Author: Andy Montgomery
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Physical Movement
Physical Movement After Surgery After returning home from surgery, I soon learned that I was more fragile than I thought I would be. The abdominal muscle plays a big part in your everyday physical movement, something that you might take for granted. You will be surprised how many times it is used when doing simple,…
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Lessons in Life
I have often wondered what kind of people would consider donating their kidney. I would suspect that a significant percentage of donors are family members or close friends. Then there are people who donate anonymously, which I find utterly amazing. What drives people to make the final decision? In my case there is a back…
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Returning from Hospital
Saturday night was the final evening at Karolinska hospital. I couldn’t express enough relief, and neither could Ulrica. She stayed at a small hotel across the street from the hospital and departed from my room at 9 pm that evening. As Sunday morning dawned, anxiety gripped me as we faced the journey ahead. Normally, such…
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How to Wash after Surgery
You don’t usually think about how you’ll wash your body after surgery or a major operation. But soon, you’ll face that moment and wonder how you’ll manage to get into the bath or shower. Firstly, forget about baths! With a lot of plasters and soft bandages around your stomach and abdomen area, you need to…
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Kidney Recovery
After a good night’s sleep I wake up in my bright hospital room. It’s bright because there is a lot of snow outside, which reflects through the blinds. I adjust myself in the bed, remembering to take it slow. My chest and stomach are bloated and I can feel the tightness around my abdomen where…
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Operation Day
It’s 5 a.m. and the door swings open into my hospital room. Two female nurses enter and greet me with “Good morning, Andrew, we are here to take some blood samples before the operation and make sure you are healthy”. They are both cheery, smiling and treat me very gently. A few blood samples are…