# Home from Surgery



## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

Well, they took her out yesterday and I was home less than 24 hours later. I was a bit surprised as he told me last time he would keep me at least 36 hours. My calcium was great, came in at 8 last night after surgery and 10.5 this morning! Yay! , They were able to avoid any damage to my parathyroid and my vocal cords. Pretty hoarse, but dang is my throat/esophagus sore!

Doc said the right side had the nodule and was only slightly larger than normal, but the left was the trouble spot and was the size of a softball, but grown down around the esophagus rather than out the side of my neck. It hurts like crazy when I swallow until I have had a few sips of something. It's almost like it dries out while I am resting and I have to lube it up again. LOL

So I am just on 100 of whatever the generic synthroid is for now but I am sure I will have to increase from there. I guess now it's on to monitoring levels and getting them where they need to be.

Oh and the whole experience was horrible. I was told to be there at 1pm and didn't go into surgery until after 4. Ugh - talk about dehydration headache! There wasn't a single nurse that appeared to have any empathy for the patients - they all seemed to only be there for the paycheck. I have found this more and more over the last few years, but have always had at least one that you knew felt for their patients. My husband went off on the same day surgical unit and got Code Greyed. (he looked it up and it meant loud or unruly patient or visitor) He was surrounded by four security guards in no time because he was raising his voice demanding to talk to the head of nursing as no one seemed to know where I was. He was told I was in my room but when he and my daughter went up there I wasn't there and they told him he could go see me downstairs in recovery but when he went back down there they told them I was sent to my room. What a cluster the whole thing was - from the time I walked in to register until I walked out this morning. I will never go there again!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Yuck, that sounds like a terrible hospital!

But I'm glad you got "her" (that cracks me up!) out and can now recover. It sounds like darn thing had gotten crazy big on that left side! Did you have a sonogram before that showed how big it was or was it a surprise during surgery? Did you have any symptoms with it that big?


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

Wow...glad it's done, glad you got the softball out of your neck/chest!!! That's too bad that the experience was overall bad from a customer service perspective, though. Very unfortunate!

(I suspect there's an opportunity for some ongoing humor in your house, though, about the Code Grey! I know there would be at my house, after the frustration of it all died down.)


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

Goodness, good to get that softball out. Rest and feel better!


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

Thanks, guys.

Yeah, Jen we knew it was that big, kinda. U/S showed it went below clavicle and CT showed it was down around my esophagus but because it was wrapped around it he wasn't sure exactly how big it was going to be.

There will definitely be some humor going on with the Code Grey! As sarcastically inclined as this family is - we'll get plenty of laughs out of it. He started yelling for the director of nursing again once I got in my room and they "found" me when I was left sitting for 20 minutes or so in pain and not knowing what to do but I asked him to back off once the nurse came in finally. I felt too lousy to want to listen to him go all "Long Island" on them as he calls it. LOL


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

Oh and yes, Jen I was having a heck-uva time swallowing for a while and knew something was going on down there. I was also having a lot of air hunger, but I think that was just from my hypo/hyper symptoms. I kept going back and forth and it was killer! The fatigue was so bad the last few days I was beginning to wonder if I was going to be able to get out of bed and get there. Thank goodness this part is over and now I can start working on feeling "normal" again whatever that may be for me now.

I also saw an interesting link to thyroid/gallbladder issues. Now wondering if we'd discovered the thyroid mess first if I would still have my gallbladder. Not having that is doing a number on my liver, too. Heck, I'm just a medical mess all around, aren't I? hahaha


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

And at this point, if any of you have seen the Seinfeld episode where Elaine has the "marked" chart with the doctors - I feel like that after I went off on the imaging place, the dr.'s office staff and now hubby going off on the hospital. I am sure I am a marked woman now!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Wow, Donna! That was a big mass they removed! Is your incision larger than normal because of it?

I've started having problems swallowing recently, it seems like everything has to be swallowed twice or it takes much longer than normal to make its way down my throat. My endo said it couldn't possibly be because of my thyroid (even though he did say it's swollen!) but I'm seeing an ENT who specializes in thyroid surgeries on Wednesday, so I'll be interested in what he has to say.

Hope your recovery goes smoothly!


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

I'm not really sure what I am going to end up with as far as the insicion. It looks like about three inches at the base of my neck. I'm not really sure what the normal size would be for someone that didn't have it removed laporascopically.

Have you seen a gastro to have an endoscopy? That's the only other thing that used to cause me difficulty swallowing. Once I went on meds for acid reflux I was great until this thing decided it wanted to grow like a weed. LOL


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## shellebean (Oct 12, 2011)

Hi Donna! Shelley here and this is the first I've checked in after my "removal" Thursday, too. I'll start a new link on mine, glad you are hanging in there!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

> Have you seen a gastro to have an endoscopy? That's the only other thing that used to cause me difficulty swallowing. Once I went on meds for acid reflux I was great until this thing decided it wanted to grow like a weed. LOL


I haven't seen a gastro yet; I've never had any kind of digestion/reflux problems so far, just in the last 6 weeks it's felt like my neck is swollen and sore, I get hoarse a lot and sore throats, and the soreness can radiate to up under my ear on the left side. I watched myself swallow in the mirror and it seems like things are not going straight down, it kind of veers to one side as it gets to the nape of my neck. So weird!


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

That sounds exactly like what my thyroid was doing as it grew down in my neck. Did you say if you ever had an U/S?


