I almost died today....i think.

[jojo702]

So I have 6 more days till I leave back home and my nurse also said it was ok to walk outside the hotel but i did not know what to expect as I have walked to a 7-11 nearby and was ok. But I decided to go with my neighbor friend here at the same hotel in Thailand to Tesco supermarket and as we crossed a bridge, that's when I started to feel faint.

Not sure if it was the heat or if it was the walking too far or both but I shouldn't have tested mty limits and now i know not to walk far anymore.

I told my neighbor Samantha, that I started to feel like I was about to faint and was getting really dizzy and she was patient enough to have me sit and wait. As we walked closer to Tesco Supermarket, we got inside and there was a little bit of air conditioning but I still felt dizzy and I got scared and embarrassed that i might fall unconscious or blackout and I felt really bad that I was putting my friend through all this especially finally getting to go out to the store.

I felt like I was about to fall and felt weak and dizzy and felt tired. I don't know why I was feeling this way. I was able to walk over to 7-11 yesterday but I guess the walk today was too far for me.

Now I'm really curious why I felt this way and is this something that is permanent where I can't walk far anymore or stand much more than I used to? But I'm definitely sure of one thing, I have to ask the nurse tomorrow and find out exactly when I am able to walk far and all these questions lingering in my mind.

It was a really scary feeling and when Samantha finally got me a cab to come back to the hotel, I got up and walked feeling like I was gonna fall and thank goodness there was air conditioning in the cab as it made me feel better. Less than 30 minutes in the store, Samantha got me a wheel chair to sit on and pushed me around and grabbed whatever I can and jump in the cab and go home while she grabbed a few more things and come back to the hotel.

Today was terrible but I hope feeling this way when I make farther walks won't be a permanent health issue....it really does scare me...

MAybe it's just the fact that I not fully healed yet and when I leave next week sunday, I hope I won't feel like this while at the airport.

[Ms Grace]

I'd say you overdid it. You've had major surgery... small walks until you're properly healed OK?

[jojo702]

Yup, I learned my lesson. Im just scared now of how Im gonna make it back home without fainting at the airport lol

And how long will this last?

[Monkeymel]

Chettawut provides a note to supply a wheelchair at the airport. USE IT!

Feeling faint is normal. Just take your time. Some days will be better than others. And give yourself plenty of rest. How long will it last? Everyone is very different. So just be patient and relax. Make sure you have someone at home who can help you if for a few weeks you cant walk far.

Mobility will go up and down during the recovery as inflammation changes and reduces. By the end of week 5-6 you should be able to walk half an hour without too many issues. Enough for shopping.

Most importantly: do not judge yourself by others! Your body is not the same as theirs, your reaction to medicine is different. Allow yourself to recover at your pace and dont rush - that makes problems!

[jojo702]

Thank You Mel, I was beginning to panic and thought this would be a permanent health issue after srs for me. I will definitely use the wheel chair and take full advantage of it as I am not capable of walking far in the airport just yet. Hopefully after 3-4 months i am fully capable of walking farther and doing my routine.

What about hormones? I know the nurses said I am able to take them when i get home but when did you start taking yours again?

[Monkeymel]

I restarted hormones once home, 3.5 weeks post op. I did not want to risk anything with flying... Although others felt confident in starting before leaving bangkok. In your case i would not suggest it as your recent fainting has proven.

The biggest impact restarting - my anxiety levels went way up...  Never had it before. Although whether hormones were the reason or just dealing with post op life alone... Who knows. Not worrying about it.

Just make sure your local doctor and gyocologist are aware of the procedures undertaken, and can provide support if you have issues in the first few months. Having a gyno who is transgender (ftm) and has dealt with many post op patients is really beneficial. Otherwise ask Chettawut if he would be willing to talk with your gyno if you have questions.

I started a thread in "what to expect at home" in the post op section. It might sound scary but it is important to understand what can happen so that you are prepared. And always get a medical opinion for anything unusual. It is better to ask too many questions in the first months than let something run away... Until too late.

As to my healing - very well. Now what 15 weeks post op? Inflammation has gone down a lot, no pain to dilate to chet #4 (soul source #2) and life progresses... Back to elliptical training and low level ballet this week.

[Myarkstir]

I don't think your surgeon will even allow it dear 

[Monkeymel]

@hanazono

Please consider how to take more time off. You may be lucky that recovery to being mobile is fairly fast. Or not.

