My SRS with Dr. Rumer

[Rachel]

Congratulations.

It feels so good to have that stuff out, I am very happy for you.

[Barb99]

Wednesday Dec. 7, Day 8 post op. (Back Home)

I arrived home last night about 8pm after a long day of travel.
I was a bit worried about my dilation schedule. My last dilation was at 8am at the recovery center, I wasn't able to do another until I got home at 9pm. I was happily surprised to find everything was the same as it was in the morning.
I resumed my 4 times per day schedule this morning.

The dilator set I was given is a three piece set. The small one measures 1.03 inches (26.2mm) in diameter, the medium one is 1.2 inches (30.8mm) and the large is 1.35 inches (34.4mm). All of them measure 5.5" (140mm) from the end to the last dot. There is a 12mm spacing between the dots.

My dilation schedule is 4 times per day with 10 minutes on the medium size and 10 minutes on the large size. Going by the dots I have 5" of depth when using the medium and 4.5" on the large. As a male I was a bit on the small side so I am happy with what I'm seeing here.

Had a busy day this morning. Had to pick up a refill for the pain pills and then go get my nails done. (I felt naked without my nails)
I discovered last night that I'm not comfortable with only sheer curtains protecting the view into my bedroom while dilating. So I stopped at my local Lowes and picked up a set of blinds for the bedroom.

I was gone about 2.5 hours and it pretty much wore me out so I ate lunch and took a nap.
I'm up now and ready to go hang the blinds, then probably another nap!

[Barb99]

Just reviewing my experience at Dr. Rumer's recovery center. Here are some of my thoughts.

This is what I took with me and what became of it.
6 pack of 8oz bottles of apple juice. **(Could have done with half of this.)
24oz bottle of chicken broth. **(Very tasty on the liquid diet day)
2, 10oz bottles of Magnesium Citrate. **(Required)
4 packages of crystal light water flavoring. **(2 packages would have been ok.)
1 roll of paper towels. **(Came in very handy)
1 package of bed pads. **(Only used about 4 out of the package)
1 package of depends adult diapers. **(You will need most of the package)
1 package of panty liners. **(Never used any. The diapers are all you need)
2 packages of feminine wipes. **(One package was more than enough)
Small travel bottles of shampoo, conditioner and moisturizer. **(Small bottles is plenty. You can't take a shower until the day you go home)
Small bottle of anti-bacterial soap. **(Not needed. There was a good supply there.)
1 bar of soap. **(Not needed. There was a good supply there.)
Razor and shave butter. **(A must have if you haven't completed electrolysis)
Large soft very warm bath robe **(An absolute MUST have at this time of year. They keep the place on the cool side)
5 pajama tops and bottoms. **(Used 4 tops and one of the bottoms.)
Slippers **(An absolute MUST have at this time of year. They keep the place on the cool side)
Extra pillow **(used this between my legs when sleeping and just laying around. Helps ease the pain)
Donut cushion. **(What can I say. You NEED this. Don't let it out of your site!)
2 tops, 1 skirt and 1 pair of leggings. **(Used one long top and a pair of loose fitting leggings for the trip home)

Might want to bring one of those portable camping chairs as there is nothing to sit on except the Futon and bed.

There are many good restaurants in the area and most of them deliver.

I was very happy with Dr. Rumer's recovery center. You are pretty much on your own but they do check in on you every day and if you have a problem they are right downstairs.

Early on my daughter's work responsibilities increased and she was not sure she was going to be able to make the trip. I thought of going it alone. That would have been a very bad idea. You cannot do this alone. In fact if I had it to do over I would have had her meet me at the hospital on discharge day and help me get to the recovery center.

[Rachel]

I am glad you got home safely.

[Barb99]

Since I got home dilation with the large dilator is bordering on painful so I changed my procedure to 15 min on the medium and 5 min on the large. I'm still getting the same depth as I did originally. it's just not very comfortable with the large one.

I talked to the doctor this morning and she said there is no problem with the 15/5 minute routine and I should expect it to get easier as I go. She also said I should expect the swelling to start going down in another week which should also help.

Doctor Rumer's office seems to be good at getting back to me about post-op care. They called back within 15 min.

[Barb99]

Started my E injections back up this morning. Life is good again!

I also switched from diapers to panty liners this morning. The only discharge I've seen for the last couple of days is from the lube for dilation.

[Rachel]

You are doing wonderful

[Cure Bunny]

Hello Charley Ann,

I am glad to hear that things are going forward and life is great again.

Keep flying!


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[Barb99]

Surgery Costs
Looks like my final cost numbers are in.

These are all out of pocket costs.
Insurance paid for most of the pre-surgery testing but I had a large deductible on the CT scan.
Insurance paid for my medications outside of the hospital.

Doctor's fees (Includes $3500 for Tracheal Reduction)      $20,000.00
Hospital Fees                                     $6020.00
Medications                     $43.00
Lodging (One night in a hotel)               $195.20
Pre-Surgery testing                  $1225.00
Pre-Surgery Supplies                  $50.00
Post-Surgery Supplies (So far)               $114.00
Food during recovery                  $445.00
Transportation (First class Air, Limos, Taxi for 2 people)         $2490.00
Total                        $30,582.00

6 – 8 weeks of lost wages. (Fill in your number)         ??

