I didn’t sleep well last night. No, I didn’t suffer the
night terrors, but I didn’t fall asleep until after 4:00. We bought an oral
device for Colleen a couple of days ago to alleviate her snoring, and she tried
it first on Wednesday night. It worked great. We spent the entire night
together and woke together in the morning. It had been many months since we
slept together. I’ve been sleeping on an old mattress on the floor in Colleen’s
office. This device held great promise for us. But it wasn’t entirely effective
last night, although her snoring was somewhat muted. It seems I require near total
silence to fall asleep lately. That’s a tall order no matter where I sleep. I
rose from the bed at 1:30 and retreated to her office where I lay, wide awake,
for half an hour. Finally, I took a sleeping pill and moved to my office to
play here on the computer. It was 4:00 when I located some earplugs and returned
to Colleen’s bed.
Colleen woke me at 8:30 this morning. She’d prepared a big breakfast for Ivy and me. Things went sour soon after I’d descended the stairs. The fried potatoes were cold. The boiled eggs were too runny. She fried some eggs to replace them, but the rest of the meal was cold by the time she’d cooked enough. And when she delivered my coffee (with too much cream in it), she slopped it all over the table.
“Fuck this,” she cursed. “This meal is ruined.”
When she curses, I know Colleen is really upset.
Tears came later when we talked about it. Colleen is experiencing a lot of pressure. She’s worried about me, of course, and living in fear of what the future will bring. What will happen to me? What will become of us? And her gastric bypass surgery is scheduled for next month – February 14th. Valentine’s Day. The habit of eating will change for her that day, and for the rest of her Life. The operation ("Roux-en-Y procedure") bypasses the top end of the small intestine and reduces the stomach to the size of a golf ball. Her new stomach will be less than a quarter the size of her old one. Meals will be much smaller, more frequent, and eaten much more slowly. Nutrition will become her main focus. Vitamin supplements will be required daily. Yes, she will lose weight, and, I pray, keep it off. Patients often lose 1 – 2 pounds per day for the first month post surgery. The change will be dramatic. But she also fears the excess skin may be unattractive. I’ve promised her I’ll pay for plastic surgery to remove it, if necessary, if I’m still ...
Colleen woke me at 8:30 this morning. She’d prepared a big breakfast for Ivy and me. Things went sour soon after I’d descended the stairs. The fried potatoes were cold. The boiled eggs were too runny. She fried some eggs to replace them, but the rest of the meal was cold by the time she’d cooked enough. And when she delivered my coffee (with too much cream in it), she slopped it all over the table.
“Fuck this,” she cursed. “This meal is ruined.”
When she curses, I know Colleen is really upset.
Tears came later when we talked about it. Colleen is experiencing a lot of pressure. She’s worried about me, of course, and living in fear of what the future will bring. What will happen to me? What will become of us? And her gastric bypass surgery is scheduled for next month – February 14th. Valentine’s Day. The habit of eating will change for her that day, and for the rest of her Life. The operation ("Roux-en-Y procedure") bypasses the top end of the small intestine and reduces the stomach to the size of a golf ball. Her new stomach will be less than a quarter the size of her old one. Meals will be much smaller, more frequent, and eaten much more slowly. Nutrition will become her main focus. Vitamin supplements will be required daily. Yes, she will lose weight, and, I pray, keep it off. Patients often lose 1 – 2 pounds per day for the first month post surgery. The change will be dramatic. But she also fears the excess skin may be unattractive. I’ve promised her I’ll pay for plastic surgery to remove it, if necessary, if I’m still ...
There’s a lot going on here at the moment. And Colleen is
bearing most of the load. Why must women suffer this way, I wonder.
I am in awe of the strength of women.
...
You poor folk are really going thru it.
ReplyDeleteI have understood that if you can't sleep give it up and read or some such. That seems to change things, sometimes in fairly short order. Make it a heavy tome. But maybe you need a more permanent alternative for sleeping other than a mattress on the floor? Do you have the space to set up something? I could not sleep with a snorer. Some can, but I couldn't.
thanks John. I know you've had many sleepless nights. It's worry l think that keeps me awake. We don't have the space for a permanent bed but we're certain her snoring will disappear when she loses weight.
ReplyDeleteSP used to snore HORRIBLY and I spend many a sleepless night listening to the roar. We tried everything short of me suffocating him. :) He lost about 40 pounds and has not snored since. So there is hope.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear it, Missy. Hope is what we cling to.
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