Me, too, Lars, I hope that you are catching all the good-vibe thoughts going out from me and a whole big bunch of your friends.

Hugs,

Helene

Hey, Lars!

I don't live far and you have my number so please let me know if you need another pair of hands to help with anything.

All my best!

-- Janene

Thanks so much for the thoughts - they really help!

My surgery was a success, and there was only one tumor, and so that is gone now. I think they removed the parathyroid glad with it, but I'm not sure yet. If they did, I still have three left. I was told to take Tums tonight and tomorrow, but I do not know if I'm supposed to take them forever or not, to replace calcium. I'm going to make some phone calls tomorrow, or have Kevin make them. He stayed with me and decided to stay home tomorrow to help take care of me. I was kept for observation for 5-6 hours after the observation, and supposedly that is much longer than average. I had a large swelling in my neck that one doctor marked with a dotted line, and they kept an eye on that. Since it did not get worse, they decided I could go home at 8:30 PM. At least there was somewhat less traffic at that time, but more than I expected. At home, Kevin gave me some of his peach yogurt, and then I had some strawberry ice cream that I had made last month, and I had made it especially for after the operation. They had a tub stuck down my throat during the surgery, and so I was quite sore from that afterward, but not so sore from the actual surgery. I cannot wash my neck for a few days and was told not to take a bath or a shower for two days, and only then with caution not to get my neck wet, as it would dissolve the stitches prematurely. It's been hotter here than usual, getting around 80 degrees, but it's cool at night, and we do have an air conditioner for the dining room, which will also help cool the living room. I will be fine in my bedroom with my ceiling fan, and I can open windows during the day.

It's hard for me to swallow right now, and so I can only eat very soft foods for a while. It's really too warm for soup, and I'm too wobbly to cook right now, but I think I should have more stability tomorrow. I can always have Kevin boil some potatoes for me - that's easy enough for him to do. I was told that my recover could take 5-6 days, and so I might not make it back to work on Monday as I previously planned, but I will call work tomorrow and tell them not to expect me on Monday.

Thanks, Janene, for offering to help. It would be nice to see you again, but only if you are not busy. I'm not good for talking right now and don't know how I will sound tomorrow. I did NOT get the voice change that I thought would happen.

I'll post an update tomorrow afternoon!

I so much appreciate everyone's thoughts and support!!

Lars

P.S. I had Kevin take some hideous pictures of my neck to show where the doctor drew an outline. I wanted it just for archival purposes, so I can see how much I improve.

What good news, glad to hear you are doing well.

Now don't overdo it, take time to recover, eat well, get plenty of rest.

Lars, thinking of you and glad that you are doing well.

Take care of yourself.

~Ann

Oh, good, I'm glad you're already reporting in, and that things went so well. I hope you're feeling better today. I'll keep thinking about you!

Sally

Glad to hear all went well. In this weather, finely pureed gazpacho might go down well!

FWIW, when I have questions for my docs, I type up a letter and fax it in. If I think a prescription might be needed I include my pharmacy's phone number. They looooove it, as it saves them time and it bypasses a receptionist who may or may not relay all my concerns.

Glad I checked in for an update.

Thinking of you, Lars.

AM

So happy it went well and that you felt well enough to check in here. Thanks, Annie, for starting this thread.

I remember waking up from a "female" procedure and wondering why my throat hurt!

I hope you continue to improve and heal quickly. I hope everything else in your life settles down, too. Hugs.

Oh good you, you checked in. Glad to see you're on the road! Keep on getting better. (((Hugs to Lars!)))

Whew! I'm so glad it's over and that you are doing well. Sorry that your weather is hot but you'll live through the few no shower days.

Take care of yourself, don't rush to do things and just know that we are all thinking of you.

Hugs,

Lee

Sooo glad it's over....and that you can now begin building bone and a normal calcium level once again!
Ice cream is good...made with almond milk....and perhaps some very ripe avocodo.
Take care. rest lots, tomorrow will be better.
Linda C

Lars, I am happy to hear of the good outcome! Glad it's over and hope you have a speedy recovery, but give yourself as much time as you need.

