Picture of Larry and I before heading home
It’s Monday and surgery was last Thursday. It all went smoothly, Larry and I both checked in at 5:30am that morning. At that point, I was past being scared or nervous, just ready. We both got a little emotional as we separated to go into surgery but I went with the feeling of being committed and right with my decision. After it was all over, my surgeon told my husband, ” The kidney was just beautiful.” That makes me smile. It went to work immediately for Larry with no hesitation. Some kidneys take a few hours or days to wake up, but not this one. I guess my little pep talk to my kidney before worked.
When I woke up, my first question was how Larry was doing. They said he was grinning ear from ear and actually glowing. Indeed, I got to see him the next day and he looked healthier than I ‘ve ever seen him. That alone makes this whole experience worth it and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.
There were a few bumps along my recovery starting with when I first woke up. I’m still not sure if it was intentional but the only pain medication I was given initially was morphine to be administered by me pushing a button every ten minutes. That made me terrified to sleep, as I afraid to wake up in even more pain. After me, my mom and husband arguing with some of the nursing staff, they finally called the doctor to order another form of pain medicine that did not rely on me pushing a button. Finally, almost 10 ten hours post surgery, I was able to fall asleep in peace. The next day did not get much better as I had practically beg my nurse for pain and nausea medicine which resulted in me getting sick twice before she did something about it. From the very beginning I was told to expect a lot of pain but was reassured I would be given whatever I needed to take it away. I plan to be blunt with my surgeon when I see him next week for a post-surgery appointment. Maybe he will listen and future donors will receive improved pain treatment. But in no way do I want this to deter anyone from thinking of donating, just be clear abut your expectations and talk to your doctors and nurses about your needs.
Now I promised to be completely honest in this blog. It was not all bad. Yes, the first two days were horrible but then I got some amazing nurses, Sylvia, Mary and Princess, who truly cared about their patients and got me on the road to recovery. In addition, getting up and walking to Larry’s room allowed me to see how great he was doing. I was showered with tons of flowers from family, friends and coworkers which helped the room feel more like home.
I’m recovering from home and each day feel a little bit better. The key is to move around, get plenty of rest and water. Thanks to the generosity of our friends, meals are being delivered to help out. Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of you kind souls.
So now I’ll being catching up on my favorite Today show, coffee, comfort food, reading and movies. I’ll keep you posted but it probably won’t be exciting. 
Signing off with one kidney and doing fabulous! Jeni
So glad that you are both doing wonderful! And, I am very sorry you had to deal with insensitive nurses! I remember having a similar experience when Grant had his open heart surgery (age 4 months). He was clearly in a lot of pain… whimpering and unable to even cry…, but several nurses told us he was maxed out on his pain med. After speaking with the doctors, they said yes, he definitely needed more/different pain meds. Pain control is all part of the recovery. You should definitely be blunt with your surgeon about your experience (although many surgeons don’t have the best bedside manner either). You could look on Vandy’s webiste. There should be some kind of patient review you could do. Vandy has actually called us before (post procedure) and asked us to participate in a review of our services from them. So I know there is something like that out there.
Kuddos to you and your uncle! Keep us posted!
Thanks Lesley! I was starting to feel a little guilty about my harsh comments but you are right. Sometimes I think we are afraid to tell how we feel or what we need. But if we do speak up, it just makes for a better experience for the next person.
I am so glad everything went so well with Larry. I know he feels better than he has in a long time. Still praying for you both and will conitnue. Take care of you and do what you are supposed to do so you can be back at work again. It will get quite boring without you there.