Heading In

A 9:00 appointment at Sunnybrook meant dealing with Toronto's notorious rush-hour traffic congestion.  We allowed 1hr 15m which is what Google Maps recommends if you are cycling.  We drove and so arrived a bit early.

Everything at Sunnybrook seems to be efficiently set up. E.g. the visitors' waiting room has a large monitor showing the progress of the patient.  I was taken to the Pre-operative area where I was subjected to various indignities such as a hospital gown, an intravenous and a barrage of questions about my identity and medical history.  That complete, Barb was allowed to come in and sit with me while we waited for surgery, scheduled for 11:00.  Not long before that, I said goodbye to Barb and she took my clothing and my glasses.  Everything was a bit fuzzy from here on.  I was wheeled away by a very loquacious orderly who chatted with everyone we passed. 

Outside the operating room, the surgeon and the anesthetist came by and introduced themselves and asked me the same barrage of questions.  Also, a young medical student who told me she was going to be observing the operation.

After a while, I was walked into the operating room and set up on the op table.  This time, it was a slow descent into oblivion (last time, I went out like a light!).

The next thing I knew, I was back in the same spot in the Pre-operative area.  As before, there was a sense of a time 'drop-out': I had no idea what time it was or what had happened since blacking out.  It's not the same as waking up from a good sleep.  I could not have said if I had been out of it for an hour or a week!  After a while, I made out a clock across the room and things started to make sense.

So far, so good.  Just a little jaw pain, a slight queasy feeling and only minimal tongue numbness and taste disturbance.  Not even much tinnitus, unlike last time when I had major tinnitus.