Hello, everyone. I’m still alive.
Thank you to everyone who emailed Mod R to check on me. I’ve written a long detailed post of woe about my gallbladder ordeal, but I just trashed it, because it was depressing, and who wants that?
I don’t give medical advice, because I’m not a medical professional, so here is a datapoint. If you have unexplained severe pain in the upper abdomen, especially after you eat fatty meals, have your gallbladder checked. Especially if you recently lost weight, as weight loss can accelerate formation of gallstones.
When they put me on Ozempic for blood sugar control, I expected to lose some weight as a consequence. And I did. I came off Ozempic just before the attacks started. I’ve lost 31 lbs. to date. 18 of it was Ozempic. The rest was gallbladder. The pain is excruciating, and it gets worse, not better. I got to the point where I was afraid to eat. If the surgeon had told me, “We’ll have to cut off one of your feet for the pain to stop,” I would’ve told him to pick one.
I’m recovering. I saw my primary yesterday, and the incisions are healing well. They gave me oxycodone in the hospital, which I took for two days. I haven’t taken any painkillers since last Saturday. I walked 3 times a day for 15 minutes, even if it was just around the house or back yard, since the day of surgery, so my gas pain was tolerable.
I won’t lie, there were a couple of days there where I wasn’t myself because I irrationally worried about my pain coming back. But I climbed out of that hole. I still get pain twinges, but it’s nothing like it was. It pinches and lets go. I do have other weird pains here and there. Like something is hurting in my right side just above the hip. Feels like a pulled muscle or something, hurts when I inhale deeply, but right now I’m hypersensitive to every twitch. The main thing is, it’s been 8 days. I am not bent over crying.
Things I have tried to eat: a few bites of lean steak, a few bites of pot roast, a small serving of mushroom ravioli with a little marinara sauce and ground chicken breast. Mostly I eat saltines and chicken broth. Also pears and apples. Oatmeal.
But yesterday, after visiting the primary and giving blood – my liver enzymes were again sky high during the hospital stay, so she wants to recheck – Gordon took me out for sushi. It was a beautiful day. We sat outside. I ordered $15 worth of sushi making sure there was zero mayo or sauce on it. I ate 6 pieces and almost fell asleep at the table. I ate the rest for dinner and still have some left.
I get tired very easily now. I am back to work but only able to work in short bursts. I have a lot of brain fog and the concentration is just not there. It’s frustrating, but there is no cure except time. I’m deliriously happy with the pain being gone, and the hospital took good care of me. I sent the ER and OBS thank you baskets. Apparently, not a lot of people do this, because I received a puzzled call from the hospital today, making sure that I meant to send the baskets to the staff.
And now onto much funner news. Sanctuary is available for preorder in ebook. Behold the Black Volhv.
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Ilona Andrews comes a novella featuring Roman, our favorite Volhv wizard in the always intriguing, colorful, volatile Kate Daniels world.
It’s not easy serving Chernobog, the God of Destruction, Darkness and Death… especially during the holidays; and especially when you’re out of eggnog and one of your pesky, freeloading mythic creatures has eaten your last cookie.
Roman would like nothing more than to be left alone, but when a wounded boy stumbles into his yard and begs for sanctuary, Roman takes him in. Now, elite mercenaries are camped out on his property, combat mages are dousing the house with fire, and strange priests are unleashing arcane magic. They thought Roman was easy pickings, just a hermit in the woods, but they chose the wrong dark priest to annoy. For while Roman might be patient, he is the Black Volhv, filled with the love of his terrible god. For his adversaries, it’s a fight to the death, but for him, it’s just another day in the neighborhood.
Preorder:
Remember, today is your last day to read the serial for free, and then it is going to come off the site for edits. Front page is updated, and the countdown timer is up.
Hooray preorder!!! Done!
Glad you are mending Ilona
I’m so sorry you had to go through that and it’s great you’re doing so much better. I hope you find your best path to a full recovery.
Sending out energy/prayer to manifest healing for you. 🙏
Glad you are getting better! Take care of yourself and get well soon!
Preordered yesterday. Will try to squeeze one last full read in today, as if I don’t already have passages memorized.
So very glad you are healing well!!
Glad you are able to feel some relief with the surgery.
I have to admit I thought of Mister Rogers when I read that last line. “For his adversaries, it’s a fight to the death, but for him, it’s just another day in the neighborhood.” I envisioned Roman with a nice little cardigan and tennis shoes for a minute. So excited for it’s release!
Original line was “another day in Nav” but it was agreed by all that most people wouldn’t get the reference. 🙂
I’m sure those that do get it will be clamoring for coffee mugs and other assorted items with “another day in Nav” on it. 😁
These mugs should have a lovely knitted sweater on it as well 🙂
That will be arranged. We are planning to open the store for this release. 🙂
Yea!
Woop-woop! 🎉
I was hit by a car several years ago and had to have my shoulder reconstructed. The surgeon did a great job and was very nice to me, so a couple of weeks after the surgery I took flowers to his office with a thank you card.They were stunned, which made me wonder about people. Why WOULDN’T you thank a person who fixed you?
