Having my first surgery in 6-8 weeks - Page 3

Scottwax · 11-01-08, 04:17

Update. I got my results back from the physical and I gots the high cholesterol. Good cholesterol and triclycerides are both good, but bad cholesterol is BAD. Based on our conversation, my doctor suspects the problem is all the crap I eat. No more sausage, bacon, eggs only 1 time a week, no more fried food, etc. Taking fish oil supplements too. Other than that, I got a clean bill of health and the surgery is scheduled for December 2nd at 7:30 AM. They said I'd be out of surgery and discharged by 11 AM that day as long as there are no complication. I was instructed to make sure someone was there to pick me up....really hadn't planned on driving home anyway.

BigAl3 · 11-01-08, 04:31

hope your surgery goes well Scott, and please keep us informed on how you're doing...

jfelbab · 11-01-08, 05:58

Welcome to the High Cholesterol club. Diet and exercise can do some good but for some this issue is hereditary.

Some food choices can lower your bad Cholesterol (LDL) and raise your good cholesterol (HDL). Foods high in Omega3 are good. Oils like olive oil are good. You might also try Fish Oil supplements. Talk about these with your doctor or dietician to see if they are an option.

Diet: I just cut off a lot of bad stuff and started to eat more fruit and veggies. I also eat a lot more fish, especially salmon which is very high in Omega-3 fatty acid. If you want some fish recipes PM me and I'll send you a few. I eat better than I ever did and the food tastes great. I still splurge on things like baby back ribs or steaks but I do it only occasionally and in reasonable portions now. Depending on your age and height you can determine your BMI and caloric input requirements. Tons of stuff available on the web to help you.

Exercise: I do an hour a day, every day, of vigorous treadmill and stationary bike. I burn around 500 calories in this daily workout. I think this does more than anything to keep me healthy and feeling good. I dropped a ton of weight and replaced it with hard muscle. The more muscle you build the faster you burn fat. I doubt you have any shortage in this area. LOL

Medication: This is the option of last resort. Once you start this drug routine you will be on it forever. Talk to your doctor if he ultimately wants to prescribe a statin drug. You can get a 90 day supply of Pravastatin at Target or Walmart for $10. Several other statin drugs (Lipator, Pravacol, etc.) are much more costly. If you ultimately need to go that route check out their list of drugs and talk to your doctor about those options.

The surgery: I had this done and it was a breeze. I was anxious about it but it was no big deal in hindsight. I'm sure your surgery will go well too. Just listen to what the doctor says about lifting for the period following the surgery. My surgery went so well that a year after the surgery I could not even find the scar.

wagonproject · 11-01-08, 06:11

Hope all goes well man! And keep up with the diet routine!

I've had 10 surgeries (was born with webbed hands/feet and then issues with both my hands/feet after) and will be having one of my last ones on my hands (hopefully) in the spring after my 21st bday.

Accumulator · 11-02-08, 09:01

ScottWax- Overall that sounds like an OK report.

The cholesterol thing oughta be manageable (remember how my wife solved hers with just the fish oil), and some people don't even have problems from high (bad) cholesterol (my dad's second wife's was horribly high but she died from other causes in her mid-80s).

And yeah, the surgery really isn't anything to stress over. Give some thought to your post-op pain meds though, I had trouble urinating on some (certain synthetic opiates) but *no* such problems with others (codeine-based were best for me); now that I know what works for me I specify them in advance.

blake30 · 11-02-08, 09:45

Scott

I'm a Physician Assitant having worked in surgery for 6yrs. Umbilical hernias are are very quick and easy. Easy for me to say "No worries mate" as I do them daily standing on the other side of the knife. Most folks are very nervous for any surgery but the best thing is they're going to have lots of drugs waiting for you and they're 100% legal.

Good luck

Scottwax · 11-17-08, 06:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by blake30

Scott

I'm a Physician Assitant having worked in surgery for 6yrs. Umbilical hernias are are very quick and easy. Easy for me to say "No worries mate" as I do them daily standing on the other side of the knife. Most folks are very nervous for any surgery but the best thing is they're going to have lots of drugs waiting for you and they're 100% legal.

Good luck

I was told I'd be in and out in 3 1/2 hours. That's in and out of the hospital!

Still two more weeks, I want to just get it over with but I've been so busy lately and figure December is a good month to be on light duty. Probably can't do any corrections until early January. Most people right now are more interested in protection through winter anyway.

