Normal service is now resumed! Two days post surgery and I have to say I feel ten times better than I did after the first lot. While I appreciate the revision surgery was mostly external stuff, Kathy attended to 5 seperate issues, all of which required her expertise and experience to sort out and hopefully she has! On first impressions one of the main reasons for needing surgery, the still swollen mons area has improved a great deal, it now looks flat as it should do and the discomfort I was experiencing every time I sat down has gone, she did tell me during my first post op consultation today that she removed over 200 ml of scar tissue and other material by liposuction from the area so it’s not surprising that it looks different and much better than before. The other big issue and the reason for the urgency of the surgery was that I was no longer able to dilate due to the growth of scar tissue in the area. After removing the scar tissue Kathy needed some suitable skin to use as a skin graft and here is the bonus! She took the skin from my lower abdomen and gave me a mini tummy tuck at the same time. I now have a very neat scar across my tummy and a very flat part! There was another bonus too, I happened to mention that going to the bathroom was something of a lottery in that I never knew what direction the flow would head in so she has repositioned my urethra further back which should solve the problem. This last issue was very frustrating for me and as it had only really become apparent in the last month or so I hadn’t even mentioned it before seeing Kathy on Monday. So the fact that it has been sorted is a big relief.
Throughout our time in Philadelphia I have been absolutely blown away by how well we have been looked after, the girls at the clinic, Kathy herself, the nurses in the hospital, they have all been wonderful, friendly and kind to us. It was always going to be stressful coming over here again but to be treated so well has really made a difference and I can’t speak highly enough about the level of care we have received. Even the weather has been kind, yes it’s cold but it’s bright and fresh so very pleasant really and Ardmore is very tastefully decorated with Christmas trees in various places and seemingly every lamp post in the centre decorated so it’s a nice place to be even if I didn’t want to come back again.
So now the real recovery starts, I have less than two weeks to get up to speed and to a level of recovery that will make the flights back home to Australia ok. Before my op I have to say I was sceptical but the fact that I have an arsenal of opium based painkillers by my bedside but haven’t felt the need to use any yet is a big positive. I feel at least as well as I did two weeks after the first op and at that stage I was using painkillers every 4 hours so providing I keep improving, the flights home will be good and knowing I will be able to lie down if necessary is a bonus.