However, I am now embarrassed that I didn’t think of the emergency room people, who were also wonderful.
So wonderful to hear that you are recovering. Being kind to yourself and taking time is hard but best. 💜
Also preorder has been preordered! Can’t wait!
I have had several surgeries and the brain fog seems to be a side effect of the anesthetic. Walking definitely helps with gas. My gall bladder surgery was 40 years ago so it was not laparoscopic and gas pains were not fun. I was told that depending on the person and the surgery it takes roughly 6 weeks for your body to shake off the anesthesia
Good luck with healing and reintroducing food.
I can believe that. I had the appendix out in my mid-20s, and it was probably 10+ days before it felt like the body was connected to the head properly. Before, it seemed like there was a bit of a lag. Did dreadful things to the balancing act!
Im not a doctor, but the 3 times I’ve had general anesthesia, I’ve been told it can take as long as 6 months to completly clear from your brain. So hang in there with the brain fog and tiredness. Itll get better with time. Stay hydrated. sending good thoughts.
So now I’m curious between general anesthesia and what’s-it-called, waking anesthesia? I had the latter when I had a colonoscopy at the hospital. Came out of it with no residual effects and no brain fog, other than, “didn’t I just go to sleep? Are you done already?”. I’m guessing maybe you can’t use that version for longer surgeries??
it’s called moderate sedation. you are responsive and follow commands during the procedure. you don’t stop breathing on your own. we use it a lot for diagnostic procedures that are uncomfortable but don’t require the patient to be completely immobile. Major abdominal surgery is better under general anesthesia because you don’t want the patient suddenly coughing or moving when in there doing delicate work.
source: self, as a respiratory therapist with 25 years of hospital experience
Ah, I didn’t realize the general anesthesia also kept you from moving that much.
Thanks for the info.
I take a looong time to recover from general anesthesia. I just have to know that going in. Having said that, I don’t remember gas pain from my surgery. I’ve either blocked it, just got lucky, or filed it with the excruciating pain beforehand.
So very happy you are recovering well!
Please be sure to take of yourself first – the rest can w**t. ::hugs::
Pre ordered!
So happy to hear you are feeling better Ilona! Having had my own gallbladder removed years ago, I totally understand where you are now. It was a major surgery and it just takes a little while for you to get your energy back and also to be able to eat pretty much normally all of the time.
If you get frustrated with being tired (etc) just remind yourself that you are now rid of the awful, painful attacks permanently! But don’t worry, you’ll get there. Keep doing what you’re doing, you’re doing great.
P.S.: Sanctuary preordered. 😁
Be kind to yourself, it takes time to heal. Preorder done!!
Thank you for the beautiful cover & the pre-order – I CLICKED SO FAST.
I hope you continue to feel a bit better. Being sick and in pain is so hard.
hope your recovery goes well! pre ordered my copy!
Ebook ordered! So sorry you had that route with your gallbladder. I had the same ER version and actually pushed the doctor away when he pressed my side. Like you said, time and rest, feel better!
yay!! I pre-ordered yesterday.
I love how we get a great cover that covers Everything Roman, while allowing us to visualize his face. Man off Mystery, heh!
Sending best wishes for a good recovery. I am so sorry you had to go through rhat.
Sending lots of healing vibe. Glad to have you back, but want you to be happy and rested. Mod R has been keeping us entertained (🥳🤪)
Will pre order later. Happy Friday To all the BDH. 😍
You lost an organ, a part of your body, take the time to heal even when it doesn’t hurt. I’ve had 2 organs removed and I pushed myself too hard after the gallbladder (I was changing schools and had to set up my classroom) do not do that.
Also anaesthesia makes me loopy for months. Certain types anyway. My last 2 kidbey stones I wasn’t loopy after but I had to go on oxygen for a couple of weeks. Still can’t decide which is worse.
Love to you and your family.
Ilona, I’m glad that you’re feeling better despite some twinges of pain, and hopefully the elevated liver enzymes don’t indicate anything serious.
Also, I love the cover of Sanctuary.
That sounds like a heck of an ordeal, Ilona. I’m so glad the pain situation has improved and you’re on the mend. Sending you lots of love and good healing vibes!
Glad you’re on the mend. Healing can be hella frustrating but Healthy Ilona is the Best Ilona so please take it easy.
Preordered!! And will get print and audio when available ❤️.
I have never missed my gallbladder. Happy you are recovering. Tip: research liver friendly foods and start moving your diet to those foods and your enzymes will be happier. After years of erratic enzyme numbers, I had to start a medication toxic to liver. As a result, I now eat liver friendly 98% of my diet and my liver enzymes stay consistently in normal ranges.