Hugs,

Linda

Miss Lucy had a baby, she named him Tiny Tim...

(Sorry, but I've had that song in my head ever since lunch time when I read about the "tub" stuck down your throat!)

I'm not up on what your issues are (I don't come to conversations much anymore) but I'm glad to hear the surgery went well. Good luck with your recovery; sounds like you're in good hands with Kevin and hopefully you'll be feeling 100% soon.

Glad the surgery is over and you're on the mend now Lars. Stay cool!

Thinking of you Lars and glad the surgery went well. Take care of yourself and don't push it.

You are just so special to all of us.

You've been on my mind, I'm happy to see it went well and you're on the mend. Sending you a gentle hug! Be happy you're not in the valley :^P

Hooray, I'm glad the surgery went well, now for recovery. of course, I know Kevin will take care of you as well as he possibly can, but it 's still less worrisome knowing that you are home and doing well.

Annie

Yippeeeeee! Glad to hear all went well. Take it easy for as long as you can.

Nancy

Thanks for all the well wishes! My boss called earlier today to check on me, and Kevin talked with her. She has had a lot of experience with surgery and is very understanding. I also got a "get well" card from DM today, which was very nice. A friend from San Francisco called to check on me also, but my sister forgot. Maybe she was waiting for me to call her.

Last night I was up all night, as it was impossible to get comfortable enough to sleep or even to lie down, and so at 5:00 AM I made some noodle soup with chicken broth, Chinese wood-ear mushrooms, tofu, egg drop, etc. It was very soothing to my throat and it was cool enough early in the morning to eat something that hot. Then a took a couple of naps, but I'm still taking pain medication. I hope that won't be necessary tomorrow, but my neck is still very swollen and it is painful to lift my head when I am lying down. I probably will get almost nothing done this week-end and will have to go back to work the first day I feel well. I still look like Frankenstein's monster and therefore cannot go shopping, but Kevin has been doing that for me. Tomorrow I will make a scarf from some silk chiffon that the VP of our textiles division gave me so that I will be able to cover the stitches and dotted lines on my neck.

I just noticed that thing about the tub in my throat - I guess I was too out of it to edit properly.

Weather was even hotter today, and it was 90 degrees at 2:00 pm, and I had the A/C on all day until this evening. I had to water all the plants in the back that are in pots (and there are a lot!). I need to feed them tomorrow.

Lars

Really glad everything went well, Lars. Take it easy and don't push it. I'll bet it felt like you really did have a tub in your throat, lol.

I'm glad to hear it went well. Sorry your throat hurts. Take it easy, and I'm sure you'll feel better soon.

I am glad to hear you are feeling better and that the surgery went well. Take it easy.
Clare

Great! I hope day two is bring more relief. I'm sure Kevin doesn't appreciate it when you aren't up for cooking.

Today was bad - I had a fever and more severe swelling, and so I called my doctor - I had him paged since it is Saturday, and he called me back and said that my symptoms are normal. He recommended cold compress for my swelling (which Kevin bought at the drug store), and my fever has gone down. I took a Percoset for the pain this morning and even thought it had Tylenol with it, I still got a fever. I feel a bit better now, and the swelling went down after I used the cold compress.

We watched Harriet Craig (1950, Joan Crawford) this afternoon because I thought it was going to be high camp, but it was a more serious movie than I expected. We have collected hundreds of movies from TCM that I recorded for DM and kept copies for myself.

I'm very much taking it easy now, but the doctor says I should sit up instead of to lie down, and sitting is a lot less painful but a bit more tiring. I'm thinking that I will take Monday off. The release note that I got from the hospital said that recovery could take up to a week, and I do not want to rush myself.

Lars

Fever is okay Lars - your body is working to get things back to normal. Here's a tip for a nifty cool compress - a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a hanky. The peas conform to your shape and stay cool for a long time.

I wish you a good recovery, and fast healing, you are experiencing the worst of it hopefully.

I hope today is better, Lars. Your body is telling you that it needs more time to heal.

Sue

Thanks, Gina, and I do have frozen peas in the freezer, but Kevin bought me a cold compress for my neck that has a velcro strap. It's really very comfortable and also works somewhat like a brace, taking stress off my neck. It took some of the swelling down and made me feel better.

