If you're late to the story, I had laser ablation of the greater saphenous vein from the knee up to the groin, and microphlebectomy from the knee down. Go back to Monday's entry to read all about it, or just click here to pop over there if you're curious. I'm pretty sure you don't want to miss the high-grade whining and bellyaching that happened...
Yesterday I was allowed to take off the Ace bandages and gauze that held my leg together, which was kind of exciting. I had visions of horrific things happening, spurts of dark venous blood bounding from still-open wounds and such, which amused my black little heart.
Sadly, nothing quite so entertaining as all that happened.
The real story is that 24 hours after being let out of surgery, I simply unwrapped the Ace bandages (forgetting to notice which end went on first, which is important now that they come with Velcro ends instead of the metal clippy things they USED to have), then grabbed a hold of the neareest end of gauze available and started unmummifying myself.
It went pretty well. I only had a couple of nervous moments when I thought "Oh shit - the steri-strips are coming loose!" and had to gently pry them from a little bit of dried-up blood, but otherwise it was fine. I took a shower, working gingerly around the dozen or so small wound sites, inspecting for bruising and such, and, naturally, pressing on the site that hurt the most just to see if they still hurt.
They did. Duh.
Now I present to you the results of my surgery, 24 hours later:
(This was taken in the Tiny House's kitchen, so not only can you get a gander at Franken-leg, but you can cast your eyes upon the loathesome kitchen floor... and it's a far better shot of my fat knee than the "before pic," don't you think?)
Up toward the crotchal area that you can't see so well here are a couple of bruises where the "tumescent anesthetic" was injected around the venous capsule. No, I don't know what I'm talking about, but I can parrot the surgeon just fine. Down on my foot there are several small injection sites where the foam stuff was shot into some small veins, but they aren't terribly impressive to look at just yet. I have high hopes that they'll turn yellow and green and gross before they collapse and DIE, but I'll just have to be patient and wait for that to happen, if indeed it ever does.
I took a look at my leg just now as I got out of the shower, and it doesn't really look a whole lot different than it did yesterday, so this shot will have to do for now. I'm not getting a whole lot of bruising, there is no spectacular oozing, no inflamed areas, no NOTHING that would garner anything but the most tangential of sympathy.
My surgeon might be TOO good.
The pain is laughably minimal - the 800 mg of ibuprofen every 6 hours is working great. There are only a couple of tender ares where the very biggest of the veins were excised (those where there was rather a LOT of tugging going on and some deeper excavating for purchase on the bloataciousness that were the veins).
In short, I'd say that everything is going rather well. I expect that I'll be back at work tomorrow as planned, and that by the weekend I'll resent having to wear the support stocking and Ace bandage thing. Of course I'll be a good girl and WEAR the daggone things, because I want to continue to be the poster child for varicose vein surgery, but I won't have to LIKE it.
OK. So. Now you know. I bet that tomorrow I'll be on to other things, because I'm beginning to bore myself, which means that y'all are highly likely to be even MORE bored, and I can't have that.
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Hey! Trina posted!
And hey! A new Wordsmiths is up!
And hey hey! It's RAINING in NC! Wooooot!
And hey hey hey! Renn's Chocolate Covered Satan Balls are to die for. THREE ingredients, poeple! THREE, and they are teh total yum. Seriously, you can't afford NOT to make them, for sin never tasted so good.
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Have a great afternoon y'all. See you tomorrow. I have some more recuperating/convalescing/fishing for sympathy to do.
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