the big day
I was more excited than nervous until the actual day of the surgery,
which took place at 1:30 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon at a surgical center
close to where I live. I did feel that everything had been explained to
me so I felt as comfortable as I could under the circumstances. The center
was nice and clean and everyone there was very friendly. I changed into
a gown and the nurses ran my IV line. Dr. Stroup and I talked and then
he used a blue pen like a magic marker to define the incision lines and
the positioning of the implants.
I walked into the surgical suite and the anesthesiologist explained
what they would be doing. Dr. Stroup, an Advanced Concepts nurse and another
nurse were there also. They all stood around me to give me support. I
was out like a light soon after I was given the general anesthesia and
didn't feel a thing during the two-hour procedure.
I woke up in a quiet room where the nurses were getting me situated
for recovery. I remember falling asleep on and off while they monitored
me. 
When I became a little more alert, one of the nurses walked me over
to a reclining chair in the recovery area. During the 90 minutes I was
there, they gave me some juice and went over my home care instructions.
When I was getting dressed, I looked down and noticed that I was taped
across my chest and that I had drainage tubes. I immediately thought the
tubes looked a little like hand grenades so that's what I started calling
them. The tape and the 'hand grenades' weren't painful, just a bit awkward.
