MVD Diary - Richard Donnelly
Surgery performed by: Drs. Kassam and Horowitz
Surgical Location: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Surgery Date: April 4, 2001
Diary prepared by: Richard Donnelly
Date diary finalized: April, 2001
Some random observations and opinions follow:
1. Be prepared for a full day of pre-op tests, none of which are
painful, although I did get a black eye as a result of the EMG test.
Without exception, all who worked on me were helpful, gentle, gave full
explanations of what was going on and why, and answered all my questions
- even the dumb ones.
2. Diane and I were very pleased with our stay at the Neville Family
House - clean, quiet, parking on the premises, for 30 bucks a night for
two. Nice kitchen for everyone's use. We came in on a Monday. I
stayed there Monday & Tuesday and returned on Saturday morning. We left
on Wednesday the 11th after my stitches were removed by Lois Burkhart
who was also very helpful in explaining post-op restrictions, etc.
3. On the day of the procedure, we had to be at the hospital at 0530.
Because there were no shuttles operating from the Family House that
early, Hospital Security sent a car over to pick us up - a nice touch.
4. I didn't actually go into the operating suite until about 0800, so
there were some periods of time when I was basically alone with my
thoughts and I must say that I had a couple of anxiety spikes during
that time. However, because I had previously gathered a lot of
information from the old COF support group and this one, there were no
surprises while waiting to go in. Also, I must say that the power of
prayer and positive thoughts really worked for me.
5. Because UPMC is a teaching hospital, be prepared for all kinds of
folks asking you repetitive questions and performing group gropes before
and after the operation. And there are interns working on you, but
always supervised by a very senior doctor. Not to worry.
6. Obviously, you haven't a clue about the passage of time, etc once you
go under. I believe I was semi-lucid about 1230 or so. Awoke with very
little pain (headache and neck stiffness, and some discomfort around the
incision area). I could not focus very well and had double vision for
about 36 hours - a condition that gradually and continually improved
with time. I had minor nausea and some dizziness but nothing to write
home about. I think that because the spasms had stopped immediately,
this overshadowed everything else - I was just ecstatic about the result
and sharing it with my wife that everything else just paled into
insignificance. And I believe that even if there were only a marginal
improvement, I would still have the same attitude.
7. Contrary to the experience of others in our group, I didn't want
anything more than Jello and crackers for 36 hours or so.
8. I was very impressed with the care in the Recovery Room and in
Intensive Care. It was superb. As is undoubtedly the case at most
hospitals, as I moved along the medical care chain into a regular room,
quality and efficiency dropped somewhat, particularly during hospital
shift changes. Diane and I found that we had to get a little persistent
to get what we needed.
9. So, at this writing it's been 16 days since the procedure. I have a
little stiffness in the neck, occasional minor headache and a little
dizziness or lightheadedness if I turn my head quickly. I feel better
if I take a nap or two, or at least stretch out a couple times a day. A
few days ago I noticed some hearing distortion in the ear opposite the
spasm side. It went away after about 3 days. I still have tinnitus at
the same level as before the operation - I didn't particularly expect
any change in that. I have some fullness in both ears but not enough to
take an antihistamine. I only used 5 of the 20 pain pills that were
prescribed and I'm not even taking any Tylenol at this point. I've been
carefully following the post-op restrictions. I haven't noticed any
other events like strange tastes or smells. I'm so grateful and
thankful that with God's grace and the excellent work of Drs. Kassam &
Horowitz and their superb team,I seem to be having a very predictable
recovery. And my very sincere and heartfelt thanks to members of this
group who helped me get through this interesting and challenging time.
I would be delighted to chat with anyone separately by email. I can be reached at
ColdWarRelic@verizon.net.
Permission granted the HFSA to post MVD Diary on website.
Richard Donnelly, December 05, 2002
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