Bi lateral salpingo oophrectomy

Thanks ive tentatively asked my friend whose dropping me off but I don’t want to put her on the spot - im seeing my other friend on Thursday evening so I’ll ask her but I know she will have problems getting out of work and doesn’t always have access to her phone all the time. I won’t take much and read somewhere (!) that it’s a good idea to leave a top up bag at home just in case your kept in longer than anticipated - I’m off work on A/L this week and Monday and Tuesday of next week so going to hopefully just keep myself a little busy - not too much in this heat! Lx

Yes, the way different people deal with the same situation can vary greatly but that doesn’t mean they don’t care. 

My husband often went into ‘practicality mode’ while I was having diagnostics, scans etc. and the word cancer was being banded around. However, I soon realised this was exactly how I had dealt with both my parents’ terminal diagnoses, especially when my dad was very ill and my mum was still around. I felt I had to be strong for her and the only way I could do that was to put up a ‘shield’. My behaviour must have seemed cold and uncaring at times but that really wasn’t the case at all. 

Don’t know where you’re based but I’m in Scotland. My regional health authority have produced leaflets on various procedures and include these with admission letters. Assuming you can get your hands on something like that, it might be a good idea to let your mum read it to help her understand? 

Another big difference in our health authorities!

Both times I had GA I wasn’t allowed to eat anything after midnight. However, their view is that it’s important to stay hydrated so they have something called SipTilSend which permits patients to sip up to 170ml water every hour from when they get up until they go to theatre.

I had a plastic bottle with each 170ml marked off with an elastic band which I sipped on through the night when I couldn’t sleep and in the car en route (we’re 56 miles away from one hospital and 38 miles from the other). One hospital was very strict about dishing out controlled amounts every hour, the other not so much. Basically, I was given a jug and told to help myself as long as I sipped slowly and didn’t gulp. I wasn’t sick after the diagnostic procedure when my fluid  intake was carefully controlled but was sick after the major surgery. Whether that was down to too much water or the morphine I’m not sure.

Anyway, best do what they say but it is strange that different areas/hospitals have such contrasting views 

That’s a good thought actually just to take a bit - they said (in Jan 2024) that I would probably only stay the 1 night if it was keyhole and that’s because I’m diabetic so they need to make sure I’m stable before discharging. I may end up getting a taxi home but it’s not far probably about 10 minutes lx

You are a long way from hospitals I’m only around 10 mins but the hospital itself is provably like a lot of them - old, overwhelmed with patients and stressful. It does say in my admission notes that the hospital will give you measured doses of water until your procedure and I have to stop drinking at 7am and be there 7.30/8. Sometimes even gargling with water helps ease my dry mouth. I’m in Essex and it’s so hot here I’ve not done much today - I think I have something to do from tomorrow until Sunday and then Monday and Tuesday I want to get myself 100% ready and my house tidy and clean. Not sure how I can get any more ready tbh apart from the anxiety which I can’t seem to get rid of completely lx

I recall embarking on a cleaning frenzy too! Try to keep busy and it’ll be over before you know it ️

I think it’s in our nature to be clean and tidy if we have an ordered structured life. Since BC I worry less about what people think about me - I’m kind of like “well this is me and yes I am anxious” I just have to try and deal with it myself and get through it lx

Have been out this morning and checked my phone when I got home to 2 missed calls from the hospital - one of those recorded messages that says “we’ve tried to reach you but don’t know which dept phoned so if it’s urgent we’ll phone back” great! Phoned and got thru to gynae and after holding for 10 mins the message said sorry we’re busy on other calls please call back. Not sure what to think at the moment? Is it being postponed? There a problem with the blood test I had? Is it nothing to do with gynae? Could it be another team that I’m under? Just got to wait until or if they phone back? My phone hasn’t moved from my side this afternoon lx

I hate that when it happens...I've had something similar a few times. At least it's only Tuesday...on occasions I've had this on a Friday afternoon and by the time I get home from work and get the message, I then have to wait until Monday to find out what it's about!!

Hope you can get a hold of them tomorrow.

I know they are very busy but it always feels to me like they assume I have nothing to do but take phone calls! I work five days a week, I cannot use my phone at work (mainly because working alone all the time, I never have time to!) and of course by the time I get in after 7 they've all gone home! and unlike me, they don't work weekends either!!

Even if they had just said “don’t worry we’ll call you back” I don’t know if I have been rung in error either. When I mentioned it to a friend her reply was “don’t stress if it was urgent they would have phoned back” then hut she would have been a bit more understanding but have a feeling I’m starting to annoy some people constantly going on and on about this op - I think because I like things controlled and planned and I don’t have a husband partner children or siblings maybe I do fixate on things. Just have to wait and see don’t I really? I’m lucky in that I work permanently from home and my phone is always next to me - just happens I went out this morning - fingers crossed I can speak to someone tomorrow lx