A small shop then taking it easy

 Husband had to go to our local community hospital for an x-ray this morning, I sat in the car and waited, we then went to get a bit of top up shopping and some fresh veg.  I've been having home deliveries for the last few weeks, but the last 2 have been missing some items, and the last one had an entire bagful of dairy stuff missing (including my lactose free milk, grr), although I'd been charged for it - I guess it must have been left on the van or given to another customer by mistake.  It's been refunded now.  I didn't want to go to the big Morrisons as it's often busy in there and social distancing isn't observed very much...my paperwork from the hospital said to observe strict social distancing for 2 weeks following discharge.  I always do anyway, but will make sure of it at the moment....I have no plans to go anywhere else in the near future in any case.

So we decided to go to a farm shop for the veggies - good choice, there were only a couple of other customers there.  And then we went to an Aldi that never seems to be busy - it wasn't, hardly anyone in there and we got straight onto a checkout without queueing, shop done and out of there in about 20 minutes.

We're not doing any more decluttering today, having the rest of the day off, in fact I'm going up for a nap now as I do feel quite tired.  My pee is less pink today, almost clear in fact, and is hardly stinging at all, so I think all the extra water I've been drinking is flushing it all through.

We've started

 I decided that today we'd start on the big declutter, it won't get done unless we start.  We can't really go anywhere at present, and the weather forecast isn't great for the next few days, so we might as well.  Fortunately, the council tip is open this lockdown, so we can get rid of rubbish.  It's a pity that charity shops aren't, we haven't really got space to store loads of unwanted stuff.  I will ask on the local social media pages for surrounding villages if anyone wants the stuff, it can be left outside for people to collect at an arranged time.  Unfortunately, due to living in this very rural area, as mentioned before, we don't have any passing traffic.

I think the best way to go about the declutter is doing one room, or even a section of a room, at a time.  So this morning we made a start in the dining room....husband is on board with this and has been very helpful.  

I'm being ruthless and disposing of everything we haven't used in ages, or am not keen on, or we have duplicates of.  Such as surplus crockery, of which I have loads.  I've been collecting blue and white Willow pattern crockery for years, I have a large assortment of it, it doesn't all match (not that it matters a jot to me, it's all blue and white with a similar design!) but I really don't need half of it.  E.g., I once bought a stack of 15(!!) tea plates at a car boot sale for about £3...not that I needed them as I already had about 6 or 7, it was just such a bargain though and some always get chipped so it's useful to have a couple of spares.  Not 15 though, I don't run a tea room! 😂. I also don't need the half a dozen assorted large cake/sandwich plates (again no tea room here 😒).  Ditto the 10 or so cups and saucers - we literally never use them, we always use mugs (and have loads of them in different sizes and designs, some pretty porcelain, some for builder's tea).

I'm also chucking a lot of the vast amount of random plastic food boxes I've acquired over the years....we really don't need that many.  I also found a cardboard box containing 2 old complete sets of cutlery, some of which was discoloured and rusty, so obviously that's going too.  As will some of the glassware - what's the point of keeping, say, 3 wine glasses left remaining from a set of 6?  Or sherry glasses?  I don't think I've ever drunk sherry, and we don't have any maiden aunts 😂.

We've already filled 2 large plastic boxes and a couple of rubbish sacks.  Stopped for a break and lunch.

All my strange aches and pains have gone, so I think the anaesthetic is out of my system now.  However, my pee has become a bit pink again since last night and it's still stinging a bit, so I suppose it's possible I may be getting a UTI, the hospital did warn it might happen.  If it's not gone over the next day or 2 I'll get husband to take a wee sample to the GP, he's got to go for a routine appointment on Wednesday morning anyway.  

Feeling more like myself

 Thank you for all the comments, I'm feeling heaps better today.  The effects of the anaesthetic seem to be wearing off quicker than the last time I had one, although on reflection, that time I'd had an operation whereas this time it was just an exploratory thing, so that's probably why.  My nether regions are still tender, but no bleeding and the searing pain when peeing is now just a very mild sting, it's reducing all the time.