[Cure Bunny]

Goodness,
I am so grateful that most of Canada pays for most of this.

I wish more places were enlightened to take this burden away from people.

Also I wish your job had sick pay.


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[Barb99]

3 weeks post-op

I've had a small area of skin just above the vagina turn white about a week ago and now it has expanded to fill the entire area between the urethra and vagina. I snapped a picture and sent it to Dr. Rumer she said that is normal and that tissue will slough off and regenerate as new tissue. She said it looks like I am healing very well.

I also had some bleeding after dilation yesterday morning, she said that was normal and not to worry as long as it does not happen every time. (with 88 dilations now, it's only happened twice, and stopped within a couple of minutes.)

It seems like the soreness is becoming a little more intense. I was told that is also normal. As the numbness wears off down there I will feel a little more pain. Yes, the numbness is wearing off and the swelling is going down. To help with the soreness she called in another prescription for more pain meds.

I discovered last night that more than an hour of sitting is still too much! I went to my support group meeting. It is a 25 minute drive each way and a little over an hour of sitting at the meeting. By the time I got home I needed those pain pills!

[Barb99]

I think I had a couple of stitches come out this morning but it happened in the shower and I could not grab them before they went down the drain.

Is this about the time that they start coming out?

[Dena]

Normally the stitches start coming apart at 6-8 weeks depending on how much stress is placed on them. It's possible for the surgeon to put stitches in that last longer but they only do so if there is a special reason for them to last longer.

[Jenna Marie]

Most surgeons use dissolvable sutures at this point, so you may not ever see any (and I was told by Brassard that they start to dissolve around the 1-week mark but a few might linger to 2 or 3 weeks). The one close friend I have who went to Rumer did get dissolvable sutures, but that was a few years ago now; if you have any questions, you should ask the surgeon directly.

[Barb99]

4 weeks post op

Just had my 4 week check up with Doctor Rumer's office. Everything looks good and is healing up nicely.
I did e-mail in a picture that pointed out a spot just below the vagina that is very sensitive and sore. The doctor says it looks like a small tear in the skin, probably from stretching during dilation. She gave me clearance to treat it with lidocaine and Neosporin ointment.
Other than that one spot I'm feeling pretty good.
The largest dilator now goes in to the same depth as the smaller one and is only slightly uncomfortable.

Next week I get to reduce my dilation schedule to 3 times a day! I have become very tired of 4 times a day, my whole life revolves around that schedule and everything has to fit into those 6 hour blocks of time. I believe that schedule has caused some mild post op depression. I am very much looking forward to going to bed at my normal time, sleeping 7 hours and having a somewhat normal day.

The doctor has cleared me to resume normal activity, exercise and lifting. She is sending me a release return to work on Jan. 16th. I've also been cleared to start washing and wiping the entire surgical area. She still wants me to take showers only, no baths for another 2 weeks or so.

Overall I'm feeling very good. My energy level has returned to normal, I've gone from taking several naps a day (like every 3-4 hours) to just one after lunch and I can skip that one if I have things to do.

Life is beginning to return to normal!

[Barb99]

Six weeks post op.

I'm felling pretty good. I used the lidocaine and Neosporin ointment for one week and that cleared up the torn skin.

I still have some mild soreness, but I'm off the pain pills (I even have some left over) and am starting to sit without my donut.

I return to work next week and expect to put in full days without much of a problem. I talked to management about taking a long lunch to go home and do my mid-day dilation. Since that will only last about 6 more weeks they don't have any problem with it.

Dilation has become much easier. The largest is not really uncomfortable anymore and I am now doing half my dilation time with it. I expect to switch to just the large one in the next two weeks.

The swelling has gone down considerably. I still have a small patch of white skin just above the vagina that needs to shed, but everything else is looking pink and healthy. Even the incisions are starting to fade away to nothing.

[Barb99]

Eight weeks post op.

On 1/24 I was 8 weeks post op and I've been back to work for 2 weeks now.
Still sore when trying to sit for the whole day, so work got me a Varidesk so I can switch between sitting and standing. Those things are really pretty nice, wish I had gotten one long ago.

Right after the 8 week mark I developed a small amount of granulation just above the vaginal entrance. Sent a picture to Dr. Rumer, she has me treating it once a day with a 50/50 mixture of peroxide and water applied with a swab. She wants to see another picture in a week. After 2 days it looks like it is subsiding a bit so I think the peroxide is working.

Dilation is going well. I am now using the largest dilator for 15 minutes of each 20 minute session. I'm only about 10 minutes from work so they are letting me take a long lunch and go home for my midday session. It is a bit of a drag going home every day but it only lasts until the end of February and then I go to a twice a day schedule.

[Cure Bunny]

Sounds like you are doing well.
Stay shiny


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[Susan]

What is charged in the U.S. is obscene, you will understand more when I post my own account of my surgery soon.

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[Cure Bunny]

What is charged in the U.S. is obscene, you will understand more when I post my own account of my surgery soon.

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I look forward to reading this.


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