I guess it's okay to say that my body needs more time to heal. I know they will be disappointed at work, but I also know that they want me to recuperate properly. It's unfortunate that we are short-handed at this time.

I plan on watching some more movies this afternoon - that's all the energy I have at this point.

Lars

So.....how is it today? I am hoping you are feeling lots better.
I am remembering my neighbor's 80 something mother who came to her daughter's house to stay for cataract surgery. I was in the yard when her daughter brought her home from the surgery....I said "Mrs A. how are you?" She turned to me and said.."They tell you it's nothin'....but it ain't nothin!"
So....while they told you the surgery would be "nothing"....your body says other wise.
Hope you are feeling more like your old self.
Linda C

Thanks for asking Linda! My recovery is actually going a bit more slowly than I expected, and I came home from work after spending only an hour there. Tuesday was the first day that I could move my head/neck without major pain, but I am still quite swollen and had to wear a large scarf to cover my neck. When I found out that I really did not need to be at work, I went home and took a nap. My sleeping schedule is still not what it used to be, and I feel like I am on a sort of roller coaster for sleeping and waking. My boss called me while I was taking a nap and told me I should take my time for recuperating. I'm up now at 4:00 AM because I was reading in bed when we had a 3.8 earthquake, and now I'm quite wide awake. The earthquake was centered in Westchester, just a couple of miles from my house, and so I felt it quite strongly, even though it was a small quake. It wasn't strong enough to make the dining room light fixture sway, but it did make some noise rattling windows and things. It didn't wake Kevin.

I'm anxious to get back to my old self. I'm not going back to work today because I feel like I still need some more rest, and I would like for the swelling to go down more. I'm been running a very slight fever, but my doctor says that that is normal.

Lars

Lars I'm sure everyone's recovery time is different. You can't rush it. Just take it easy, stay home from work and rest up. I hope you feel better soon.

~Ann

I think that at least a week's recovery at this age would be completely expected. It's my belief that doctors downplay pain and recovery time to not instill patient panic.
Don't rush it, take it slow and easy does it. When the fever ceases, it should be a sign that your body is healing.

Thanks! That makes me feel better. The paperwork I got at my release said that the recovery could take a week - it was the doctor who said 2-4 days! I think a week is perfectly reasonable for this, considering that I spent several hours in recovery at the hospital, even though that was supposed to take 1-2 hours instead of 5-6!

The earthquake last night jarred my back gate out of alignment, and now the latch will not close. The gate appears to have shifted about 1/4 inch, which is enough to make the latch out of whack. It's fixable, but we'll have to do it this week-end, as it will require power tools.

Lars

That earthquake jolt woke my husband up too, but I stayed sound asleep. So far we have noticed no damage.

I hope that your recovery is swift.

-- Janene

Lars, I hope you're feeling better today, and had some good sleep last night. I agree that you should recover at your own rate, and not feel pressured to rush things. I'm thinking of you.

Sally

We were having a birthday lunch at Gjelina in Venice today, and we we started talking about problems with elderly parents. I mentioned the situation with your mom.

Then I thought I heard the guys sitting next to us mention your name, first and last. Couldn't hear much, but they were talking about commercial shoots and design.

How strange is that?

I hope you're feeling lots better and that we'll here an update soon.

Janene, the guys sitting next to you might know me - I did live in Venice for 15 years, and I did go to parties there quite frequently, especially since my next door neighbors had them on a regular basis!

I finally got a call back from my surgeon's office, and his nurse Jenny told me that I no longer need to take Tums or calcium pills! I've been having a bad reaction to those for a few days now. I'm going to see my regular doctor in Pacific Palisades tomorrow afternoon, but it appears that my lab tests from the surgery have all been normal. I still think that I might be developing a kidney stone.

Lars

So I probably did hear correctly. One guy had a red beard, mustache, shaved head and a distinctive outline tattoo of morning glories and jasmine on his arm.

The food ad Gjelina was really good and we went to Jiraffe for supper and had even better food including duck confit with figs, filet in wine sauce and nectarine tarts with vanilla bean ice cream.