Been doing a good job not eating crap, getting easier now. Lots of chicken, no fries, no bacon, no sausage, and taking daily fish oil supplements, etc. Dropped 8 pounds too.

I appreciate the concern and the information about the surgery, especially everyone who is familar with it. Any truth to what my ex-wife said that you heal faster if you just stick with Tylenol vs prescription pain medication? Or does she just want me to suffer?

Lynn Matthews · 11-17-08, 07:25

Glad your test results came back with good health, that sure helps when your body has to go through something like this.

Good luck and I hope you have a fast recovery!

Lynn

Holden_C04 · 11-17-08, 07:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scottwax

Any truth to what my ex-wife said that you heal faster if you just stick with Tylenol vs prescription pain medication? Or does she just want me to suffer?

Wouldn't rule that one out!

Accumulator · 11-18-08, 09:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scottwax

I was told I'd be in and out in 3 1/2 hours. That's in and out of the hospital!

Yeah, if yours is anything like the inguinal hernias it's pretty quick and easy. They probably won't discharge you until after you've urinated, so drink a lot of water as soon as they let you (you'll be dehydrated anyhow) and take a book in case things take a while.

Quote:

Been doing a good job not eating crap, getting easier now. Lots of chicken, no fries, no bacon, no sausage, and taking daily fish oil supplements, etc. Dropped 8 pounds too.

Ah, that sounds good! Yeah, you get used to eating right same as you got used to eating badly.

Quote:

..Any truth to what my ex-wife said that you heal faster if you just stick with Tylenol vs prescription pain medication? Or does she just want me to suffer? ::

Heh heh, I bet it's more a case of different people being different but I do kinda wonder if she's up to something

I myself sure wouldn't have wanted to be without the serious pain meds and I'm pretty OK pain-tolerance-wise. My recovery went quick and easy and I can't imagine why tylenol straight would facilitate better healing than tylenol with codeine in it

Being able to really knock the discomfort *out* makes it much easier to live normally and regular tylenol doesn't do a *thing* for me when it comes to stuff like this.

Oh, and one more urination thing (sheesh, not that topic again..

), I found I had trouble taking a leak when on certain paint meds but I do *not* have a problem on codeine, even at high doses. Tylenol3 or 4 works out a *lot* better for me in this regard than hydo/oxy stuff and I always specify what I want (and why) up front.

Scottwax · 11-20-08, 03:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by Accumulator

Yeah, if yours is anything like the inguinal hernias it's pretty quick and easy. They probably won't discharge you until after you've urinated, so drink a lot of water as soon as they let you (you'll be dehydrated anyhow) and take a book in case things take a while.

I was told not to eat or drink after 11 pm the night before the surgery so I probably will be dehydrated when the surgery is finished.

Quote:

Ah, that sounds good! Yeah, you get used to eating right same as you got used to eating badly.

It is getting easier. I've been making sandwiches with wheat bread and lean meats for breakfast instead of getting breakfast sandwiches or hot dogs at the local QuikTrip.

Quote:

Heh heh, I bet it's more a case of different people being different but I do kinda wonder if she's up to something

I myself sure wouldn't have wanted to be without the serious pain meds and I'm pretty OK pain-tolerance-wise. My recovery went quick and easy and I can't imagine why tylenol straight would facilitate better healing than tylenol with codeine in it

Being able to really knock the discomfort *out* makes it much easier to live normally and regular tylenol doesn't do a *thing* for me when it comes to stuff like this.

Well, I was married to her so I do have a high pain tolerance!

I think what she was referring to was stuff harder than Tylenol with codeine.

Oh, and one more urination thing (sheesh, not that topic again..

), I found I had trouble taking a leak when on certain paint meds but I do *not* have a problem on codeine, even at high doses. Tylenol3 or 4 works out a *lot* better for me in this regard than hydo/oxy stuff and I always specify what I want (and why) up front.[/quote]

Accumulator · 11-21-08, 10:13

ScottWax- Eh..regardless of *which* painkiller she was referring to, I think she's out to lunch on that one. You'll heal up just fine no matter what you use for that. At leat I sure did; I was back to heavy workouts pretty quick.

Even with (just) the codeine, you can get some mighty potent versions

You *can* knock out the sort of discomfort you'll have from this kind of surgery with codeine, to the point of "like it never even happened".

Better IMO to have a lot of codeine in each tablet than to take a bunch of weaker ones (too much tylenol = not good), so if you want to go that route discuss it with the MD in advance instead of just going with whatever they usually prescribe (which I'm guessing will be TYLOX).