Just to clarify a few things....I'm not fixed at all, the problem I've had for nearly a year is still there, it's not resolved in any way.  The procedure on Wednesday was for the surgeon to explore by camera and check for diabetic nerve damage (which he thought was causing the problem), or possibly stones in my bladder, or anything else - signs of cancer eg, although he didn't think there was.  If he found any of these, he would have dealt with them there and then, hence why I had to have general anaesthesia rather than local.  However, he didn't find anything, he said my bladder seems normal, so there was nothing he needed to do.

All the procedure did was rule out a few possible causes of my condition, it didn't identify what IS actually causing it, and the condition is ongoing and still causing me the same problems.  So I will wait to see what the surgeon has to say in his letter, and then speak to my GP to see if something can be done, as I can't go on with things the way they are indefinitely.

Meanwhile, we've had some very good news, I can't say any more but it's something that will make a very big difference to our future life and we're both chuffed to bits about it.

It was blowing a gale and chucking it down when I got up this morning, it's calmed down a lot now and looks much better out....not that I'm going anywhere but at least it'll be nicer when husband takes Betty out for a longer walk after lunch.  No sign of any snow and none forecast for us.

The hospital experience

 Thank you so much for comments, it is lovely to read them.

Firstly, I want to say how impressed I was with the whole hospital setup, from a covid safety point of view.  Each new patient is asked to gel their hands and then has their temperature taken with a forehead thermometer before being allowed in the ward.  One patient in every other bed, so more than adequate social distancing.  All nurses wore full PPE, of course, and changed it after interaction with every patient, every single time, they must get through literally dozens of aprons/gloves etc each per shift.  And they gelled their hands every time they changed gloves too.  Every bit of equipment (blood pressure monitor, blood oxygen tester, diabetes glucose meter, etc) sterilised immediately after every use.  Cleaning staff on the ward the whole time constantly cleaning the toilets and wiping down all door handles, surfaces etc every few minutes.  I felt as safe as it was possible to be from a covid point of view.  My assigned nurse was called away at one point to go and have her covid jab in a big tent in the car park - personally, I reckon all medical staff should have had the jabs first.  After all, they're putting themselves at risk every working shift, and we as patients need them to stay healthy as they're looking after us.  Without exception, all the medical staff were wonderful.

The surgeon and anaesthetist were both very nice chaps, they explained quite clearly what they would be doing.  I've had general anaesthesia twice before and both times I had a bad reaction to it....it makes me violently sick and I feel like I've been run over by a steamroller for a week afterwards, whereas my husband, who's had loads of ops, is never sick and feels fine after 24 hours.  The anaesthetist said it's pants to be so sick and assured me he wouldn't let it happen - he was right, I wasn't sick at all, so well done him.

As for the procedure itself, I was having a camera in my bladder, the surgeon said he would have a good look round, check for diabetic nerve damage which is what he thought the problem was, or anything else - stones eg - and deal with it there and then.  Well, when he came to see me back on the ward, he said he found nothing, my bladder appeared normal.  At least, I think that's what he said, I was still very woozy then.  It does say bladder normal on my discharge notes though.  So whilst it's good that my bladder seems fine, essentially it means that I've had nothing done to treat the problem and it's still there.  I don't know what happens next, I think he said he will write to me, I have to go back for a follow up appointment in a few weeks.

*WARNING GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION*

The paperwork you get prior to going in said I may experience some passing of blood and some minor discomfort when peeing for a day or 2 afterwards....bollocks to that (excuse my language) - it was agonisingly painful.  There was quite a lot of blood, which thankfully stopped fairly quickly, but the pain when peeing was terrible, it felt like I was peeing burning broken glass or razor blades.  It's no longer that painful, just stinging now, and only when I pee, whereas yesterday my entire nether regions felt like they'd been chewed by a piranha and I seemed to be bleeding from everywhere down there, front to back.