It sounds like your condition is improving -- I really hope you don't have a kidney stone.

Best of luck with the doctor tomorrow!

Uh oh. Why do you suspect kidney stone?

Usually pretty unambiguous signs. Incessant, rocking pain in your lower back or side, nausea and repeated vomiting, pain travels to the front as the stone (hopefully) moves. Extremely painful, some say equivalent to childbirth, but myself I've only ever had a cow.

You will want to be on anti-nausea meds and pain meds - serious ones, think narcotics. Don't delay going to the doctor - to avoid the endless wait in the ER, cheek to jowl with chatty gunshot victims who want to talk as you vomit, call your doctor now if you think you might be wanting an appoinment tomorrow.

The fun part is, you'll pee through a little sieve to catch the stone, for analysis or for an conversation piece of an earring.

The reason I thought I might have a kidney stone is that one of the anesthesiologists said that it looked like I might have one because of one of the tests that I took. Also, it is common to have kidney stones accompany hyperparathyroidism, as the parathyroid controls calcium and vitamin D.

I'm seeing my doctor at 4:45 PM today. My symptoms of having to go to the bathroom frequently at night are gone, now that I am no longer taking Tums, but I also feel more tired today. I'm not back into feeling like a regular person yet, and so I'm anxious to see what the doctor says. I sent him an email yesterday, and he had his office call me right away to make an appointment.

My blood pressure has gone down, and so I might be able to get off some of the BD meds I've been on.

Sounds like you had a good birthday dinner at Gjelina - I haven't been there yet, and it used to be a short walk from my house in Venice. I haven't been to Jiraffe either, but I don't get to Santa Monica as often. I might have to try one of those on my next birthday!

Lars

The doctor ruled out kidney stones and said that I probably have a prostate infection, based on my symptoms. He prescribed some antibiotics (Bactrim, which I used to take in Mexico to cure turista) and took blood and urine samples for testing. He said he would have results by Friday and call me at that time. He also said to call him Friday if I don't hear from him, but I gave him my cell number so that he can call me in Texas, if necessary. I don't use my cell phone on a regular basis because the sound is not quite as good, and I simply don't like cell phones, but when I am traveling, I use it. I will NOT have internet connection while at my parents' house, although I will be taking my laptop and may have connection at our other brother's house. His wife is always getting viruses and losing their internet connection, and so that may not be an option. We might be able to go to an internet cafe in Temple, however, like I did when I was in Oaxaca.

Lars

Sorry I'm late with the well wishes Lars(I forget about this side of the site). Take it slowly, everyone heals in their own time. Healing thoughts are being sent to you. NancyLouise

Oh gosh, Lars. One more thing to deal with now. I do think an infection is better than having to pass a kidney stone. Just hang on. Things have to improve.

I've been absent from this forum for a long time so hadn't heard about your surgery, Lars - hope you are feeling better, sending positive, healing thoughts your way

I also think the infection is better than the kidney stones, providing the infection is cured before it does any damage. At this point, I don't even want to think about it, and I'm having a hard enough time trying to figure out how I will manage what I need to get done in Texas. On top of that, my boss wants me to take work with me to Texas, even though (as I discussed with the COO), I do not have any pressing or urgent projects that must be finished right away - I'm caught up for the present. I told her I would be taking my laptop, but it does not have AutoCAD on it, and so I cannot do any working drawings. I have not tried installing any other drawing programs, but I might do that eventually. Because the laptop has Windows 7, a lot of programs simply will not install, including my astrology program, and that was one of the main programs I wanted to use on it. For now, I'm just using it for music, pictures, internet, and movies, and so it is more for entertainment than work. Sony Entertainment gave Kevin a laptop so that he could work at home, and he will be taking his as well. I do not expect to feel up to working on furniture designs while I am in Texas, especially with the heat.

Lars

Oh dear, Lars, I do hope that the antibiotic will have everything taken care of and that you'll be back to your vibrant and healthy self very soon.

Take care of yourself, I kow there's a lot going on right now, but you can't compromise your own health either. And Phooey on your boss...

Annie