THE FIRST THREE WEEKS HOME

The first couple weeks of being home after the surgery were a little rough.  We decided that Sydney and I would camp out in our family room at night so that she could sleep on the couch and I would be near by on the inflatable bed. Neither one of us got much sleep during that time because she had a difficult time getting comfortable.  She was still unable to move by herself and needed me to help every time.  There was a lot of switching from one side to the other and trying anything to get in a comfortable position.  The first week or two it was like having a newborn in the house.  She needed us to do everything for her and she didn't sleep at night!

During the day she wasn't any more comfortable but there was more activity to keep her distracted.  Friends and family continued to stop by and we went on a lot of car rides just for a change of scenery.  We did have a few outings early on that surprised me.  She wanted to go to Subway eight days after surgery so she got dressed and we went.  Considering a few days prior to this she was barely awake from all of the medication, I was impressed and encouraged.

We also stopped by a friends house during one of our car rides and she got out and talked with her friend while sitting and lying on their couch.  One thing that made Brian and I laugh was one night, early on, Jack went to the movies with a friend.  While he was gone Brian, Sydney and I were watching a movie. Syd and I were lying on the inflatable bed that is really low to the ground.  When Jack got home he, Brian, and I were standing in our garage talking to our friend that took him to the movies.  We were only out there for three minutes or so and all of the sudden the door from the house opens and Sydney is standing there.  Up to this point, she had been unable and afraid to sit up on her own or get to a standing position from the couch.  Somehow she managed to sit up and stand all the way from practically down on the ground.  Brian and I just looked at each other because that is so classic Sydney.  If she thinks she is missing out on something she will do whatever it takes to get herself there.  I knew then that her social and determined personality and need to be going at all times would serve her well in her recovery.  She definitely doesn't want to miss more than she has to.

When they sent us home she was taking a narcotic painkiller and some anti-nausea medication to ease her stomach.  She still was not eating much at all.  Something would sound good to her and then she would only take a bite or two and be done.  She did not like taking the narcotic because she was having some negative side-effects.  On one hand, it was helping to dull her pain but on the other it was making her feel worse.  One day she decided she didn't want to take it any more.  This was only about two days after we got home.  I was concerned about this because I wanted to stay on top of the pain and not let it get out of control.  I consulted with nurse Amy and she said that it's not common for people to get off the meds that early but we have to go by her pain level and tolerance.  That day she switched to Tylenol.  That night was rough.  She was up most of the night and while not in a tremendous amount of pain she was uncomfortable enough to keep her (and me) up all night.  She decided to stick with the narcotic a little while longer.  After another week she was done for good and took Tylenol for a couple days and then nothing.  By the time we had been home for two weeks she was off of everything.

Something that made me feel very good is when Sydney said to me out of the blue, "Mom, when I think back about everything I don't really have any regrets except all of the worrying I did before the surgery".  She had just given me the greatest gift and she didn't even know it.  The fact that she felt this way even while she was still in the midst of pain and recovery reassured me that we had made the right decision for her. 

After being home for about a week and a half she started to venture out a little more.  At her two week check-up she was still moving very slow but she got the okay to go in the pool. 

 
So over the fourth of July week she did some swimming which was great for her.  She still got worn out very easily and spent a lot of her time at home lying on the couch or in her bed.  She was starting to push herself more while we were out and she even went to a couple of Little League all-star games to cheer on friends.  She sat on the hard bleachers the whole time and didn't want to leave. 

 
The weekend of July 7th she started to get to a sitting position by herself.  Until then she would need to have one of us help her to sit up when she was lying down.  Now she was sitting up by herself which was major progress.  She was no longer dependent on anyone to get off of the couch.  We were on our way!  And then...back to the hospital we go.