthetic!)....but no, yesterday was officially my Pre-Op Consultation, with my surgeon leaving me with the immortal words, "next time we meet will be on the operating table"...so I guess I went into a kind of shocked state...and I couldn't honestly tell you what I did most of yesterday afternoon, apart from cry a lot
Apparently I'm now considered fairly urgent, as my goitre has now compressed my windpipe down to 8mm diameter (hence the freight train snoring, ultra hoarse voice and total inability to breathe if my head is held in certain positions)...and I was told that if it compresses the windpipe any more then they will have to something drastic & gory to open my throat up to allow me to keep breathing....which I have to say sounds fecking scary! And as my surgeon said, if they're doing that, then they might as well get on and do the thyroidectomy...and so he doesn't want to wait until its that serious....i.e its serious enough right now, without waiting any longer for it to inevitably get worse.
And also, as my thyroid is considered toxic...I will also have to go in a week or so earlier, in advance of the normal admitted pre-op hospital crap, so that they can forcefully block my thyroid from working. To reduce the 'withdrawal' my body will apparently go into almost instantly once the thyroid gland is removed, they need to get my TSH levels absolutely perfect (or as close-to as it will allow them), and sustain the levels there for a few days...and that's using meds & methods not available on prescription, presumably nasty IV stuff
After the op they won't release me until my calcium levels are stabilised and/or controllable...apparently calcium is the very first thing to react and go tits-up instantly once the gland is removed. He said normally this is 2 or 3 days, but one patient he did last year was held in for 6 weeks because they just couldn't get control over her calcium levels.
I have absolutely no idea how the system works...but I presume, because of the co-ordination required between the ENT dept and the Endo dept, with regards to getting me in early and getting my levels stable...that hopefully means I won't get my op 'bumped', so once I'm in I'm staying...if that makes sense?
I have a routine appointment with my Endo on the 20th April...so if I haven't heard anything before then I'll hopefully be told more then, and maybe given a time-frame.
My surgeon just said he was aiming to do it ASAP...but I don't know if that means next week, next month or next year
Here in my grubby mits is a pink carbon cop of my Admission Request Form! I should have posted here last night....but I'll confess I was a total emotional wreck yesterday and my head was all over the place....when a friend rang me yesterday to confirm my attendance on today's Festival Promotion jaunt I think I scared him silly, poor chap...I think he thought I was dying.
Its not as if I didn't know I was due to have this operation, I just thought I still had another 9 or so months to get used to the idea (as well as get thinner/fitter for the General Anaesthetic!)....but no, yesterday was officially my Pre-Op Consultation, with my surgeon leaving me with the immortal words, "next time we meet will be on the operating table"...so I guess I went into a kind of shocked state...and I couldn't honestly tell you what I did most of yesterday afternoon, apart from cry a lot
Apparently I'm now considered fairly urgent, as my goitre has now compressed my windpipe down to 8mm diameter (hence the freight train snoring, ultra hoarse voice and total inability to breathe if my head is held in certain positions)...and I was told that if it compresses the windpipe any more then they will have to something drastic & gory to open my throat up to allow me to keep breathing....which I have to say sounds fecking scary! And as my surgeon said, if they're doing that, then they might as well get on and do the thyroidectomy...and so he doesn't want to wait until its that serious....i.e its serious enough right now, without waiting any longer for it to inevitably get worse.
And also, as my thyroid is considered toxic...I will also have to go in a week or so earlier, in advance of the normal admitted pre-op hospital crap, so that they can forcefully block my thyroid from working. To reduce the 'withdrawal' my body will apparently go into almost instantly once the thyroid gland is removed, they need to get my TSH levels absolutely perfect (or as close-to as it will allow them), and sustain the levels there for a few days...and that's using meds & methods not available on prescription, presumably nasty IV stuff
After the op they won't release me until my calcium levels are stabilised and/or controllable...apparently calcium is the very first thing to react and go tits-up instantly once the gland is removed. He said normally this is 2 or 3 days, but one patient he did last year was held in for 6 weeks because they just couldn't get control over her calcium levels.
I have absolutely no idea how the system works...but I presume, because of the co-ordination required between the ENT dept and the Endo dept, with regards to getting me in early and getting my levels stable...that hopefully means I won't get my op 'bumped', so once I'm in I'm staying...if that makes sense?
I have a routine appointment with my Endo on the 20th April...so if I haven't heard anything before then I'll hopefully be told more then, and maybe given a time-frame.
My surgeon just said he was aiming to do it ASAP...but I don't know if that means next week, next month or next year
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