Thanks Firefly, it's hard to identify a pain type you've
not had before. I think my challenge now is to not overdo it. The recovery
pains pale by comparison to the discomfort of gallbladder attacks. On that
note, my first attack was over 3 years ago while on a business trip in the
Richmond VA area. Woke up in bed, WIDE AWAKE. It wasn't really painful - felt
more like pressure building in my abdomen just below my rib cage in front. The
intensity built while I paced the floor with my mind racing ... "what should
I do?". After about 40 minutes I felt the pressure letting up and within
another 10 minutes it was gone. Whew ... "What the h*77 was that?" From then until January this year, I averaged about two of those
per year. January-2 I had an episode that lasted almost 48 hours. It wasn’t
as intense as the previous episodes but it lasted almost 48 hours! That's when
I finally did something about it. (I know, pretty dumb to roll the dice that
long with something like this.)
Leigh Ann, yes, I feel at least 200% better without the
gallbladder! For the last 3 years or so I've had trouble dragging myself out of
bed in the morning. My normal get-up time for work is 6 am and managed that
dutifully through the years without giving it a second thought. On weekends, I was doing good to
make it out of bed by 8, just to make my way to my easy chair to sit and nap
for another 2 hours or so. My eyes always felt tired and sleepy even if I
wasn't sleepy and didn't feel like doing anything. Pretty much lost all
interest in things I used to enjoy. Chronic fatigue? Depression? Who knows. By about 10:30
or 11 I would make my way out to my shop/office where my treadmill is and begin
my routine.
The day after surgery I was up at 6 am, wide awake! What a strange sensation ... to wake up and actually feel refreshed enough to want to get out of bed. Is this how the other half lives? J I'm trying to
take it easy but that's hard to do when feeling so much better than I have in
years. That continued until this morning - I was up at 6 and going to the easy
chair sounded like a grand idea where I napped for a couple of hours. I'm still
feeling very well so I'm probably just needing some rest. I think I’ll work on
doing more of that the next 7 days or so J
Steve