"glad I finally got that off my chest"

[Title for this post stolen from a caption my son wrote on his Instagram with his first post-op selfie.]

Just wanted to make a quick update following my last post. E's top surgery went very well, and thankfully there were no issues with the whole diabetes thing.  I was pretty tense in the waiting room, clutching his insulin pump, Dexcom receiver and medical alert bracelet while we waited for news. I've never held a rosary before, but I kept turning his diabetes bracelet over in my hand as if I were to stop, something terrible would happen. 

 

But all that worry was for nothing because everything went just as planned and we were out of there by lunch time! There were two drains, one coming out of a hole under each armpit, that I had to keep an eye on and empty periodically. He was on a lot of painkillers so he slept a lot those first few days. It was reminiscent of when he first came home from the hospital as a newborn. A blur of eating and sleeping, but instead of changing diapers, I was emptying drains.

 

The placement of the drains seemed a little on the nose (or rather, on the nip.) Each drain was attached to the compression vest via safety pin, right at chest level. It was like walking around with two fluid-filled plastic Easter eggs hanging off your chest. Maybe they hung them there purposefully so that the patient wouldn't accidentally roll over onto them while sleeping, or just to be extra careful around that area during the first few days after surgery. Whatever the case, the symbolism wasn't lost on me.

 

Four days after surgery, the doctor removed the bandages and drains and compression vest, and we all got our first look at E's bare chest. I began to cry immediately. There was minimal swelling and bruising and less scarring than I expected (due to him having the less-invasive type of surgery) and I wasn't expecting him to look so "beach ready" so soon. But he did, and he looked so perfectly "himself" that I couldn't stop crying from joy. 

The look on E's face when he saw his chest for the first time is indescribable. "Smiling in awe and relief" is probably about as close as I can get. He let out a soft "woah" and just kept turning from side to side in front of the mirror, checking all his angles, maybe trying to make sure it wasn't an illusion.

He had another week of Spring Break to recover at home and now he is finishing his first week back at school. He is still sore and stiff and tired but of course it is all worth it. Because in time that all will fade and soon enough Summer will arrive and then his body will move through the world resplendently adorned with tank tops that have comically-oversized arm holes. And all will be right in the world.

Thank you to all our friends and family who sent cards and care packages and texts and emails. Here's a snap of the encouragement corner of his hotel room while he recovered. I brought along a portrait of our cat Thumper to oversee the well-wishes.