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Terd's surgery blog
http://removerowdy.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=4918		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Sat Jul 20, 2013 7:11 pm ]
Post subject:  Terd's surgery blog
With having slept with many of you here, everyone knows I was a snorer. Aside from the over-the-top noises I would make, there was a more serious underlying problem. I had OSA (obstuctive sleep apnea) which after having a few sleep studies meant I stopped breathing in my sleep to the tune of 70 times per hour. That basically means I never get into deep REM sleep which translates to no rest at all. While everyone else rests at night, my heart and pulse would race a mile minute as my body would stop breathing and then after it couldn't take it any longer, would subconsciously jolt itself awake in order to get me breathing again. I never fully wake up, I just drift in and out of REM. Welp, I'm two days post UP3 surgery. Google can explain it much better than I can. click here for UP3

Think of it as roto-rooter for your throat. Then think of the worst pain then you have ever felt then multiply it by 15.6 or so. I basically had my tonsils removed, my uvula cut back and my tongue secured in place to keep it from collapsing back into my throat. I also had my turbinates removed which will also help me breath through my nose better. I had to stay in the hospital overnight for them to monitor me to make sure I didn't die of internal bleeding. I had a constant drip of demoral to help with the pain but it didn't help much. Now I'm on liquid hydrocodone but swallowing anything is painful. I can't eat anything, nor do I want to, so my diet for the next 10-14 days or so will consist of popsicles at first but I hope to be able to move to apple sauce and room temperature mash potatoes. The doc says I can expect to lose 15 to 20 pounds. It's a nice benefit but more importantly, I'm less likely to develop any pulmonary disease down the road and my chances of heart attack have been greatly reduced. Thanks to all who have been checking up on me.
Author:  jim jack [ Sat Jul 20, 2013 10:43 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Stay hard, Ted.

Seriously, glad you took this step. Keep us updated.
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Sat Jul 20, 2013 11:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
So dunch this week?
Author:  Trained Goucho [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 7:58 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Tit Whistle wrote:
So dunch this week?


We could dunch on delicious gelato from Paciugo. I had some gelato from there last Saturday night after dinner. Have you ever had gelato? It is just like ice cream or yogurt except different. It is invigorating and delicious. It cleanses the palate. It is Italian. It would be very soothing for a throat that is raw and sore. You can get flavors that are fruity or you can get flavors that are more ice creamy like mint chocolate chip, or amaretto, or chocolate chip cookie dough. They serve it in little cups with little spoons. It is easy to pretend like you are a giant with big giant hands when you eat it. I got a cup with only 3 flavors. The three flavors I chose were strawberry something or other, rocky road, and wedding cake. It was yummy. Real yummy. The key IMO, is to not get too many flavors or too many chocolate themed flavors or they all taste the same. I almost got chocolate banana. I also considered toasted coconut.
gelato :cheer2:
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 8:33 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
I tried some Target brand gelato from Target not long ago. It was Black Cherry and delicious. I like the smooth, creamy texture. More gelato stores would be nice. Right now, there's a yogurt shop in every plaza in Texas. I like yogurt but I think I would enjoy gelato more. They also had Amaretto.
Author:  Sweet Greggo [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 9:07 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
There's a gelato place in Euless across the street from the high school that I enjoy very much. Sorry about your air hole, Ted. I guess no deep throating for a couple of weeks then? Glad you're going to live longer.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 9:39 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Right now I'm doing everything I can to swallow a small piece of melted popsicle. Gelato sounds good but it might be too thick for me and the doc says no dairy to keep from mucus buildup. I do like some froyo though with chunks of Heath in it. I'm a fan of the toffee blizzard/shake/frosty.
Author:  Trained Goucho [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 9:43 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Man, that sounds sucky. how's the breath? I'm guessing French style kissing is on hiatus.
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 9:58 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Ted, I was relating your plight to cameltoe, who has also suffered sleep apnea and uses some machine to help him breathe at night. He says he has it as bad as you did, but he wants nothing to do with the surgery. Did you ever try the machine yourself or did you go straight to the painful yet final remedy?
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 9:59 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
I've been drinking nothing but gatorade and apple juice since I got home. I say drinking but it's really me trying my hardest to fight through the pain and force a swallow down the throat. I moved a wet toothbrush around my mouth yesterday but I didn't do much good. The wife says she has come back to check on me a couple of times while I slept and she was amazed at the lack of sound I was making. For those that can remember, Spam and I had snore off the last time we went camping so I've been struggling with this thing for years. I've documented my experience at the Snoring Center with the Pillar procedure and that was a waste of time and money. So if anyone suffers from OSA and you simply can't tollerate the CPAP, I would say the pain you go through now will be worth it in the long run. Hopefully now I won't be the first to pass out at family gatherings and grandma won't write on my face.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 10:14 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Tit Whistle wrote:
Ted, I was relating your plight to cameltoe, who has also suffered sleep apnea and uses some machine to help him breathe at night. He says he has it as bad as you did, but he wants nothing to do with the surgery. Did you ever try the machine yourself or did you go straight to the painful yet final remedy?


