And on the Third Day...

...There were a lot fewer tubes. 


And, on the third day, I awoke for real. And when I finally really, really woke up, I decided to announce my presence by crying. I geared up for the big one. I did the wind up, the coiling up of my entire body and screwing up of my jaw and eyes to prepare for my first major outburst in days. And ... nothing came out! That was worse than my bout with laryngitis (scroll down to the video). And this was not going to work.

And there were my parents staring back at me. But they didn't do anything to ease my suffering. Thanks, guys!

Here is how all of this transpired. And allow me to start by saying that the previous post should've been posted yesterday, but my parents have not been reliable scribes, citing things like exhaustion. So anyway, now onto day 3 where much has occurred and a lot of progress has been made. The day began with the good news that I passed the evening in peace and stability. That meant that they would remove my breathing tube today. We were all ready, the sedation was stopped and I started to stir. And then - blood bubbled up from my mouth! What was it and from whence did it come? Sedation went back on. Waiting commenced yet again. An Ears/Nose/Throat specialist came to check me out. Naturally, when he arrived, there was no bleeding. The whole process was delayed by a couple of hours. Nevertheless, the tube was extubated, as they say, a couple of hours later and my cute face revealed yet again to the world. 

Gone was the white tape covering half my face to hold in the breathing and feeding tubes. Gone were the tubes. Gone also was the strip across my forehead, and we never had any idea what that was for. Replacing this for awhile was a mask that also helped me breathe. And now, I have a small and unassuming translucent O2 tube in both nostrils. I am almost myself again. 

Some liquid is still in my lungs, which are a bit weak, thus hampering my crying. But as I quickly realized this, I coughed up some phlegm and regained a bit of my voice back. 


Later today, in order to help my lungs open up a bit, my surgeon decided to remove the tube stuck up my side that was allowing excess blood from the surgery to drain out. He also took out a few wires that were somehow woven into my heart and sticking out from my tummy. So now I am very much less weighted down by tubes and wires. 


I still smell a bit like rubber and plastic from all the tape and tubes attached to me. Mommy said if I were a woman I'd appreciate the free waxing that came from getting all this tape extracted from my body. But in the meantime, pray for my continued stability and rapid improvement!

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