One Week Out

I am feeling so much stronger today even than yesterday, the dietitian said as long as I take my Flintstones the blood will rebuild just fine. I sit here with a slight awareness of one or two stitches on my abdomen, but that is all. Last night was my first full night's sleep since last week. At home i have awakened at 3 or 4 a.m. for a blood draw! I find timing the prescriptions I am still taking, and getting in all the fluids. I may go to a small grocery store today and do a little shopping, I am going to check out the side of the bottle on naked lunch protein, see what the sugar content is, can't have that above #5 on the ingredient list. As of today my weight has ventured down past all the stuff that was pumped into me in my hospital stay.

Surgery

I had the roux en Y this week. I had to stay 2 extra days because of some internal bleeding. I came home after two days of no further blood loss and have had no signs at home. I feel totally normal and my pain is zero.
I had some pain meds in recovery then maybe a dose and a half in my room. Switched to Tylenol, turned out it was children's Tylenol that was my best pain reliever. I had some visually interesting experiences on the dilaudin, not my cup of tea, although I was aware that I was not really seeing what I was seeing. I mean, rarely in real life do charcoal drawings start developing on your wall with an occasional little Disney style but charcoal value bird flutter out. Not threatening, but not something I wanted to do again. I was totally pain free by day two except for the sensation of having had a good ab workout. My last nurse who released me said my lack of pain was from all the exercise I had been doing so all you pre-bariatrics, get goin on some crunches! Now I am trying to get all my "sippin" done, vitamins, one last pill.
I can also tell you that, although right now I feel no sensation of hunger at all, when I stepped foot in this house, my mouth wanted to crunch on something, and that with no hunger. I am going to have to deal with that.

My Brother Bob

Last May Bob called and said he had 2 days left to live. Last night he died in his hand built home in the presence of his wife, Cindy and his son Robert Jr.

Bob was the picture of a grizzled mountain man and he had been recovering and revitalizing the earth on his mountain top in Snowflake AZ
for the past 12 or 13 years. Until about a month ago he could still animatedly discuss the misuse of the land and his efforts to reclaim it. Robby had disappeared years ago and my sister, Kathy used her skills to find him; Robby reunited with his Dad then moved up to the mountain top and helped keep the homestead going. They enjoyed these months together and I am so glad they had them.

Cindy kept Bob going all this time with herbs, nutrients and sheer will. Sunday during the game, Bob had a stroke, slipped into a coma last night and died. Cindy, Robby and Bob's neighbors will honor Bob's wish to be buried on his own land which is legal where they live.

Bob was 60 in September and had cancer caused by Agent Orange. He is survived by his wife, Cindy, his son Robert Jr., his daughter, Brandy, and his four siblings, Linda, Kathy, Rick, and Elaine. He also has grandchildren from Brandy, 2 nieces and a nephew.

added 2 days later: I now know that Brandy got there in time to say goodbye to her dad. His children, his wife, gutsy Cindy, and friends spent several hours yesterday backhoeing the grave and placing Bob in his final resting place, wrapped in his favorite blanket with his bible. I think this ancient ritual may be better than the sanitized somewhat walled off methods we use "down here." Son Robby is going to stay for some time helping keep the homestead going for Cindy until she decides what to do. I don't see their extremely rugged life as a life for one person.