12 Months After Life-Saving Surgery

Exactly 1 year ago today I was lying in a hospital bed recovering from major surgery that saved my life.

An oxygen tube, an IV drip to feed me, catheter, a tube in my abdomen to empty fluid and a bunch of wires to monitor my vital signs; I was grateful to be alive.

The doctors and my parents had made it clear that I was not out of the woods yet as we still needed to wait 3 more days to find out the test results.

Those 5 days after surgery were the most trying days of my life to date, uncertain what the outcome would be or if more treatment was going to be required.

I was warned to use my Spirometer hourly in order to exercise my lungs and prevent fluid buildup since my diaphragm had to be sliced and repaired as part of the surgery, making breathing much harder.

If I did not, I risked developing pneumonia. The doctor gave me a pillow to squeeze each time he wanted me to cough to clear fluid and it hurt like hell, even with the Morphine.

I cried each time I had to cough and eventually stopped doing it. Naturally, I developed pneumonia and a second battle commenced.

It’s hard to believe that exactly 12 months ago I was in such an uncertain position and in so much pain. Hard to believe the stress my family and friends faced.

The biggest shock was that I was going to need 12 months of quarterly visits to a specialist to recover from the surgery and not be allowed to play any contact sports.

These last 12 months have taught me much more about people than my 38 years before surgery. Some people are no longer part of my life because I got to see how selfish and uncaring they were.

Others are closer to me because of their compassion and understanding. I am grateful for the wake up call that I got, like a brick to the head, because I was neglecting my family and my marriage.

As an entrepreneur, I was obsessed with the success of my business, convinced that my time would be worth it and then I could provide for my family the way I envisioned.

Being stopped in my tracks and forced to be in hospital for 10 days and stuck at home for 6 weeks made me finally realize that family and good energy was more important.

Each of us confronts major challenges in life but not all people get 10 days to reflect on their life and think about what they would do with a second chance.

Facing your mortality puts so much into perspective and it is hard to explain it to people who have not had such an experience. This is not life flashing before your eyes, it’s a long documentary.

You never know what battles others are fighting or recovering from so act with compassion as often as possible. Be supportive instead of a jackass. Bring positive energy instead of poison.

Whatever you are facing right now, do not be afraid to remove negativity from your life and focus on the positive support systems. Lean on those who are compassionate.