12.19.01 - DAY AFTER SURGERY
Got home from my surgery last night. I am in quite a lot of pain but I will be posting pics and the rest of my story up here later when it doesn't hurt to sit in this chair. Take care all.

12.25.01 - POST-OP 12 DAYS - AT HOME FOR 7
Merry Christmas to everyone! I am feeling really good. I have cut down on my meds quite a bit and am still not having a great deal of pain. The meds that the hospital gave me are: For pain - Oxycontin twice a day (12 hour release), Tylox as needed, an antibiotic and Valium as needed. Right now all I am taking is the Oxycontin cause that's all I need. Day to day activities are getting much easier too. At first it was hard to dress myself, take a shower and stuff. But after the first day home I pretty much had that down.
Stuff like sitting in a car and getting in and out of bed are not easy but I have my wonderful roommate to help me. The swelling has gone down substantially so I will be posting post-op pics very soon. All in all the procedure and the recovery have been much easier then I ever expected. I will be changing the 'diary' section soon and dividing it up into two. One section will be just describing the procedure as I saw it through my eyes in the hospital. The other will be an actual diary with more detail to what I did and didn't do during my recovery at home. Take care.

12.29.01 - POST-OP 16 DAYS
Wow. I am really doing great. I usually take my Oxycontin at 8AM and again at 8PM. But this morning I got up at 10AM and totally forgot to take my meds and didn't even really notice that much pain. I took them anyway at 11AM and am not really feeling too much pain. Just a mild soreness really. I got to ride in the car today to Blockbuster, which wasn't so bad. It was a little uncomfortable but nothing I couldn't handle. I am planning to go back to work on January 16th. The day after my follow up appointment with Dr Nuss. I figure that is a full 5 weeks after my surgery and I will be doing much better then. The doctors and nurses said that I would be able to go back to work in 3 weeks. That's next week and I could see myself going back to work yes but it wouldn't be that easy. It's hard to sit in one position for more then I guess 20 minutes or so cause the bar starts to get painful and you have to get up and walk around a little. Plus, I just want to feel more recovered before I return. I still can't lift anything and stuff like that. I can't see myself driving though, it's hard enough to ride in a car. All in all the surgery was a total success and I would even do it again. It was worth every moment. The pain wasn't anything I can't handle again and even when I got home as long as you take the meds for the first 2 weeks or so you will be fine. I am VERY happy with the results and CAN'T WAIT to start working out again and building up my chest. I am going to look totally great. Other then the bar sticking out of the side of my chest (which will be removed in 3 years anyway) my chest is totally amazing! Right on!

01.03.02 - POST-OP 22 DAYS
The pain just keeps getting better and better. Tomorrow I am thinking of going to just Aleve and nothing more. We will see if I can handle it. I think the worst part of it all is sitting down. You can't slouch. You can't put your feet up on the coffee table when watching a movie. You just have to keep your back straight and your chest out. It gets hard at times and really uncomfortable to a point where I just want to lay down to take off the pressure. But I am sitting here at my PC and doing ok. But after a while, I'd say an2o minutes or so you need to get up and walk around or something. Walking is really helping me out and I go for a walk every morning for about 30 minutes or so. I am just so thrilled that the pain is getting better. An important thing I should mention is that I have been RESTING a lot the past 2 days and that's where the big difference is coming from. When I first got home I was a bit overzealous and wanted to do stuff, small stuff but something. I was cleaning a little, doing laundry or even cooking. I would get very tired fast and the pain sets in my back and chest. And it gets really bad sometimes. I have found that just resting is the best and that's why I may be able to only take Aleve tomorrow. Just sitting and watching a movie or TV or even reading is really helping me recover much quicker.

01.25.02 - POST-OP 42 DAYS
My pain has pretty much disappeared. The only time I have pain is when I sneeze, laugh really hard or lay on my side. And even then it's not so bad. I have no problems driving and actually returned to the gym. I am using fairly llight weights but it's still nice to get back to working out. I am not on any pain medications either. I could probably get back to playing sports very soon because I went jogging yesterday and felt fine. The swelling is totally gone and my chest is looking better and better everyday. I am so pleased with my surgery.

1 YEAR AFTER SURGERY
Everything is fantastic! No pain at all and most of the time I forget I even have the bar in me. Working out and running a lot.