There are many things to be thankful for, but most of all God has revealed to me so much in the last week. I wasn't scared about the surgery I was going to undergo. I was a little nervous how things would be after, as in the pain and everything. I was sleeping in no time, what was to come next was a truly amazing thing that God did for me.
I came out of surgery about 2 1/2 hours later after having my Thymus Gland removed, which is behind the breastbone. I was told by both my wife and mom that once the breathing tube was removed (after surgery) I was unable to breathe or having troubles. So they put it back in and I briefly remember waking up before falling asleep again. The breathing tube alone was a painful thing to deal with. I woke up early that morning and it was hard enough to deal with, constant gagging and wanting it out was my biggest concern. Finally around 7 am they took it out after the doctor arrived. For several hours the nurses kept telling me hang on, the doctor will be here soon.
If anything, at that moment in time God was there helping me through the pain and the discomfort of that breathing tube. It wasn't fun, but he gave me the strength to get through it. After it was, things were a lot better, it was nice to be able to speak. Believe me, I never thought I would go through such an ordeal. It is something I never thought about before the surgery, it was a surprize in itself.
The pain in the sternum area was mild to moderate and it did hurt, they finally got me on some meds where I just push the button for Morphine. The next part was dealing with the pain and surviving the effects of the drug. It was definately one that kept me loopy, I was having a terrible time just trying to think. It was difficult trying to send a text message, I really had to think in order to type everything right. Yet again, God was there to help me through it.
It was so hard even getting sleep, if anything I only slept maybe 3 hours per night. The worst thing about it all was dealing with the hospital food. I was in enough pain and wasn't feeling that great, and on top of it I had to eat that crap. I refused a lot of it and only had fruit. After a while I started to eat some yogurt. If anything, this has opened my eyes to eating better. I realize there are consequences for not eating right and I don't want to deal with ending up in the hospital again.
The next hurdle I had to get over was having troubles breathing and the pain I experienced when I tried to breathe. It all had to do with the drainage tubes that were just below my scar in the middle of my chest. Those were running up through my chest and caused enough pain. Day after day I dealed with the pain from that and having to lug around the little container with the tubes running into it. It was no fun, I wanted them out so bad.
Not only was I dealing with that, but I was also told by the dr's that I had some fluid in my lungs. I needed to use the breathing exercises to rid my lungs of that crap. I still am continuing to do that and it's helping. I owe God the credit for helping me recover faster than I would think.
Eventually seven days later, the drainage tubes were out. Amazing how I felt and how I could breathe, even better than before the surgery. I was having enough troubles trying to take a full deep breath. So it was nice to be able to breath normally, I was later discharged later that day. A few days after I have started to regain the strength in my legs. I was thinking it would take a week at least to be able to walk without feeling dizzy, lightheaded. It's actually only taken a few days and again I owe God the Thank You for what he has done in my life.
Having to use the Sleep Apnea machine before didn't really do any results for me, now I am starting to feel more alert and awake. Not only has God fixed that problem, but he has also taken away my double vision which is associated with a disease caused Myastenia Gravis which is due to an enlarged Thymus Gland.
Since that has been removed, I don't see any problems. It's as if my vision has returned to normal. I don't know what other great things are to come, but I know that God has done a lot for me. He has changed me so much in a matter of a week. I keep thinking, how can I return the favor. Well, I'm writing to you to let you know to show Jesus your time and speak to him and open yourself to his glory, his love and his awesomeness.
Jesus has shown me so much, I love him with my whole heart. I give him the glory, he has already done amazing things for me, shown me things I never thought would be possible. He continues to amaze me everyday.
I truly believe the saying is true "God can't give us anymore than we can't handle"
