Home Sweet Home

From the time I checked in for pre-op at UCSF on April 28th, it was all go. It really started to hit home -- I had been so focused on being pain-free in the future, that I hadn't really thought about the actual surgery. There I was, ready to go.

Dr. Vail had been referred to me by Dr. Nick Colyvas, who was referred to me by one of my best mates as well as one of the best rugby players from Wales, Gary Williams. If these guys have been putting the rugby boys back together, they have seen it all. These are the kind of docs that I want working on me. I want to be back in the line up this winter. Dr. Vail and his team are the best, so I was ready to do this.

I remember being on the gurney, being wheeled into the OR and being parked next to the operating table. Someone later asked me if I remembered the operating room because I was talking for a while. I don't remember. I woke up in the PACU with all the rest of the victims of modern medicine. It seemed like a half hour had passed, not the two and a half hours of surgery time. My left leg was tingling like when you sleep on it and the circulation is cut off. The right leg had no sensation or signs of life for about 30 minutes.

It wasn't until I did the animated virtual operation that I really understood how deep this operation is, on the largest bone in the human body. The feeling started to come back, as did some more fun and games I will fill you in on later.

I made it home today. Time to rest. More later.