As promised, here is a longer account of my surgery with Dr. Dugi. I went in on Monday, October 8th at 7 AM. Got my IV started and my partners kissed and was then wheeled back to surgery. I was out for almost 8 hours; he really takes his time with surgery, which I think shows in how well done my incisions are and how tiny the stitches appear to be. After I woke up in post-op I was really, really out of it and have little memory except for a really painful moment when a nurse mistook one of my drains (leading under the skin of my abdomen and held in place by a stitch) got a monitor or something and attempted to YANK it out. This was extremely painful and caused me to scream and bleed a bit, but apparently it didn't do any lasting harm and when the doctor examined it later he said it appeared to still be in place. This was one of the only two things I was unhappy with during my visit. Anyway, after this I was sent to my private room and my husband and other male partner came to visit. I was offered dinner and ordered some soft food, but I was so medicated I was unable to eat and had no appetite anyway. My partner did manage to feed me a few spoonfuls of mashed potato, but I was sick soon after so I stopped trying. I fell asleep every other minute or so and wasn't really capable of much interaction.
When I woke up the next day I was much more myself, though I continued to doze off regularly. I was on a pain pump, where I could press a button and get Dilaudid every few minutes, and I tried to use it as often as I could. This kept the pain under control, but I got occasional twinges from the catheter. I tried to eat breakfast but unfortunately got sick again and ate little the rest of the day but ice cream and yogurt ( I found I could only tolerate soft, sweet stuff.) I was given oral laxatives and daily shots of blood thinning medication every day of my hospital stay, and I also had on anti embolism stockings. Dr. Dugi and some residents came to see me, and he told me all went well. I asked if I could get out of bed, as I had low depth surgery and no skin graft, and he said that would be fine as long as I kept it to a minimum and sat in a comfortable chair by the bed. However, after he had gone, I asked the nursing staff for help getting up and they told me I had to stay in bed and that the doctor had only given permission for me to sit on a toilet chair if I needed a bowel movement. This did not line up with what he told me, but they insisted that was the instructions he had given so I was not allowed to get up after all. By the next day I was very, very sore from being on forced bed rest and felt that I was getting worse in terms of pain. When Dr. Dugi returned the next day I told him I had not been allowed to get out of bed, and he seemed surprised and told me that I could have done so the day before. Long story short, I think there was a miscommunication somewhere and the nurse in charge had misinterpreted his instructions that I be allowed to sit in a chair by the bed as "she can only get up to use the portable toilet." Not the end of the world, but I do think I would have been more comfortable had I been allowed to get up when I asked. That was the only other thing, besides the drain accident, that was less than stellar. Other than that the nursing care was top notch, and I saw Dr. Dugi or at least a few residents every day.
On the third day I was switched to oral pain meds and was allowed to get out of bed, and I started feeling better though I still struggled with nausea. I had a lot of visitors (I just live 5 minutes from the hospital) and was well enough that I was very bored being stuck inside. On Thursday, my fourth day in hospital, the catheter was removed and I was allowed to go home after I had a bowel movement and could urinate. After all the laxatives my tummy was actually pretty upset, so I was able to go go to the bathroom again, and again, and again (in fact I am still feeling them now.) Urination was, and remains, tricky and a big chore due to swelling. I got my first look at my new genitals, and though swollen I was impressed and how "right" they looked and felt. Finally, I was released from hospital and driven the short distance home. I was given a prescription for oral pain meds, which I have been making liberal use of, and have tried to stay in bed except for visits to the toilet and my twice daily shower to clean off.
I will say this: this is major surgery, even with the "minimal depth" I had done (which actually gave me about 1.5 to 2 inches of depth, as I discovered this morning.) I dread trips to the toilet because urination is difficult (due to swelling) and very messy. I often have to shift position several times to feel like I totally emptied my bladder. Even with powerful narcotic pain meds I am still in a fair amount of pain, enough that sleeping is impacted. I am very tired and randomly fall asleep. I'm really glad I don't have to dilate because I cannot imagine adding that on to what is already a complicated post of regimen. I've had numerous gender surgeries including FFS and my breasts done twice, but this is by far the most painful and the most difficult to recover from. Even so, I am extremely pleased with my decision and with Dr. Dugi in particular. As the swelling goes down I get more and more of an appreciation for the work he did, and I think my healed result is going to look amazing. I already have twinges of sensation in my new clitoral area, so I feel confident I'll be healed up and having orgasms again just as soon as I'm able to. OHSU was great, except for the two minor issues I mentioned, and I feel very lucky that I got to have surgery close to home instead of having to travel elsewhere.
