Well where do I begin…..
I suppose where things all began, going back 3/4 years when things medically started going a little messy! For those of you who have been with me since the very beginning you will all know about my bladder condition and medical dramas with my pregnancies. So after having the girls and having to have surgery to repair a cervical prolapse my bladder started to take some strain and began leaking between catheterisations. To begin with it wasn’t so bad but over the years it became gradually worse, and tests revealed that pills would not be a cure for this and that I would need some kind of procedure to repair this issue. So after countless discussions with my consultant and his team, various options given I made the decision to go with a procedure to close off my bladder neck stopping any ureteral access and having something called a Mitrofanoff Channel created in my stomach to my bladder, which once done would be where I would catheterise from permanently for the rest of my life.
So after deciding the course of action to which surgery I would take I was put on the NHS waiting list and who really knows when things would happen, anyway fast forward a few years and just before the pandemic I was due to go in but unfortunately it was cancelled and pushed back. During 2020 I had a few dates for the surgery but this never really panned out, the waiting game was excruciating but then in 2021 I had 2 different dates given which never happened then finally I had one that stuck, I had minor surgery during the summer to check things out and discover how they would proceed with the major surgery. After the devastating loss of my Nan back in September I was convinced I would be waiting forever, little did I know fate works in mysterious ways, and just a few weeks later I finally had my major surgery date through.
So surgery was set for the end of November 2021, now since September and losing my nan there has been so much that’s happened but that is something for another time if I decide I should write about it at all. Fast forward to a few weeks before surgery and I had to travel to London for my pre op, and for the very first time since being transferred to the care of UCLH 7 years ago I actually travelled alone by train from my home in Telford to London Euston, walked through London to the hospital without getting lost and did what I needed before heading back to London Euston to re board the train home. For anyone who knows me really well they will be aware this sort of thing gives me huge anxiety I never travel alone anywhere, so for me this was massive confidence boost and I feel proud of myself even now, not allowing my anxieties to get the better of me and got there and back without any issues. Once this was done my surgery was only a week away, home and isolation for me 7 days before and a COVID test 3 days before to be on the safe side. I headed to London the day before my surgery to be admitted to the ward and settle in ready for the next morning, the morning of November 30th arrived and surgery was booked in for early on because of the lengthy time it was going to take with the procedure being such an intricate one. The surgery took roughly around 7hours wish I was able to tell you more but once I had the spinal block and the anaesthetic I was out cold………………………
So I am now the proud owner of a closed bladder neck and a Mitrofanoff channel after my surgery was extremely successful, I recovered so well and managed to get back up on my feet within about 3 days which meant the original 10-14day stay turned into a 7 day stay which was great for me being able to get back home as soon as was humanly possible for my girls and the dogs. I have had some absolutely amazing support since I came back home, from my amazing friends and family who have really rallied around me, not only that my girls have been amazing help making sure mummy is ok. But for those who know me really well and follow me on my social media they will have realised I have been a little cryptic in posts etc because I was trying to be as respectful as possible, but with how things are and because I like to be real with my readers and my friends and family I don’t see why I shouldn’t say it on here in a respectful manner. Those who know me well know I am no longer with the girls dad and I wish him every happiness as we have both moved on, I am happier than ever with my new man whose been an incredible support to both myself and my girls during my surgery and my recovery. I feel my new man has been able to help me so much with my recovery because we both have the same condition, so he gets me on levels others can’t understand.
I intend to track my recovery a little more as I am now catheter bag free after 8 weeks at home with them in whilst things settled down, with a slight extension due to myself and my fella contracting COVID and having to isolate, but as of January 26th I was completely catheter free other than having to intermittently catheterise through my Mitrofanoff channel for the rest of my life now. I hope you will all continue to support and follow me on my new journey and the new adventures to come with family life etc
Thank you for reading
Kayleigh x