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

I had an ultrasound about 7 or 8 weeks ago when my endo diagnosed me with Hashi's--he said it was swollen and looked "banged up" but doesn't want to do anything about it except change my level of Synthroid (again). My labs don't actually look horrendous (although he refuses to check my FT3 or FT4 levels), so he told me I should "be feeling fine" and it couldn't possibly be my thyroid causing the neck/throat issues. I am seeing an ENT on Wednesday to check things out and get a second opinion.

After 9 years of ups and downs, I just want the dang thing out!


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

I don't blame you. My ENT was great. He was willing to take the whole thing out when I just had the suspicious nodule on the right last year because I told him the left side was bothering me. Obviously when my left side grew so much in the last year there wouldn't have been any question from anyone on whether to take it out or not. LOL

I did see a different ENT after the hospital cancelled my surgery last year for dumb reasons and she was "iffy" on whether she would take the left side. I am kinda glad that one ended up cancelled too when I was hospitalized for something else or I would probably have been going back in this year to take out the left side anyway.

Good luck with your appointment!!


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

DonnaK said:


> Oh and yes, Jen I was having a heck-uva time swallowing for a while and knew something was going on down there. I was also having a lot of air hunger, but I think that was just from my hypo/hyper symptoms. I kept going back and forth and it was killer! The fatigue was so bad the last few days I was beginning to wonder if I was going to be able to get out of bed and get there. Thank goodness this part is over and now I can start working on feeling "normal" again whatever that may be for me now.
> 
> I also saw an interesting link to thyroid/gallbladder issues. Now wondering if we'd discovered the thyroid mess first if I would still have my gallbladder. Not having that is doing a number on my liver, too. Heck, I'm just a medical mess all around, aren't I? hahaha


My thyroid was three times bigger than normal when the surgeon removed it but I don't know what object that might compare to. I was having the same symptoms you were AND, like you, the fatigue the last few days was so serious that my husband said he didn't think they'd be able to do surgery. I've never felt so bad in my life!

I often feel like a medical mess, too!! I don't envy anything anyone I know owns but I do so wish I truly felt well. I feel O.K. but I don't feel 100% and it bothers me!


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

What's this about the gall bladder? I had mine out shortly after the thyroid left. How does that effect the liver?


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

Hi Webster! The liver has to work harder when the gallbladder is out which can take a toll on it. My doc told me that before I had mine out so he said he would have to monitor my liver closer going forward.

I saw something about a link between gallbladder disease and hypothyroidism somewhere on the internet yesterday while I was clicking around. So, was wondering if I would still have mine if I had gotten the thyroid problem taken care of first. I am regretting having it removed so quickly now and wish I would have waited a couple years. I didn't have stones, but it was showing very low function. My gastro told me that they can sometimes bring them back and was a little upset with me that I didn't see him before I had it removed. I guess it doesn't do me any good thinking about it now though since it is gone and I can't do anything about it.


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

Hi! I had no clue I even had a gall bladder problem. I had 2 big attacks and had it removed. It had stones and polyps. I was really hypo then too. I am now experiencing pain after I eat. I wonder if it is connected. Darn, body parts, anyway! Otherwise, I feel great!

I hope you are feeling well after your surgery!


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

It's weird - I feel great all day and then both last night and tonight around 9-10 o'clock I started feeling super shaky and jumpy. Anyone else have this right after surgery? Could it be that I am just starting medication? I have never been on any kind of medication for my thyroid - just went straight to having it out since it was so big and the regular labs were in the "normal" range before removal.

I get pains in the area of my pancreas on and off now after having my gallbladder out. And forget about drinking. That really sets it off!


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## joplin1975 (Jul 21, 2011)

I used to be a regular drinker...I think it would be accurate to say I became pretty much alcohol intolerance after surgery. I do drink now and again (~9 months after surgery) but not nearly as much.

Not sure about the late night jittery stuff. I would say give it another week or so and if it doesn't straighten out, call your doc.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Random question, but I've seen several people mention it with their symptoms--what is "air hunger"? I've never heard of that before.


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

The air hunger, I think, is not being able to take a deep breath. Right before I had surgery, I was having a lot of trouble yawning. I'd end up sitting there looking silly with my mouth wide open. Dr. confirmed it wasn't from my thyroid interfering with my windpipe so it had to just be another symptom. I think it is listed in the hypo symptoms.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Thanks, Donna! I have that sometimes, too, I think. I'm always yawning and sometimes just randomly taking deep breaths for no apparent reason. Nothing scary to me, just really annoying (and embarrassing in meetings at work!).


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

The air hunger keeps you from being able to actually process a yawn and limits being able to take a deep breath. It's not much fun. I'd get up and take a couple hits from my inhaler which didn't really do a blasted thing, just psychologically made me feel better. LOL

Yay for me today - I actually ate some real food! Well at least as real as Cap'n Crunch and scrambled eggs are.  I do believe it has made me feel better though. Haven't gotten the shakes tonight like I did the last two nights. Woot!!


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## DonnaK (Mar 22, 2011)

Dr. called this morning and pathology came back all clear! Yay! I was kind of out of it so when he told me I just said, oh that's good. He came back at me rather jubulantly and said loudly - no, that's great!! So, I tried to sound more excited and said, yes, it is! LOL

I gotta say, with all the not so great doctors out there that don't seem to be that interested in their patients personally, this guy goes the extra mile. I'm really impressed with him. I wish I could stay with him for my dosing and not have to go through finding a new endo now.


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## SickofMyThyroid (Mar 29, 2012)

That's awesome Donna! I go back tomorrow..thinking happy thoughts!


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