Thursday, 5/3/18

 

IMG_4436PRE-SURGERY 5:30am

It’s time to swing.

SURGERY

As is the case with surgery in general, I don’t remember much. I was nervous, absolutely. But, I did well with regard to not completely losing it in the pre-op room. One crying session and then it was done. Dr. Spiegel came in and made some marks on my skin. The anesthesiologist came in to introduce himself and let me know he would be with me throughout the entire procedure. Dr. Lim came in to tell me they were ready. I was given a shot to calm my nerves and immediately felt the brakes release on the gurney. Down the hall I went giving Ken the “thumbs up.” I remember getting to the operating room where there were people and things moving around like a fast game of chess. That was it.

POST-SURGERY 3:30pm

I opened my eyes. The thing I kept saying I wanted was happening. I wanted to open my eyes. I was so worried because of the Lupus and AFib, I just wasn’t confident everything would be alright. The surgery was about 6 1/2 hours or so. There I was, opening my eyes. I heard my family’s voices, “Mama,” “Hi, Honey,” “We’re here,” “It’s over.” I think someone said, “You did it.” But, that could’ve been me in my head. It’s that profound moment before the fog just envelopes you. I don’t know how long I was in recovery. I know I threw up, I groaned in pain, I tried to talk, I tried to remember everything. I don’t remember any specifics, whatsoever. I remember each doctor coming into the room. I remember pushing the button to go to the bathroom. I remember answering the nurses. I remember drinking water and eating two bites of mashed potato. To tell you the truth, it sucked. Oh! The morphine button. I pushed the hell out of that thing. It made me itchy and I was scratching like crazy. My mouth was like sand. The nurse kept expressing my drainage tubes and I kept thinking I would never understand how to do this and that I’d hoped Ken was watching closely.

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Christine Cadiz

Houston-based writer making contributions through truth- and story-telling. Sometimes dark, often insubordinate, and always raw, a balance is struck in each conclusion that evokes a sense of resolve to the absurd drama so intricately woven into our human experience. You will find short stories sometimes based in truth, true stories sometimes based in harsh reality, musings that may strike a nerve, writing prompts just for fun, and a novel or two in the works. Welcome, and thank you for reading. Christine Cadiz was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad in 1964. She was a kid in the Florida Keys and an adult in Miami. She's been writing since she was nine-years-old and was a Journalism major before leaving college to work. Christine worked in marketing and advertising for seventeen years. She stayed in Florida for forty-three years before relocating to North Carolina and then Texas with her family. She has three daughters and currently resides in Houston.

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