You will need 3 days before surgery to follow the dietary purge. One day of surgery. Four days in the clinic. Another four days until packing and catheter is removed. That is your two weeks. You will need at least another week to get enough strength to be allowed to walk around the hotel / outside - And that is very speedy recovery which Donna and I were lucky to have (we were very physically fit and lucky).

If your job is sitting at a desk then you will be uncomfortable for a long time. I was only able to sit at a desk without cushions for office work at about week 9 post op. Yes i could sit on planes and trains, but always on one bum cheek with cushions.

If you are doing any form Of lifting you will probably need to wait until week 7 post op. Yes i could lift some things and do vacuuming at week 5... But i was not comfortable doing it regularly.

SRS is not only major surgery, it also effects the muscles which stabilise the body and spine during all daily  activities. Be good to yourself and allow those muscles, and tissues to recover well.

[Jenna Marie]

I agree with everyone else, you just overdid it, nowhere near dying. Blood loss plus healing = less energy your body can spare for anything else, and sometimes (especially in the early days) the exhaustion can just hit you like a truck. Basically, it sounds like you almost fainted from exhaustion. You'll be fine if you take it easy, and you'll get better at sensing your body's needs.

As for how long to take off, I went back to work at 4 weeks post-op and still could have used one more week... I was mobile and functional, but still tired SO easily. It actually wasn't an issue of pain (I'd stopped needing even OTC painkillers by a week later) or capability (I could do anything I needed to) as that I only had so much energy, and once it was gone I badly needed to lie down/rest rather than be sitting up in an office trying to look busy.

[jojo702]

I truly thank everyone for their advice as now I'm fully aware of my capabilities and limits. I'm hoping to get back home safely and hope I get pushed around in a wheel chair at every stop till I reach my airport. I guess i will have to recover some more at home.

@Hanazono, I would advise more than 2 weeks. Trust me, you are putting your life in danger. The feeling I have felt yesterday after walking far, was just not my cup of tea, I got extremely dizzy and everything just started spinning. I sat on the floor and everything was still spinning and when I finally got on the wheel chair, I felt like I needed to go to sleep because i felt somehow drained and stired. I didn't feel like opening my eyes cause everything was spinning still. Once I got back to my hotel, I turned on the A/C, scuttled into bed and felt tired all around but the dizziness subsided once I got back to my room.

I guess I wasn't ready fr long walks yet. I got really paranoid and when below got sweaty, I got even more paranoid and thought i was extremely bleeding down there or may have ruptured a stitch but everything was fine when i got to my hotel, nothing was bleeding and it was just sweat.

But yes, treat yourself like a lazy person because all you'll be doing in the few months ahead after surgery is resting and laying in bed, eating, taking meds, and ->-bleeped-<-ting lol

[PinkCloud]

By the end of week 5-6 you should be able to walk half an hour without too many issues.

Wow... I walked for an hour 7 days after surgery. I walked half an hour at the hospital at day 3. Goes to show that everyone is different. But I must admit that I am addicted to hiking, I walk a lot. Never owned a car, so I am used to walking great distances.

My advice: EAT, eat a lot. Your body needs more food than usual. Your body is running a marathon right now, even when you sit or lie down. It takes very much energy to heal. I took some extra protein, fat, vitamin C and lots of veggies and water. If you plan to walk, take some sugary food to boost your glucose levels, one of the main reasons of fainting is low blood sugar. I kept a pack of dextro energy  (dextrose) with me at all times.

[jojo702]

Thanks pinkcloud, I figured that was the answer when I was researching yesterday about why I was dizzy. I have "one a day vitamins for women" that I take daily. Still take my antibiotics, bought chocolate, apples, cereal, and milk, fanta soda on the side and been eating the breakfast that comes with the hotel. Hope that will help me.

[PinkCloud]

I lost 2KG / 4.4 pounds in recovery from surgery in one week. I stood on the weight scale before and after. It shows how much energy the body really needs. It is major surgery and all your energy goes to healing. And that takes either food or body fat/muscle.

[jojo702]

Lol Hanazono it's totally fine. Hijack if u want. Just want everyone to be able to give advice so we all can have a smooth recovery or process for surgery or anything related.

