Great White shark bite.....

I knew I was alive because of the pain I was in. Not so much from the wound I had, which was very impressive (see pic above) but from the fact Id had a rib removed and a chest drain put in. Every part of my body seemed to have a tube going in, or coming out. There were bags of fluids and blood dangling above me and pumps bleeping away. I was as weak as a kitten, could hardly lift an arm, but none of this mattered really because I was alive. And my recovery was now very much down to me.

Martin appeared sometime during the afternoon, sat and held my hand for a bit but I was nodding off all the time so I wasnt much company. Mr D also popped in then and I do remember him saying the operation had gone very well, thats good enough for me I thought and nodded off again. The nurses were fantastic. Really. I felt so safe in their hands. The next morning I struggled out of bed to the surprise of everyone and even managed a cup of tea. I still felt very weak and shakey but as the tubes and drains started to come out one by one I started to feel a bit more human again. 3 days later I was wheeled back into my room and saw daylight for the first time in days, and it was snowing !!

If you have to be ill and in hospital there is no better place to be than the Priory. Its like a 5 star hotel. My room was lovely, own bathroom and so CLEAN. The food was absolutely yummy and visitors could more or less come any time. The kids came in ofcourse, I wouldnt allow them to see me in ITU, it would have been too scary for them. Just 3 days later I had recovered enough, and was keen, to go home. So 6 days altogether, thats pretty good going for an operation of this kind.

Oh it was nice to be home. And it was absolutely immaculate. Martin had done a stirling job bless him. This was the first time I had seen my wound properly and it did come as a huge shock. I was a bit upset at first but the kids made a joke of it which made me feel better...."It looks like youve been bitten by a Great White Mum!"

The next couple of weeks consisted of shed loads of pain killers, sleeping, and being generally spoilt by all and sundry.

I was starting to feel much more positive and optimistic.