The Big Day has arrived

 18th June 2025

Part 1

Here we are the big day has arrived, and we start early as we need to be at the hospital for 07:00 and as traffic can be tricky getting into Oxford we decide that we'll leave at 06:00, the only good thing is that parking at the hospital should be relatively easy.

Have decided that its not really worth taking anything into hospital as I will be going straight from the theatre to ICU so Carol will bring stuff in as needed.

We get to the hospital and of course the traffic isn't bad and we are the only car in the car park 😂 but we are here.

We walk up to the Theatre admin to find it packed which I guess I shouldn't be surprised at but I am anyway, check-in and wait to be called, which was literally 5 minutes, which I am not surprised at as they have told me that I will be first in (and probably last out). we are put into a room put a lovely gown on and my new dressing gown and wait, again not very long before various people, teams start turning up.

First the anaesthetist talks me through the anaesthetic process and that he is there for the duration, we talk about his long day ahead, but he is very reassuring so all good

The Mr Gore the plastic surgeon pops in runs through the same stuff we have already talked about and again I just have to buy into this - no way out now this is total commitment from me and obviously by them

I am still feeling pretty relaxed, fuck knows why as they keep telling me what I am going to go through and I I should probably be absolutely crapping myself, but I am not, I am ready for the fight and this is round 1 and the hardest round as you have to stay in it to win the fight!

Prof. Winter then turns up and again we go through the process, in his own way he reassures me so the game is on. Carol and I sit in the room for probably half an hour and then the call comes in and it's time to go.

As I leave Carol some apprehension builds and I must admit a few nerves start to jingle but I'm in, fully committed - no turning back, right!

We walk a little way down to theatre 8, there are loads of medical people along the route waiting for their prey (of which I am one of course), straight in and onto the "bed" for tests, checks in what is called the anaesthetist area, he is there ready, we go through the checks he smacks me with the anaesthetic and bang I'm out.

Part 2 and its the 19th June now!

After 16 hours I come round on my way into ICU I catch a glimpse of Carol and Orlanda which is a joy - I am alive, although it feels like I am in hell, pain all over, brain not really functioning, so I just try and sleep, except I am being asked stuff that I really don't know what it means, especially as now I can't talk or write anything coherently.

I feel uncomfortable, my back hurts but just getting loads of questions that I can't answer - this is not a pleasant experience. They tell me I will be out the following day and onto the ward. This doesn't happen for whatever reason so I spend the day (as far as I can remember) dropping in and out of sleep, being man-handled so they can was my back with something I presume to stop sores, and coughing up loads of shit - more on that later.

I just get it into my head I'll start feeling better when I get to the ward......