Procedure day today. I’ve basically been waiting for this for over a year and a half. I had to work through the diagnostic steps, the bureaucratic red tape, long wait times, and deal with doctors that don’t care. I was up for about 2 hours in the middle of the night, so I’m super tired. Last time I did this I came home and passed out from the pain, so I’m still expecting that today. However, today’s procedure was much smoother than last time. Last time was pure torture. It took 2 weeks just to get back to my normal, shitty baseline. I think the improvement on the left side made it easier to do the right side today. Less pain being magnified. The surgical pain is super strong, so I’ll just be chilling out in bed and using ice packs. Last time I had a good day the day after the procedure, so that would be wonderful if that happened again this time.
Well, I didn’t exactly pass out from the pain this time, but I did crash pretty hard. I got a bit over an hour and half of sleep. Very slow to wake up. I feel better for the sleep, but I’m still waking up catching back up with the day. Surgical pain is super strong. Last time it had me rolling around all day freaking out. It feels almost as strong right now, but I’m calmer somehow. I’ll certainly take it. I had some anxiety about how bad it would be today. It’s very difficult going into something knowing it will massively flare up your already bad pain for another 2 weeks of pure hell. As soon as I can get upright, I’ll bust out an ice pack and see how that helps.
That took me a solid hour and a half to wake back up. These procedures really ring your bell. Very difficult to get trough. I feel really exhausted. Hopefully that helps me sleep tonight, although it often goes the other way with me. I always have to expect the worst and be happy when I get something better. I’ve been cycling through ice packs and surviving. That’s been my strategy for the last week. About 8 ice packs a day.
The evening has been very hard. Pain has ramped up. My tolerance for it has dropped. I’m still super tired. I can’t wait to pass out for the night. I still have a few hours to go. Going into struggle mode to get to the finish line today.