--- In SkunkworksAMA_at_yahoogroups.com, "Take a wild, friggin guess"
<a_change_of_plans_at_...> wrote:
>
> Hey all-
>
> I returned home from Saint Louis last night, but was far too
> exhausted to do anything worthwhile. One thing I've noticed is that I
> have a real limited amount of energy, and it appears only a couple
> times a day, so I have to pace myself.
>
> I got the call on the 14th of November, and both my mom and I had to
> get our shit together and then she drove me up to St. Louis. I was
> prepped overnight, and had both surgeries performed over a 5-6 hour
> period. I think it was around 6am or so. In any case, the docs
> replaced my pancreas with a functioning one, and put in one good
> kidney.
>
> I was in ICU for awhile, then went through all the fun painful shit
> for the first week after surgery. All I can say is: catheters are not
> fun. I had more tubes and hoses in me than the six-million dollar man.
>
> I got released for a week, but a fever and nausea forced me to
> return. After getting tons of strong antibiotics, enough blood
> cultures and withdrawals to drain a horse, and almost no sleep for a
> week, it was discovered that one of the pills I was taking was causing
> the fever. (This is besides the little touch of pneumonia that I had).
>
> Currently, I'm on 18-20 pills a day, though those will decrease over
> time as my immune system is slowly rebuilt. The docs have all been
> very impressed with the results; all my various levels are within the
> normal range, including my blood sugars. It's mighty nice to not have
> diabetes anymore. Makes all the agony worth it.
>
> It may be a while before I can draw; some of the medications I'm on
> cause tremors in my hands, so it's a little tricky to do any kind of
> decent work. Luckily, those medications will be deleted from the
> roster in a few more weeks.
>
> I lucked out in the approval process. The docs voted me in
> unanimously, and my general health was far greater than the usual
> kidney/pancreas patient. No known allergies, no diseases or viruses.
> The donor turned out to be an excellent match, and the organs bonded
> without a hitch. My only regret is that an otherwise healthy young
> man of 18 years of age had to die of obviously unnatural causes. I am
> still awaiting a special thank-you form from the hospital which I can
> fill out and send to the donor's parents. It seems the hospital does
> not allow free-form letters, and I reckon that makes sense.
>
> Special thanks to the doctors and staff of SLUH, the donor and his
> parents for their selfless gift, the good wishes and thoughts of
> everybody on the group and elsewhere, to my mom for being a caregiver
> while I was recuperating, and to Des for taking all her vacation days,
> sick days and personal days to be with me and help out in any way she
> could. I know the road to complete recovery will be long and slow,
> but I'm certain it can be traveled without too much incident.
>
> In other news, I'm really chomping at the bit to get back to
> drawing, but I'll have to wait until everything smoothes out again.
> Also, I'm surprised I'm not itching like crazy, since they pretty much
> shaved me from my upper chest to my crotch, and even part of my upper
> thighs. I normally look like a friggin' carpet, as far as the hair
> department goes, but everything is growing back quietly. Thank
> goodness for that!
>
> I've got a lot of e-mails still, but I'll have to work on those when
> I can. Just sitting here typing this has tired me out. :( Oh yeah,
> I also lost about 24 pounds after the surgery, which was nearly all
> water. Since my OEM kidneys were barely functioning, I had a good
> build-up of extra fluid. Seems the transplant has taken care of that
> little issue. Sweet. Of course, now everyone thinks I'm scrawny
> again, since I'm only 146 pounds. Gotta bulk that back up once I get
> the okay to start lifting again!
>
> Okay, I gotta take a rest. Just wanted to say howdy and let
> everyone know I'm still kickin'. And thanks again everyone, for your
> prayers and good wishes. I'll be back online within the next couple
> days. Talk to you all soon, and have a good holiday season!
>
> --JMH, now with a 10-inch long scar along the underside. New and
> improved!
Glad to hear everything worked out for ya! :D
<><
Received on Wed Dec 19 2007 - 19:53:08 CST