Finally did it (Surgery with Dr. Robert Caridi in Austin TX)

[moobius]

I finally had the surgery yesterday in Austin TX with Dr. Caridi.

I ended up doing it with local and sedation rather than general anesthesia. The RN who helped me was really amazing. She was very friendly and professional through out the initial consultations, the prep and during pre-surgery she made me feel really comfortable.  
I only had a couple of brief moments during the procedure that were uncomfortable but outside of that I hardly remember much of it short of laying on the table and then helping to squeeze into the compression garment.

I had a bit of anxiety doing it with local+sedation vs general but knowing what I do now that anxiety was completely unwarranted.

The surgical staff and doctors were great. Dr. Caridi apparently does a lot of these and had another one scheduled for later in the day after my op.

Just in changing the bandages and still wearing my vest I can already tell a dramatic improvement in my chest. I'll get more info at my checkup Friday but doc said glands were around 88g. Also did lipo of abs/flanks so my entire torso is sore. He gave me some good meds so I'm staying comfortable and there isn't nearly as much drainage as I would have anticipated.

For anyone looking for a surgeon in central Texas check out Dr. Caridi -- I'll update with more details and try to get some pics up after my checkup.

[rhyno18]

You're 3 days post op, so there's a good chance what you're experiencing is the usual postop questioning almost everybody goes through the first week.  It's way too early to panic about it.

Be patient and see how you heal. If it's not quite right, it'll be awhile before you can do anything about it anyway.  Just wait it out and see how things go the next few months.

[Zuffu92]

Looking forward to see the pics, thanks for sharing your story.

[giggsy]

how did it go for you?