I remember the far away beep of something I could not make out, the far away words that I could not understand, and the feeling of my limbs being manipulated, but not knowing why. It felt like I was smothered by a blanket, or walking through an extremely dark, dense fog. Nothing around me was familiar. Someone, or maybe two people, pulled on my leg while the soft brush of fabric trailed over my skin as someone wrapped it around my lower half. My brain could not sort out the many things that occurred around me. I heard a far off voice. It said, “How are you feeling Nicole?” I could not find the words to respond. My body felt like water soaked clothes and my lips even heavier. They would not move even if I tried to say anything, I tried to move my arm which would not budge either.
Eventually I worked up the energy to mumble something unintelligible and open my eyes. Instant white light penetrated my field of vision. I blinked my eyes to focus them. Someone beside me said they would get me a blanket as soon as they finished wrapping my bandage. Sudden thoughts went rushing through my head. What bandage were they talking about? Who were these people? Where was I? What was happening to me? The questions rushed through my mind as fast as possible. I felt so tired but awake enough to not understand what happened around me. The nurse laid a warm, cozy blanket around me. My eyelids began to droop with heaviness. No, I thought. You must stay awake. Fight the feeling. My body started to win the fight. The bright light slowly faded as I closed my eyes and drifted back to sleep.
Suddenly, I regained consciousness. Why is it so much darker than before? Where was I? The beeping noise became closer and louder this time. I could understand what people said now instead of distant voices. The nurse asked about my pain level. I found the strength to move my lips and said, “Not good.” Something chilly slid across my forehead. The nurse explained that it was a thermometer that worked faster than the normal kind. It left a cool trail, like ice on a hot day, across my forehead. The nurse then lifted my arm and moved something inside my skin. It felt like worms crawling under my skin. I hated the feeling and tried to move my arm. Why won’t you move? Why won’t anything move? I concentrated on moving my arm away and finally it cooperated. I finally realized I was waking up from surgery and the extreme white light I saw emanated from the operating room. The distant beeping came from all the monitors hooked up to my body. The fuzzy feeling in my head came from the anesthesia. I fell back asleep as I thought about what this all meant.
The next time I woke up, my parents stood next to my bed. Some other people busied around the room attending to the monitors. My surgeon stood next to my parents telling them something. What could he be telling them? Was the surgery a success? I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate on their voices, but an intense sharp pain shot through my hip. At this point, everyone in the room finally realized I was awake. My surgeon, Dr. Keene, said, “Nicole, your surgery was a success. We repaired the socket and cut part of the tendon.” He patted my blankets and left the room. The surgery was a success. Thank God. I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep. The bright lights, distant beeping and far away words will now be just a memory. The surgery had been a success.