Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Sorry, Everyone. I'm Home Now

Okay: I've just gotten home from Peru. I'm wearing 400 or so stitches and feeling uncomfortable. But here's the skinny: I had a trip to Cuzco/Machu Picchu/Lake Titicacca for my friend Virginia. She's a great gal and I was looking forward to doing the trip and then taking five days at the end to have my exploded abdomen put back in place, my severed stomach muscles sewed together and a piece of plastic mesh put between the muscles and my skin to hold everything together.
But I went to the doc--the guy who saved me from peritonitis death in June--the day I arrived in Cuzco and he said he wanted to do the surgery that day.
"Peter, at this altitude, 11.000 feet,everything has expanded, including your belly. If you wait and then go to Lake Titicacca at 13,000 feet you will explode because the only thing holding you together is a layer of skin. So we should do the surgery today."
Fortunately, a friend had given me the name of someone she'd spent a couple of months doing an ayahuasca dieta with and the woman agreed to take over my group.
She, Carolynne Melnyck, was spectacular from all accounts. Anyone going to Cuzco can ask me for her email.
But I went straight into the hospital and climbed aboard another operating table and felt really weak doing it. I tried to be stong but really was a baby for the op, my third on my stomach since June.
Now I'm home and feeling good. The implant, which will stay with me forever, is very uncomfortable but beats being dead by a mile or 10 any day. Cause I'm not ready to die. I mean, if it happens, I'd live with it but I won't like it.
Anyway, I was having surgery and wasting morphine on real pain, and that's why I didn't communicate with you all.
Thanks for bearing with me. I'll try to do a real post tomorrow.
Peter G

6 comments:

dodahdan said...

Hey Peter,

Glad to have you back in one piece, even if some of the pieces are new. At least a plastic gut shouldn’t give you a hard time at airport security like the metal body parts often do.
What’s your best guess on the January trip? Do you think you will be fit enough to lead the group though out or will you need to enlist the aid of others?
Anyway, hope each day you’re feeling better then the last. I’m looking forward to the new blogs

Peter Gorman said...

Doc says I'll be fine by December and that I should be able to do sit ups and pushups by Jan without worrying about anything splitting open again.
So Jan will be fine for the trip; I will probably enlist aid in Cuzco--a wonderful woman I often use who knows a great deal about the area--as the altitude already gets me, but with the bondage of the plastic gets me even more now. If that happens, I'll just eliminate the two days going to Machu Picchu, but that should be the only change.
In Iquitos, I'm sure I'll be fine as I've already got a crew of 10 that helps me in the city and jungle--10 of the best, people who know so much about the jungle and gathering wild foods and hunting and medicines and who've been trained to help with ayahuasca sessions and so forth that they're my incredible team.
So all will be fantastic, I think.
Peter G

Anonymous said...

Welcome back, Peter!
So glad to hear that the operation went well. Have a speedy recovery, and enjoy Halloween!

bamboo said...

THE most important thing is to relax and heal (like you didn't know!) Take your time, your readers will still be here.

-bamboo

daisyduke said...

white light unto you...you owe nothing

The Grudge said...

I am glad you are back and well(ish)! Hope you heal quick.