I tried the mask and even had sleep studies with one on and I just could not get used to it. Let's pretend for a moment I was able to tolerate it then what? Every time for the rest of my life if I ever wanted to grab a nap or some sleep, I would have to make sure I had the equipment with me at all times. It's not like I camp or travel often but heck, even trying to grab some sleep on a plane would be embarrassing let alone impossible. For me it was about the quality of life issue. Once I get past this 2 week period, I will never have to worry about making sure I have a my equipment on standby. And I know husbands/wives get past it but I just don't like the idea of looking like Darth Vader every time I go to sleep. Every person that I have talked to regarding this procedure says it is night and day for them. Whereas before, they would fall asleep at 8pm, they can now stay up past midnight catching up on TV and still wake up refreshed and alert come 6am the next morning. I realize it's not for everyone and I had I not pulled the trigger I would have forced myself to adapt to the CPAP but prior to the surgery, I was on a mission to lose weight as that is one of the contributing factors to OSA. Slim people can have OSA but having a bunch of fatty tissue in your throat doesn't help. There is a scale called the Friedman scale that helps doctors guesstimate as to how much improvement you will see. Based on my condition (placement of tongue, size of tonsils, etc) he said I would see a 85-90% improvement and combine that with the weight loss that I go though, I would be close to 95%.
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 10:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
:fist: The pain sucks, but it sounds like the right thing to do.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 10:47 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
That's what I keep telling the wife about anal.
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 10:52 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Are you still getting some? Right now with BadMouf, it's the perfect excuse for rutting without foreplay.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 2:00 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
One positive note from all of this. I'm now caught up on Rizoloi and Isles.
Author:  cap [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 3:10 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Terd, as a nose warming gift we signed the imagenet contract today. Go get your money
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Mon Jul 22, 2013 3:26 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Thanks Cap. Wayne told me.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Wed Jul 24, 2013 3:35 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Day 6 update:

Last night I think I finally turned the corner. I'm not taking pain meds every 4 hours but spacing it out to every 8-10 hours. Still hurts like a mofo to swallow and I have mush mouth when I talk from my tongue being anchored to my chin but if you listen carefully, you can discern what I am saying.

I tried some chicken noodle soup yesterday and it wasn't that bad. I can use my teeth no problem but I don't have a lot of control over my tongue to move it to the back of my throat to ready it for swallowing. I can feel food bits on the back of my tongue but I can't do much to hack up the food/phlegm as my tongue is what hurts the most. I tried talking to a customer today and he requested his call be transferred to someone who is not in an Indian call center with a yak tongue.

I still not supposed to lift anything but aside from my mouth and throat, the rest of my body is fine. I've got cabin fever like your wouldn't but I can still respond to emails and read RR and what not so that keeps me sane. Over July 4th weekend I weighed in at 219 or so. On Sunday I weighed in at 199.9. Today I tip he scales at 194.5. A couple of months prior to the surgery the wife and I had gotten serious about shedding some weight so I was already dropping pounds pretty quickly. I should gain some back once I get back to eating normal again but the good thing is we had already changed our lifestyle to one where we monitor what goes into our bodies and not over-doing it on cheat meals.
Author:  or somesuch [ Wed Jul 24, 2013 3:46 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Like our wouldn't what?
Author:  or somesuch [ Wed Jul 24, 2013 3:46 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
oh and congrats on sub 200.
Author:  fruitdog [ Wed Jul 24, 2013 3:50 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
How many times have you swung a golf club in your office while watching a youtube on how to hit it 300 yards? Brad and I are playing in that tournament on Saturday. If you want I'll send you a breakdown how how it plays out.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Wed Jul 24, 2013 4:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
I've picked up a club a couple of times but I haven't done any swinging per se. The area between my chin and throat is still pretty swollen so taking the club all the way back is difficult. Good luck on the tourney. I'm jealous. If I'm not on pain meds by Monday, maybe we can hook up at the usze and yall can fill me in on the details.
Author:  Sweet Greggo [ Thu Jul 25, 2013 8:38 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Glad you're recovering well, Ted. Even though your body feels fine you'll need to take it easy for a couple of weeks. You've had major trauma and it takes a while for your body to recover. I found this out after my teeth extractions. Just walking from my truck to my desk in the mornings would exhaust me. Congrats on the weight loss. I need to do that, too. :/
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Thu Jul 25, 2013 8:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
or somesuch wrote:
oh and congrats on sub 200.

