The Day Surgery Stood Still

I feel like a million bucks! I got to the hospital by 9 a.m. and was released by 11 a.m. I have no pain in my groin and only minor discomfort where the I.V. was placed in my hand.

Perhaps in an unprecedented move, my procedure was cancelled after I had been admitted to the hospital. Can you believe it? Suzi and I got to Zale Lipshey this morning and proceeded as planned. I put on my sexy blue hospital gown, my little sheer bouffant cap and my sweet “no-skid” booties. My nurse, Kat came in, took my vitals and stuck me with and 18 gauge needle right there in the top of my hand. The I.V. was started and immediately began to feel liquid heat pouring into me veins. I could take it because I knew the feel good drugs were going to be delivered from this very port. My incredible wife was being so supportive as I soothed my mind to “Hillsongs- Blessed” CD on my walkman.

It was a great family time as well, as mom and my siblings were there. Friends had come from here and yon to lend support. I laid there thinking how blessed I was to enter a surgical procedure in this manner. I thought ‘this is almost too good to be true.’ And then, Dr. Replogle threw the curtain open into staging area #4.

“I’ve got bad news,” He said. “We’ve had a run of emergency patients in our ICU and we have no beds there for you. I refuse to do this procedure without continuous observation after such a delicate neurological case. And, I had hoped to use a newly approved stint on your case today. You are the 3rd person in the world to have this new technology, but the 2nd person, in the case just before you, used both stints. Because of the flexibility and ease of insertion, I’ve got to have this stint for your complex aneurysm.”

Silence. “Doc, as you know, I’m from Colorado. This is bad news. How soon can we reschedule?” He said that he didn’t know, but probably sometime next week. I immediately felt depressed. Are you kidding me? I fly my entire family down to Texas, people come in from all over the state to support me, people literally from around the world are praying at this very moment for me, I take the exact time off of work that I have allowed, and you’re going to reschedule me…for next week? I reminded him of the importance of timing, and he left the room to see what he could do. We prayed.

He returned within minutes, saying “the stars had aligned” and they could have a stint Fedexed in overnight and could do it on Friday. I again felt it necessary to talk to him about the concept of ‘the stars aligning.’ I’m not sure he was converted from astrology, but nonetheless he had the stint. He had the timeslot. I wasn’t complaining of his failed theology.

Immediately I felt a calm come over me that I can’t explain. I was completely alright with this new plan. Completely. No bitterness…no anger. I believed that this was happening for a reason, and that was good enough for me. The nurses were falling all over themselves, apologizing for the inconvenience, but I kept telling them that I was at complete peace with it. They didn’t believe me.

Now, the redoing of the I.V. kind of stinks, but other than that, I feel that this was just a trial run. Yeah…a trial run. You know, now I have the jitters taken away. I now know what to expect. I know exactly where to go when I get to the hospital. I know exactly how bad it hurts to get stuck with an 18 gauge needle. I know exactly how to tie the gown. I know exactly why I shouldn’t be nervous in the midst of this ordeal. I’m completely o.k with the fact that I may have been the only person in the world to be kicked out of a hospital, before I even had the chance to enter the operating room.

So, the faith walk continues. Please pray for me tomorrow at 10 a.m. central time. Please pray for a continued peace and understanding for a confusing situation. Please pray that I continue to thank God for the 90% chance of not having a stroke. Please pray that I continue to thank God for the 90% chance that they will not penetrate the walls of the carotid artery, causing a massive bleed. He has been extremely faithful…still. Yes, even in the midst of a confusing day, He has been faithful.

We left the hospital and took full advantage of Cinco de Mayo. We had a table for 15 or 20 set up over at Ojeda’s across the street to celebrate the historic day.

God is faithful…even in times that look confusing. I yield to His plan, not my own. I am simply a supporting role in this life’s play, and believe this day was written like this for a reason. I wake up tomorrow feeling a little like “Groundhog Day,” but with an anxious anticipation for what this day will bring.