My plastic surgery story time!!! Part 2!

When I arrived at the newly opened private hospital in Battersea the morning of my appointment I was so nervous. I’ve had anaesthesia before in my life, but remembered it to be really traumatising. It didn’t help that I’d developed this crazy paranoia that I was going to die in the table and had practically come to terms with this as a fact ahahaha. What made it worse was because it was still post Covid and hospitals still had to follow pretty tight rules, re Covid reduction, I wasn’t aloud to have anyone come into the hospital with me. So I was dropped off at reception and on my own!

Unlike any nhs hospital, this private hospital was so sleek and sexy. I was the first patient of the day and it was empty. I had my own bay, with a bed mirror and lock box. As well as a floor to ceiling glass window that could be ‘turned off’ for privacy.

As it was newly opened everything was beyond spotless. I was assigned my own personal nurse to look after me throughout my stay. She was super lovely, reassuring me that she’d actually had the same surgery when she was around my age too. Which I felt comforted by. When I arrived I had to get changed into the classic paper panties and gowns, as well as put on compression stockings. Then my surgeon and the anaesthetist both came to ask me a bunch of questions and make sure I was like mentally competent and aware, as well as physically well.

The anaesthetist doctor was also superrrrrr lovely, and reassuring, everyone at the hospital was! He said before the anaesthesia they’d give me a large dose of IV benzos to calm me down and only when I felt good would they then put me to sleep. The anaesthesia they used was unlike one I’ve had before. It’s known as TIVA anaesthesia and it was such a delicious drug cocktail omg. It’s totally intravenous, no horrible gas mask involved and that really helped me. As as a child I got so terribly freaked out by those masks when being out to sleep. When I woke up I was deliriously high from all the drugs and chatted absolute shit to my poor nurse. I have no idea what I was talking about but I know it would have been crazy because I remember being so animated and chatty! I felt incredible!!!! I was also freezing cold and couldn’t stop shaking. But if I remember correctly that’s just a withdrawal effect while all those sexy anaesthesia drugs are leaving your system. When I woke up I was wearing a compression headband around my head, covering my ears - obvi. Before I’d had my surgery they’d asked me what I’d like to eat when I come round and I’d said fruit! So by the time I was fully awake, I was taken from the recovery bay back to my room and waiting for me was a little bowl of fresh cut tropical fruit, some tea and water! The rule was I had to eat something and use the bathroom before I was aloud to be admitted home.

And though I’m sure I was in recovery for a couple hours, the time did pass super fast and before I knew it I was able to come home! At this point I was still super duper numb from the drugs they’d given me, which was so nice while it lasted. I was given a goody bag of aftercare to take home with me.

You can tell I was loopy when I took this picture of my aftercare bag by the filter I chose ahahaha!

I was given a course of antibiotics I had to take, and these were by far one of the worst parts of the whole surgery. Because I find antibiotics make my body feel so so so unwell! They just fuck me up! I always get bad stomach aches, nausea, dizziness and feel super spaced out! I was so pleased when I finished the course of pills! I believe I had to take them for a week or ten days. I was also given a packet or codeine. This would have been super helpful for the pain if codeine didn’t make me super sick, as well as not really work as a painkiller for me. I’ve written about codeine in this blog before, due to my past with it, it just doesn’t work for me. I think that’s why I found the pain so difficult to deal with. I was also given some paracetamol and bandages.

All this was included in the price of my surgery, which I’m sure everyone is interested to know actually… It was in the region of 5k. Which I know is a lot of money, however it really was worth every penny. The care I got was second to none and as well as the surgery, care and medication. I also received three follow up appointments. - but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

The painkillers I had received during my surgery began to wear off by the evening. If I remember correctly my surgery was around 9am. I was home around 3pm and by 10pm I was very very sore.

I can’t tell you how impossible it was to sleep! I was wearing a compression headband, which did help me feel secure. But to put any weight on any part of my head really hurt! You don’t realise it, but even when you lay your head on a pillow, the pillow does come into contact with your ears.

I’d assumed side sleeping would be a no-no, but in fact any contact between my head and a pillow was agonising!! It was in fact sleep that was the biggest no-no lol! I barely slept for the first week post surgery…

Part 3; healing process and results coming soon…