Congratulations.
I love mine. It totally changed my life for the better. I no longer have to remember to take my pain medication. I receive a constant dose all of time. I don't have to worry if a patch is lasting 48 or 72 hours. I don't have to worry whether a patch is going to stick or fall off. I never run out of pain medications at the end of the month. I don't have to worry about
pharmacy refills for my main stay meds. And the very best is that I have dramatically less side effects. It's a miracle....
My surgery was done on an outpatient basis. Make sure you invest in a surgical binder, even if your doctor does not recommend one. They make all the difference in the world during the first week or two while the pump is securing itself in with scar tissue and settling into position. It is abdominal surgery, so you can expect about
a 6 week recovery period. Once everything heals you will hardly notice the pump. In the beginning, I found that clothing with elastic waists were the most comfortable. There are different models available. I do wish I had inquired about
the one the allows you to give yourself small period boluses of medication during different times of the the day. The ability to give yourself an extra 5% dose at 8:00 p.n. when my pain acts up would be great. It would eliminate the need for large amounts of extra break through meds. Now is the time to as questions, before the put the pump in and not after. I am glad that I only and a 20 ml pump and not a 40 ml one. I need refills every 2 1/2 - 3 months instead of 6 months. I think this is good because there are times I do not want to wait 6 months before my solution is changed. For example if a medication or combination of meds in not working, I would rather change them sooner than later.Changing meds in a pump is not as easy as getting a new rx at the end of the month.
Good luck
Stella Marie
Co-Forum Moderator for Chronic Pain
Rare neurodegenerative disease called “Multiple System Atrophy”. a very rare neurodegenrative disease ..i.e. brain rot. Mobility issues,, O2 , intrathecal pump, neurostimulator, neuropathic pain, spasticity, central apnea, oesteoarthritis, colitis...etc..etc.