Day of Pre-Op Appointments

Busy day today. I started out with a fasting blood draw, chest x-ray and an appointment with the Dietician. The Dietician was very excited about me having to do only one week of protein shakes. I also got some clarification. I can mix the power with milk. Much better that water. I can also have sugar free no fruit Popsicles and sugar free Jello. That seems helpful. I will lay out the dietary weeks as they approach. Then off to lunch with my Mom and two sisters at Harvey Moy’s for Chinese Buffet. I was given a bracelet by my family to remind me that they are on the journey with me. My family has been through a lot growing up. We are always there for each other. I rushed back to the appointment with the Nurse Practitioner, Karen. As I have mentioned before, we use to work at the hospital together and I now see her for my yearly GYN needs. Karen is also a certified hypnotherapist. She offered to help me prepare for the protein shakes, surgery and recovery process. It is another adventure to add to list on this journey.
For those of you who are curious, Karen had me start breathing through my nose and out through my mouth, concentrating on my body getting the oxygen that it needs. I closed my eyes, and she talked about visualizing walking along a river, the noises that I hear and the wind blowing through the grass along the banks and the leaves on the trees. I was still breathing pretty hard, so she told me that the path was not a hard one it was flat and nothing was in my way. She had me visualize stopping a moment and looking around. My breathing slowed down as she described the area, and how my body was relaxing. She had me visualize walking farther up the path with the incline becoming a bit harder. There were a few obstacles in the way on the path, however if I looked down the path I could see that it was clear past them. She then talked about the items that I having coming up that are small obstacles on the way, with a clear path in the future. At this point my body felt very heavy and like I was sinking into the chair. I don’t think that I could have picked up my arms. However my legs felt like they were floating upward. My eyes did a lot of fluttering, which she said is very normal. After a bit she told me that we were going to walk back away from the river, but that I could come back any time I needed to. She said that she was going to count to 3 and I could open my eyes when ever I wanted to. We then talked about the experience and what I thought about it. I came in with an open mind, and I found it very interesting. I have one more appointment with here before surgery.