Caroline's Posts

The past few days have been rough. I had a muscle spasm in my neck/shoulder/back area. The pain was so bad that I had to go to my primary care doctor. He prescribed me muscle relaxers and told me to go home and rest. I was relieved when the doctors at u of m told me it's very common to have muscle spasms after this surgery. Between my chest and my neck I was in excruciating pain. The muscle relaxers did help but wow did I feel loopy taking that and pain killers! My aunt Gretchen came to the rescue! She brought over neck pillows, neck warmers, back massagers, heat patches, and biofreeze. This helped so much! Now I am pretty much back to normal and just a little bit sore. I think I would've gone crazy without her help! Yesterday the nurse came to my house and was concerned about my incision and low blood pressure. She called u of m and they wanted me to come in. My mom and I drove out there and the doctor said I was fine. She made a change in my medication because of my low blood pressure, and said my incision looked awesome. This was great news!! The doctor let me listen to my heart which was SO COOL! My heart heart now sounds like a regular heart beat without the "swooosh" sound. I was so excited about this :) Since my neck is better I feel like it's time to start cutting down on my pain medication. It makes me nervous taking so much, especially with all the side effects I'm having. I have been sweating a lot at night, twitching at night, having crazy nightmares, and I am very forgetful. I find myself forgetting what I did five minutes before! I talked to the doctor yesterday and she said it is okay to start taking less pain medication. I was happy she said that because I can't stand how it makes me feel. So today I am starting to back off and so far so good! I will write more soon! Thank you for your love, prayers, and support! Caroline

Today is Monday, July 22nd and I have been home for three days now! Yipppeee! The staff at U of M hospital were absolutely amazing and made me feel very comfortable and at home. Although they were great, I am so happy to be home! I'm feeling much more comfortable and able to manage my pain better in my own home. I want to thank everyone who came to visit me in the hospital and at home, who texted and called to make sure I was okay, and for all the generous cards and gifts that were sent to me (thank you cards will be coming soon! Sorry it's been a little hectic around here) ! A special shout out to my mother who has gone above and beyond to make me feel comfortable, and my dad, Aunt Di, and Chris who spent the night with me in the hospital to make sure I was okay. Having you there reassured me that I was taken care of. :) Since I've been home my pain has been much more manageable. Yesterday, some of my aunt's, uncles, cousins, and my grandma came to my house for a visit. It was great having them here and having some good laughs. My family always knows how to cheer me up! My best friend Mary is about to be here so it's time for me to get out of my jammies! Hehe! I'll write more later! Love you all and thank you for your support! Caroline :)