:babyarm: This is awesome, Ted. I doubt I'd get sub 200 if I cut off both legs.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Thu Jul 25, 2013 10:33 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Thanks for the well wishes. I have been able to catch up on all my Food Network, HGTV, NatGeo, Sci Channel, and yes some Bravo. Don't judge. Gamm is right. With no food coming in, I am weak as all get out. Just driving my car home from the hospital yesterday was a chore. Looking back it wasn't the smartest thing either. You know the point where you get tipsy and when driving home, sometimes you close one eye just to get your bearings? That's what I felt like. I can see why people get addicted to PKs. The way it makes your body feel and the things it does to your mind is trippy. It even made Jimmy Fallon seem funny. IKR!

Now for some cool gross stuff. I have scabs all inside my throat from the cutting and bleeding that took place. It's not the traditional scab you get from a scraped knee. These are more white and soggy in nature. Well those are beginning to fall off now. So when I cough up some drainage, sometimes I will get these white chunks miked in with my stringy saliva. The consistency of my saliva is like hot mozzarella from a gooey piece of pizza. My tongue is still so sore that I don't have the ability to spit hard enough to get it all out of my mouth. I have to use my hand to break it off out of my mouth. I told you it was gross. I think I'm well enough to only take PKs at night to help me sleep and I'm hoping I can return to work on Monday.
Author:  cap [ Thu Jul 25, 2013 12:26 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
HAVE YOU sneezed yet?
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Thu Jul 25, 2013 1:26 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
YES I have.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Sat Jul 27, 2013 10:38 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Down to 192.5. Almost 10 says since I have only been able to drink my food. Only in the last couple of days have I been able to get some broth down. I have zero energy to do anything but I'm headed back to work on Monday.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 9:07 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
191.3. Going to see if I can't get a pancake to dissolve enough to swallow. Either that or another one of my kids fruit purees.
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 9:18 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Woke up last night at 5 due to a large gathering of mucus in the back of my throat. I rolled over to spit in the trash bad blood started pouring out of my nose. Wasn't too worried and got up to clean it up. I cleared my throat and even more blood came out. Trying to remain cool I jammed tp up my nose but I could still feel it dripping down the back of my throat. By this time I woke the wife in case I needed to get a hold of the doc on call. We continued to apply pressure and luckily I was able to stop it. Trip to er avoided
Author:  Sweet Greggo [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 1:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
please don't die ted
Author:  jim jack [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 1:20 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Sweet Greggo wrote:
please don't die ted


:babyarm:
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 1:43 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Death seems like the only way to get re members out for drinks. I'm just trying to bring the forum closer.
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 4:43 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Let's get together for drinks so Terd doesn't have to die. Another Top Golf outing?
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 7:55 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Or we could just get together and drink. Would it be better to plan this for a Friday evening to make it easier for those with kids? Saturdays always seem full of activities. I wear the pants here so I can do anything.
Author:  cap [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 8:14 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Let's do it in Frisco area for somey
Author:  TerdFerguson [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 10:10 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
Just took more Vicodin. I now know why Greggo was in love with this stuff.
Author:  Tit Whistle [ Sun Jul 28, 2013 10:12 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
I can go anywhere for a dying friend.
Author:  Sweet Greggo [ Mon Jul 29, 2013 12:35 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
somey, sign us up
Author:  or somesuch [ Mon Jul 29, 2013 8:12 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
cap wrote:
Let's do it in Frisco area for somey


In other words, "I can't get out for more than 2 hours, so let's keep it close to LE and blame it on somey".
Author:  cap [ Mon Jul 29, 2013 8:22 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Terd's surgery blog
:D
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