Now, 2 days after the procedure, I still feel like I've been beaten up by a gang of hooligans, I'm tired all the time, stuffy head, and I have some very odd muscle aches and soreness.  E.g. my shoulders feel like the anaesthetist (a big bloke) must have been kneeling on them (I don't suppose he was!), the left side of my jaw is very sore for some reason, and my ankles are sore...from being in stirrups, I guess.  Strangely, I also have some small cuts, like paper cuts, on the fingers of my right hand...no idea about those but they weren't there when I went in hospital.  It's of no consequence, I'm just curious as to how they got there.  I'm feeling weepy and subdued, but I expect that will pass, although I am a bit upset that my problem hasn't been resolved.  I guess I'll have to speak to my GP next week.  For now, I'm just resting and doing nothing except reading and sleeping, husband is keeping me fed and watered.

Home

 Short note to say came home yesterday early evening.  Very sore, achey and tired, will post in a day or 2.  Thank you for all the messages x

Clearing out

 I'm itching to get started on a major declutter - and I do mean major.  I did a small one some time last year, getting rid of a couple of black bin bags full of clothes, some ornaments and a few carrier bags of yarn.  Now I want to do a lot more.  Some stuff will be taken to the tip, some donated to charity shops, some offered for pennies on the local social media selling pages.

We can't get rid of any of this stuff right now though, under the current covid restrictions and whilst we're self isolating, so it will need to be stored in the garage.  The trouble is....the garage is full up with junk...husband's junk, that he's acquired over many years - stuff that he's been given (other people's easy way of getting rid of stuff they don't want so they don't have to take it to the tip!).  And bits of wood etc that he's picked up and thought 'that might come in useful' (only he's never used them), old and broken tools, old tarpaulins, a couple of old cupboards that should have gone to the tip but he wanted to keep them for storage, and now they're full of junk!  And a whole heap of who knows what....he's a hoarder of JUNK!

I did say a couple of weeks ago I'd like him to clear out the garage, he said he would ASAP.  Well, his ASAP is a bit different to mine!  I know he can't take the junk to the tip right now (even his trailer in the garage is full of junk!), but he could at least be sorting through it all and perhaps having a bonfire of the old wood and condensing some of the stuff.  Meanwhile, I suppose I could start pulling out all the stuff I don't want and leaving it stacked in places where he's likely to trip over it....that might encourage him to get on with the garage sorting 😒😂

A step nearer

 Well, I had my covid test yesterday, so I'm a step nearer to having my operation on Wednesday.  It was a drive through thing in the car park of the local community hospital, they will only contact me if it's a positive result - I sincerely hope not.  If I don't hear from them, I can assume it was negative and go for my op on Wednesday as planned.

We had a leaflet come through the other day from a clothing company we've bought things from a few times, they have a sale on at the moment and were offering a free gift if your order is over £30, they do that quite often.  The free gift this time is an overnight bag and matching toiletries bag....just right for my hospital attendance.  Although my op is hopefully a day case thing, I've been told to take an overnight bag just in case - I have an adverse reaction to general anaesthetic, and my congenital mild liver disease might possibly cause me to become jaundiced following an operation, so I may have to stay overnight for observation.  So I ordered a couple of things....Husband wanted a new rugby shirt and I ordered a top reduced to half price, the total for both was just over £30, so I qualified for the free gift too.  The order came yesterday (delivered by courier at 5.45 pm on a Sunday!).  I sterilised the package before opening, and thoroughly washed my hands after handling..the tops are lovely - but no free gift!  I suppose it could come separately, but no mention of it.  I do have a weekend bag I can use, but it's bigger than the overnight one - not that it matters really.  I've emailed the company, although I doubt I'll receive the missing bag now before Wednesday.  

Having a family video quiz this evening, which should be a laugh, a bit of a diversion from the boring routine.  I know this lockdown is necessary, especially prior to my op, but I'm totally fed up with house arrest!