thanx for asking greg ,, I posted home sweet home here ,and a update over at case ,,. but it is esy to miss with the variety of great guys and topix on here,.i am on the slow mnd road . got to tell you all ,, if I had read serveral case historys about colon cancer surgery, before I had it done , my anxiety of what was next and what could happen would threaten my life,,.i trusted my doctors,and instead concentrated on getting my body healthy before surgery , getting the cows and feed situation in good order , I have a very good man that loves animals watching over the farm ,,I got home Saturday at noon , no appetite, nuthin tastes good after a few bites,, and my stomach cramps and rumbles, and I feel like I just decided to stop a 10 day drunk .. the operation itself was successful and uneventful as such things go ,.except , I could not maintain adequet oxygen level when they lowered my head so instead of lapo surgery , they c -sectioned me,,.funny , that healed very quik , on the 3rd day the pain level was less than half what it was rite after surgery, I was on my feet and walking 10 hours post -op , however ,some 36 hours after surgery , at 4 am , my drip bottle ran out as well as my morphine pump ,,the girls told me that none was available til 7 am ,THEY HAD FORGOT TO CHEK THEIR STOK ,,.I had developed a cough thru the nite , and spent the next 4hours with the bed sat up andmy feet planted on the foot board, to guard against coughing I held a pillow titely to my stitches,,..when the meds did come I slept til mid afternoon ,.that would prove to be my least problem , rite after surgery , the docs told me that I need to pass gas and get the bowels working, AND I COULD NOT EAT AND DRINK TIL THE BOWELS WERE WORKING ,,. gas and fluid built up and at about 60 hours post op , they inserted a tube thru my nose into my stomach and started pumping my stomach,. next morning I was much better,.and went on my hallway walk,i counted the ceiling tiles and did the math and realized from wall to end wall was a little over 500 ft ,. hummn ,one round trip is a thousand feet, do 5 total and a victory lap I easily had a mile walkt ,the docs seemed to think that walking was my best ally to get the bowels going again . ,some days I know I walked at least 3 miles in a 12 hour period,..on st patricks day they pulled the tube for good , and made sure my stomach was indeed working the next am I got all liquid s, with mushroom soup for lunch,..then at supper they brought me a dressed hamburger with onion , I was expecting broiled fish ,, no mistake they said ,, bon -apetit,,.shoulda left the onion alone ,, that rascal made me miserable all nite ,,.. to date the worst fear and misery , I had was thinking that I had gone 12 days without water of food, my liquids came thru a needle,and it took a couple days for my body to get fluids into my dry parchred throat , but before long ,my body had found away to give me relief ,.I gladly lost over 30 lbs , I gladly improved my breathing 3 times per day with the respiratory therapist ,now I can blow 98 rating at will ,. and I feel great,.i do have chemo coming next because one of the 8 lymph nodes tested positive,.. butr that is probablynext month,,. thanx again, jim
