Everything went very smoothly. Here's a run down:
11:30am: check in & realize that we have to leave a check because our insurance is through Monaco and the clinic is in Nice, France. It's just a "caution" check, which they will rip up once we come to pay our final bill. Only problem being, that we don't have a checking account in France. OOOPS....we proceed to frantically call friends who live nearby. My dear, sweet friend Marion agrees! Phew....
12:30: All settled into my room with the awesome blue robe they give you. They ask me to take 2 pills which apparently will make me sleepy. The sweetest nurse named Aida puts in my IV, and has a quick chat with me. She's lebanese and speaks pretty good english. I'm trying to practice my french...which is going pretty well.
1:30: Don't feel sleepy at all
2pm: Man comes to wheel me down to surgery. He proceeds to leave me and 2 other women lined up against the wall near the sink where the surgeons wash up before surgery. I'm shaking because it's freezing and I'm nervous. Some woman comes over and asks me a few questions, all of which is in my chart in front of her.
2:10: They wheel me into the operating room and I climb onto the operating table. They proceed to put my legs into some strange stirrup thing and velcro them in and put a blanket over me filled with hot air. I finally start to feel warm.
2:15: Anesthesiologist(super friendly, handsome guy who speaks amazing english) puts the oxygen mask over my nose & mouth and he must have also injected something into my IV because I don't remember anything after that.
???: Wake up in recovery room. This room is full of about 8 other women. I feel pretty lucid, and start to get annoyed that they aren't taking me upstairs back into my room.
4:45pm: Back upstairs in my room, where David & Marion are waiting for me. I'm so happy to see them, although I'm in a bit of pain around my shoulder. Apparently the shoulder pain is from the procedure and is completely normal.
5:30: Everyone leaves and I fall asleep (and am in & out of sleep all night until 6:30am)
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| Me being wheeled back into my room after surgery (smiling at Marion & David) |
In the morning I was keen to get out quickly....but it seemed to drag on. I was able to have a chat (in French) with the woman I was sharing the room with. She was going through the exact same thing! However she was 39 and a smoker (both risk factors of ectopic). She went on to tell me, that ectopic pregnancies occur more often in summer months. Which was an interesting piece of information.
Finally, I buzzed the nurse, asking why I was still waiting...apparently we were waiting for my doctor to call. Dr. Delorme calls around 12:15 (I was expecting to leave around 11am). Says that I'm free to go home, and asks that I get another HCG test on Friday & give him a call.
We leave the clinic and take the bus...which was a hot, smelly uncomfortable mess. We stop for a quick bite at one of my fave lunch restaurants on Nice, Bagel History. I'm devastated when I'm told they are out of hot dogs. It was the ONE THING I wanted :( Oh well, the central park bagel sandwich was still pretty good! Then we walk from the middle of Jean Medcin to the train station....which is maybe 3-4 blocks. But when you just had surgery, it's not a fun walk! My pain started to really kick in just as I was getting off the train in Monaco. It was all I could do to walk up the stairs at my apartment building.
The Procedure:
Basically the doctor made 3 incisions: one in my belly button (which is now properly massacred), one just below my belly button, and a third above my pelvic bone. Then injected air into my stomach cavity so that they could get the camera in to have a look. Basically the doctor could not find the embryo, so he flushed my fallopian tubes.
The Outcome:
The doctor came by around 5pm to talk to me about the surgery. He explained how he was unable to find the baby, but assumed it was expelled when he cleared the fallopian tubes. He was happy to report that both my fallopian tubes are now nice & clear...which should prevent another ectopic. I got the HCG blood work back just before I left the hospital today and it was half what it was on Monday. Which is great news, meaning it was successful!
How I'm feeling Post-Op:
LIKE SHIT! Just kidding....I like to think of myself as a tough girl. But basically I can't stand up straight. Walking around Nice for a few blocks was probably a bad idea. But I'm home now with my legs up and just popped a few Advil. I'll prob take a nap in a few!
Mentally, I'm feeling pretty ok with the entire situation. I think it's because I'm trying to be positive and have a good outlook for the next pregnancy! I'm just praying that we won't have to wait too too long, since patience isn't really my forte!
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