One Year Puppy Eye Surgery Anniversary and a TMI Health Update

Philo and Mommy driving a pontoon boat, August 2021

On March 16th, 2021, we took our dog Philo for surgery to have cataracts removed from his eyes in the hopes that it would restore his vision which he had lost completely over the 2020 holiday season. It was an expensive decision with seemingly few risks, but the weeks of recovery following that procedure were unexpectedly hellish for both us and the dog. He had all kinds of strange side effects and reactions to his medication. His eyes would swell from pressure. His body inflated with crazy water retention. We had to drive over two hours both ways on multiple occasions for frantic visits with his surgeon. Eventually, he recovered, though. His eyes stopped swelling, his body returned to its normal size and shape, and yes, his vision was restored.

At the time I worried if we had made a mistake, if the surgery to restore his vision was more trouble for him than it was worth. He seemed so miserable in the aftermath that I wondered if he would be better off blind. But that was just fear in the moment causing me to doubt. I can say now with almost one hundred percent confidence that his surgery was worth it. He's back to taking walks, playing fetch, and wreaking havoc everywhere he goes. He's much happier with his vision than he was when he went blind. Yes, it was expensive, but the comfort and joy the dog brings to us is priceless. I'm reflecting on all of this with gratitude today, March 16th, 2022.

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I also had a surgery recently. On March 11th, mine and my husband's 8th dating anniversary, I went to the hospital to have polyps shaved off of the lining of my uterus. I was flabbergasted when the doctor, during a routine cavity exam, found them and informed me that I would have to have them removed prior to transferring an embryo. (I haven't really mentioned it on this blog yet, but my husband and I are pursuing embryo adoption. We have one picked out and are just waiting to put it in me).

The surgery to remove them was pretty simple, at least as far as I was concerned. And there really hasn't been much of a recovery. I was told to take it easy for two days then life could basically return to normal. I didn't experience any pain in the aftermath. The only side-effect I experienced was from the anesthesia. Occasionally, after being put under for surgery, patients might experience constipation.

I didn't "go" for three days, and even after I finally managed to, I still felt bloated and gross. So last night, I took a little something to help move things along. I came to regret that decision today. About once every thirty minutes while at work, I had to nervously shuffle my way to the bathroom. Needless to say, I no longer feel bloated and instead have a different discomfort afflicting my bottom. I have been thoroughly "cleared out."

Anyway, now that the polyps are removed, you may think the next step is to pop an embryo in there and have myself a baby. But there are a few more steps before I can try to get pregnant. First of all, I have a follow-up cavity exam scheduled to make sure there's no polyp regrowth or scarring.Then, I'll have to wait at least a full six weeks after the surgery before scheduling a transfer. Before the transfer of the embryo will be three+ weeks of medication to prepare the uterine lining for optimal coziness. It'll be awhile before I'm peeing on any sticks to find out if it stuck. Especially since, with this polyp-related delay, we've decided that it's probably best to wait until after some summer travelling plans.

The earliest we could do a transfer given the recovery period after my surgery would probably be mid-April and since we have a trip to California planned for mid-June, that would still have me in the first trimester if the transfer were successful. I'm personally not interested in flying across the country, attending a convention, and walking around Disneyland all while dealing with morning sickness and fatigue. Also, during those critical first several weeks, I'd want to be near my doctors if something were to go wrong. If things had gone more "according to plan," I might have been in the second trimester by then and feeling a bit more perky. But alas, that's not the case. So, in my opinion, it's best to just hold off until we're back home. Plus, this way I can still ride The Matterhorn.