[calico]

yea definitely overdid it, like everyone here is mentioning. I did it to but at the motel, I went to see one of the other girls there at the time and when I came back they were cleaning my room, so I decided to go to the dining lobby and eat a bite, I was fine for that as well as a spot of tea, but when I went to get up.... oh boy, someone was there that helped ,and I felt so bad that I was so dumb to stay out and up so long, yea needless to say I was wheel chaired up to my room and had a lecture from sri and the doc, and well I wasn't allowed out of my room for a few more days. so yea you gotta to take it easy on yourself. another instance which was just recent I was in a hospital for a lil over 2 weeks and well the day after I had returned home I wanted to take a shower, as all I was getting was bed baths, and well after 5 minutes in the shower I woke up in the bathroom floor glad a was in the shower with my bf at the time , and the hospital visit was a non surgical trip so ... your body can be stressed from more than just the surgery, listen to it, and if you aren't sure how take some time to become perceptive of it.

Hanazono -- 2 weeks? isn't going to happen, I had the minimum time frame which was 24 days, and even though I had planned on going back to work in 28 day total, well my leave was extended to 8 weeks and only at 7 week I felt only remotely like my old self, your either going to have to remit for extra time or make a decision which is more important right now, your job or surgery.

[calico]

Well than I probably would go for the surgery, When I scheduled my surgery, I made sure to have 3 months rent, money for food, food for my cat, and litter, as well as utilities. If I didn't have any of that covered, I would have rescheduled. Its just that simple, you wont be able to work at 2 weeks period, it unrealistic to even think you would. At 2 weeks, your still very much bleeding, and not even close to being healed together, for that fact being on a plane can make you stitch's rip and well, than your internals will be all over the seat and plane and well you wont be worrying about dependents who need feeding, cause you will more than likely be dead.
than there is the chance you do make it back ok... well work is going to be a blast, what with dilating 3 to 4  times a day at an hour each time.

Don't take this response as being mean or cold, just honest and trying to help you make the right choice. nobody on this forum wants to read about major post-op complications because you didn't give the post after surgery enough time or your body enough time to heal. 

[Monkeymel]

unfortunately I have dependants who need feeding

Please please please listen to the advice given. We are not trying to scare you. We are trying to give you the best sound advice possible - but if you really want to risk your life, risk burnout, risk nervous breakdown, risk major complications and subsequent hospitalisetion at your dependencies expense then it is your decision.

[jojo702]

I agree, your life is on the line and I don't need to hear that someone just recently died after surgery and now that I think of it. When everything was spinning and I was extremely dizzy, my heart rate went balistic. I don't know if I was in anxiety or dying but it was a feeling that I never want to experience again. I felt sick to my stomach and i thought i would have a stroke or something but it surely wasn't a great feeling.

My life flashed before my eyes and it felt like dying. I know people say, you're not gonna die, you'll most likely just blackout or faint. Well to me, I thought and felt like I was gonna die. Since then I've been afraid to go walking far and I walk short trips to like next door or three doors away from my hotel room just to test myself each day.

Even when i get home, I told my fiance that he needs to buy me tons of groceries that has proteins and nutrition and dextrose and I need to rest a lot and that I can't stand long or go walking far and he understands and will make it a strict rule when i get home. Not to mention, I will be committing my time dilating for the next 2 years. Already on dilator 1 and 2 and next week need to start on dilator 3. Ugh it still scares the crap out of me lol.

But yes, take really good care of yourself, I thought I could do it and I felt like I had the energy and it felt like it but it will start coming at you and you're not gonna like it. You'll be very fragile for the first month. I reall do regret it and I feel just as dumb for thinking i was super human and got healed really fast and that things we're great.

Another thing Ms Sri told me was that us asians heal a bit more slower than caucasian people especially if we're over 35 and older. I really don't want to die and I want to be able to utilize my pussy with my fiance and do a lot more things in life before i hit the grave....

[jojo702]

wow that sounds scary indeed. I'll try and see if I can really push my time out to the max...

Yes, try and convince your job if they can give you more time since this is a major surgery. You will be very fragile, I kid you not from my experience. I had a lot fo convincing to do before i left for surgery. I told my superiors if i could take 2 months off because I have a major surgery that will require me to rest a lot and wo't be able to do any strenuous activity or stand up very long or use much energy and I also spoke with my physician and also Dr Chettawut  to provide a letter for me to present to my job and so they did and well I was granted 2 months recovery time medical leave.

[Allyda]

I'll be having my SRS soon and I've already set aside a minimum of 3 months for post-op recovery. Plus, I have a friend of mine staying with me who will be taking care of, and helping me both pre and post op. I know this is major surgery and that it takes time to recover.

To the OP you need more time as 2 weeks is not enough time to recover well enough to go back to work without aggravating complications. Please consider making more time for yourself. Also, are you alone or do you have someone staying with you who can help you?

Best wishes to you for a healthy speedy recovery.

Ally