Pre-op assessment day and the 3 Alis in my life

Yesterday I went to the Marsden for my booked pre-operative assessment.
My lovely surrogate daughter Ali (L was C) came with me to hold my hand (but most importantly, so I could meet her second daughter Doodle) and to share the experience, have a catch up, and go out for lunch on the Kings Road....

They were slick with their appointment process:- met a nice HCA who did obs (all good); and Stella, the nurse, who took a detailed history, ran an ECG (heart’s ok), urine test, and talked me through what to expect..... still finding it remarkable that the plan is to come home the following day - although my GP did stress that I MUST not come home if the pain isn’t under control........ don’t worry - if I’m in pain, and in a building where there is access to pain relieving medication, I SHALL BE BLEATING!

Because I have agreed to participate in a couple of research programmes, yesterday I also had to complete my first task (a physical task - sounds like the Crystal Maze..... already spent hours on the paperwork....).
The Marsden have teamed up with the University of South Tees, and the company who make the surgical robots, and are running this study to prove to the NHS and NICE that Robots will vastly improve operative success, and recovery times (fingers crossed)..... so.....I have to do a series of 6 minute walks, which are monitored and recorded - the first one to be done before surgery, and then subsequently, 2, 4 and 12 weeks after the hysterectomy. 
In the ground floor of the Royal Marsden there is a beautiful grand piano, and yesterday, it was being played (very wonderfully) by a lady who was performing a series of hits from the musicals...... think Cats and Les Mis....... 
Above the piano, across a grand stairwell, my ‘track’ was set up, with two orange cones 10 metres apart.....I was instructed to walk around the track for 6 minutes continuously (BP and SATS checked before and after). I can do this I thought, and set off...... singing along to the wonderful music, I marched around the cones. The research doctor, Leah, looked slightly alarmed and said “You’re going quite fast”.... but it wasn’t long before the first obstruction - a patient being wheeled on a trolley to theatre...... followed by another two, interspersed with various individuals looking lost, or confused, or simply irritated, or amused, who all impeded my progress by crossing my track! 
Imagine the scene: mad lady wearing Rupert Bear trousers, marching backwards and forwards across an open stairwell space, singing along to Cats, weaving around patients on trolleys, porters, and others, endeavouring to complete 6 minutes of constant walking....... add in a doctor with a clipboard and a stopwatch, and a lovely nurse who moved the orange cones backwards and forwards when they had to be shunted out of the way of the trolleys. 
Quite an entertainment. Especially when I told Leah, as she sung out that I had 2 minutes remaining, that I felt as if I was on Masterchef, and needed to “plate up” now.

Fortunately, Ali and Doodle had waited back at the Assessment ward (emergency breastfeed and too many stairs), because if she had been there, the amusement level would have been escalated to hysterical...... 

Having established where we need to be on the morning of the surgery, and that the theatres are in the basement (I don’t know why that has a sinister ring to it) and having armed myself with another ton of explanatory paperwork, Ali and I left to go off for lunch - very civilised.
Doodle behaved herself, as only a second baby can, and we spent a happy couple of hours catching up and gossiping in general - all very civilised and quite surreal!



*********************************************************************************
Strange to think that endometrial cancer has spurred me to be more diligent in catching up with all my loved ones. 

For some weird reason I seem to be attracted (like moths to bulbs) to any woman with the name of Alison. There are 3 Alis who are fundamental in my life:- oldest best friend, surrogate sister, and surrogate daughter (as well as various other Alisons who I also like enormously - )

Meanwhile, the other two Alis in my life, are getting on with their own thing.
Oldest best friend Ali (C) is in Cornwall (with other oldest best friend Sue, who doesn’t count in this rambling because she has the wrong name) and is producing a Remembrance Day play in Looe.

Surrogate little sister Ali is busy in her new job (SENCO) but is keeping abreast of my welfare with texts, and beautiful smelling NEOM candles, and catch ups (cinema last week- A Star is Born - very good - do go and see it.... and planned cinema and meal next week but with the other halves in tow - aka GOM and MOG, for a Bohemian evening.....)

SO MUCH TO DO

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