Back at last

Hi everyone

Sorry it has taken me so long to post but I had no Internet for weeks.

I had my OP on 26th June and everything went well.

The only problem was the machine they use for testing during the OP broke minutes before I went into theatre.
The Surgeon came out to speak to me to ask if I still wanted to go ahead.
They said that this had never happened before but it was up to me.
I was really nervous so did not want to have to go through it all again so i said yes go ahead.
Also they already knew where the tumor was located so that was the reason I said yes.

I was allowed home the next day as my calcium was down to 2.47, which was really good as it had been as high as 2.9.
My throat was a bit sore and I had a lot of brusing in my neck but it is fine now with only a slight scar.

I was on sick leave for 5 weeks afterwards and I did not want to go back to work but back now and if feels like I was never away.

I have been back to see the Surgeon a few weeks ago and yesterday I was back at Endocrinology.

My calcium is still looking good at 2.36 but was told my PTH is still a little high at 11 but they will keep it monitored to see how it goes.

I do feel a little better since the OP and I am sleeping better but as I have Rheumatoid Disease and have been having a bit of a flare up
so I am a bit sore just now.

I hope everyone is well and I will read through the posts now.

Thanks for all your kind words before my OP as they helped me cope with everything.

Mary x

Welcome back Mary, glad to hear it all went well despite the broken machine. Calcium is looking good and hopefully your pth will come down given a bit more time.

Take care

Nelly

So good to hear from you Mary and pleased that your op went well. Must have been a bit alarming for you that the machine broke down right before your surgery, as I remember how anxious you were beforehand (yay! I've remembered something .....), but I would have done the same and said just get on with it. We were a bit concerned that we hadn't heard from you after your surgery - flippin' technology, great when it's working ...... 

Hope your levels settle down soon Mary - your calcium is great, PTH is still a little high it's true; maybe your other glands have 'woken up' and are having a party before settling down again!    but glad your endo is keeping an eye on things.

Jasmine x

Lovely to see you back Mary and so pleased all went well, despite the broken machine! It must have been a relief to get it all over with. I would want to carry on as well: last time I had to have an op it was cancelled at the very last minute when I'd been at the hospital for 12 hours. It was gut wrenching to go home and then have to build myself up again for it all 2 days later. 

I should think your PTH will settle down in time and it's great that your Endo is monitoring you. 

Sorry your Rheumatoid disease is flaring up and hope it settles soon. 

Love and hugs 
Brigitte xx

Hi Mary,
Ohh it is so heartening to hear that your operation was a success!  It is so nice and uplifting that you are well on the road to feeling human again despite having a flare up of RA, I hope it settles soon.  I think it can take a while for everything to settle back to more normal levels.  It has really cheered me up to think that you can be cured from this miserable disease.
Thanks for updating and posting and glad you are back on the net.
Sue x

Thank you for the welcome back.

Just trying to catch up with all the posts since I have been away.

I am really sorry I could not have posted earlier, but PC was not working but its good to be back.

I was such a bag of nerves before the OP and you all helped me through it.
Everything went so smoothly except the broken machine but the doctors and nurses were all great and helped me control the nerves
which managed to keep my blood pressure down a bit.

I am so glad I got the OP and to anyone who is waiting for one and is a bit nervous then I can quite honestly say its not as bad as you think.

Mary x

Great to have you back, Mary! And GREAT to hear the surgery was a success!

Yes, your PTH is still a bit high, but I'm wondering if maybe your normal calcium is a little higher than 2.36, and your parathyroid glands are functioning as they should by secreting a little extra hormone to get your calcium back up a bit.

Also, there is still a very good chance your PTH will drop some in time naturally when you're a little further along with your recovery. I am 9 months post-op now, and my PTH has continued to drop gradually in correlation with my calcium levels. Give it some time. Just concentrate on healing and feeling well again!!

Sorry about the broken machine before surgery. That rings a little bell with me. Just as I reached the room to get my Sestamibi the morning of surgery, there was a power outage in the hospital, and the machines would not work. I was the first patient of the day, and there I was holding everything up because I was unable to get my scan! The doctors were calling down asking what the problem was. It was actually funny. I thought something like that could only happen to me. I guess not.   

Audrey

Hi Mary so glad your op is over and has been successful, your calcium looks great and I'm sure your PTH will correct itself very soon. I would have done the same as you and gone ahead with surgery but that must have been very stressful. It's lovely to hear from you and sorry to hear your RA has flared up, I do hope it calms down soon.
Love Amanda xxxx

Lovely to hear from you post-op, Mary, and so glad it all went well.

Please continue to post on your post-op progress when you can - don't be a stranger now that it's over - we all want to know about the benefits and all the improvements you will see!

Love from Tigerlily xxxx

Hi Mary

Glad all went well with the op and your blood calcium has lowered. I`m sorry the RA has flared up and hope you get it under control.  

Take care 

Mel

Hi Mary

Glad you came back on to let us know how you are. I am glad your feeling better, hope you pth settles down. I'm sure it will. Welcome back adenoma free. WHOOHOO

Hello Mary, I'm glad it went well. Can I ask whether 5 weeks is normal or were there other reasons you were off so long? I'm only asking because I've seen people talking about 5 days and was wondering if that'd be enough.

Meggy my surgeon said 2 weeks off.

Nelly

Meggy

I was told the normal time is 2 weeks but everyone is different so it depends on how you feel.

I have other health issues and before the OP I was really struggling to cope at work  and I continued to work right up to the day of the OP.

I went to my GP thinking of asking for 3 weeks but when he said he was going to give me a sick note for 5 weeks I thought yes why not.
 
I was glad of the break and the weather was lovely so I enjoyed being off and did not want to go back to work.

Mary

Thanks, didn't mean to pry and I know the sensible thing is to wait til I next see my consultant and see what he says but I'm just impatient:-)

Thanks, didn't mean to pry and I know the sensible thing is to wait til I next see my consultant and see what he says but I'm just impatient:-)

Ooh, how did that happen? I've posted twice. I'm on my phone so don't have the edit options of the full site so you'll just have to ignore me!

I think everyone's recovery is different Meggy. You might find you go hypopara for a little while until your remaining paras wake up and do their job, or you might wake up from the anaesthetic and feel immediately better - a lot of people do - but I don't think you can predict that. I think perhaps set yourself an approximate time scale for a return to work then listen to your body and see how you feel afterwards.

Jasmine x

Thanks Jasmine, good common sense there:-) I'm only anticipating cos I'm a teacher and would have to leave cover.