Good luck and thank you for sharing your creativity and imagination with us ❤️
So glad you are recovering. While I’m not a medical professional I did work in hospitals for 34 years. Had lots of lunches with surgeons and anesthesiologists and the one thing they all pretty much agreed on was that surgery was traumatic. Like a car accident traumatic. No matter how good they were or how hard they tried to mitigate the trauma they were still cutting into a body and oftentimes taking something out of it and that causes trauma that your body must heal and recover from. So just be kind to yourself and your body. It’s healing trauma. 😊
The body is a mystery and unique unto itself – so everyone’s recovery is different. Be gentle, take your time, I feel like we think modern medicine (which is AMAZING) equals speedier recovery. But, that’s not been my experience. Removing an organ and smooshing all your parts around and infusing your system with narcotics has long-lasting ripper cushions. 😉
I had emergency gallbladder surgery about six years ago. No warning signs, then BOOM please-let-me-die levels of pain that laughed at morphine. Because there were no preexisting issues, they didn’t think it was my GB, so they admitted me to the hospital and ran every test possible for almost a week. By the time the finally stopped seeing zebras and realized it was a horse, it had gone necrotic and was stuck to my pancreas and liver.
The surgery was so gross, it was talked about in the locker room and other surgeons stopped by to tell me how gross it was. I can’t imagine what could impress people at a large hospital who have seen so much, but my GB did it. Had to stay for a week after because of sepsis. Worst two weeks.
Recovery is so HARD. All I wanted to eat for a month was an apple and the occasional smoothie. The brain fog is real. The right side pain still happens (in fact it hurts now), but I think it is scar tissue – if I’m not careful doing ab work, it lets me know. I couldn’t eat any raw leafy greens for years or I’d get murder stabbing pains. After slowly reintroducing raw veggies, I can finally eat small amounts of salad.
I hope that once the large part of your recovery is done you will feel 100 times better. Take care, and let your family pamper you. <3
Thank you!
Pre-ordered it.
Can’t wait to pre-order the print copy when it’s available.
I know it’s my paranoia but I live in dread of there being an EMP event in case of international conflict and losing my entire ebook collection without Hard copies stashed away somewhere.
Hope you continue to get better. Don’t push yourself too hard. Take the time to heal.
None of us want you to rush that much that you end up hurting yourself more.
Have a great day today and a wonderful weekend!
Oh lord! Yet another thing I never worried about. And now, I need to add it to my list along with Earth’s magnetic core flipping, Yellowstone blasting, earthquakes (now that I know the North American eastern underground stuff will let shakes travel further), WordPerfect disappearing, no bottles of wine in the Cantina on a bad day, and my grocery store changing where it puts the dang stuff.
Depending on the day, all are equally scary.
+1!!!
All my fears right there – except I’m on the pacific ring of fire, not the East Coast.
Choosing print books!
Hey Ilona,
It’s wonderful to hear that you are doing so well! I remember the brain fog from my surgery, the Versed used to keep me under seemed to linger for weeks afterwards. It pains me to admit that I felt stupid from the meds, I couldn’t process simple everyday stuff without concentrating really hard. ‘The dumbs’ were as exhausting as the physical recovery. No one warned me that I’d experience weird aches and random pain afterwards either, that made it scary because, who expects that?.
The brain fog cleared up faster when I was able to drink cranberry juice. Apparently the military discovered cranberry’s ability to clear some chemicals from the body during warfare/interrigations. 100% Cranberry juice had a strong positive impact and it helped ‘erase the dumb’ from my brain. I started with small sips here n’ there and worked my way up to 3 glasses a day.
Arnica Montana Cream helped with the pain and bruising at my surgical site. The stuff is a Med-Mages Magic Cream. Ice packs are nice too.
Thank you for the update! Please continue to take good care of yourself we’ve been praying for your well-being and for your family’s too.
PS You’re a hella-of-a-warrior soldering on and writing a book through all of that -kudos!
Pre-ordered! Thank you for this story.
Yay for Roman! Glad you are feeling better and hopefully the random pains calm down soon.
I feel for you. Hang in there. I had my gallbladder out 7 years ago, and it took me weeks to get past it. I gave up on oxycodone after the first day. I don’t like the side effects and the pain was manageable without it. I lived on yogurt and cream of wheat for the first week or so while waiting for my digestive tract to start working again.
Just FYI, the Order Now and Excerpt links on the landing page take you to Magic Claims.
Thanks for letting us know, we’ll edit now 🙂
I am glad you are getting better. I think the story about the confusion of hospital staff about the appreciation baskets is funny and sad at the same time. Sad because more people don’t show appreciation to the staff who take care of them. Funny because I was thinking of the conversation at the hospital that resulted in someone calling clarification, it must have been an interesting one LOL. Looking forward to the novella being released and seeing how it ends. Its been a fun couple of months seeing the story develop slowly every week.
Glad and grateful to hear you are recovering. Hope you mend a little more each day. My pre-order is complete and now comes the w*it.
Well, I got to your blog and noticed the pre-order link, so I went to Amazon and took care of that business. July 30 – I will be increasingly hopping up and down excited as the date gets closer.
I’m glad you’re recovering – at about the rate my friend has been. She had her gall bladder out only a couple of weeks before you did. She, also, is deliriously happy about the pain being gone.
Take good care of yourself – the BDH will settle for nothing less.
Happy to hear you are on the mend.Best wishes for a full recovery.
Thankful you are healing well….
Off to pre-order!!!
Shut up and take my money!!!!
Glad to hear the surgery went well. Please take time to heal and recover.
I love that cover art. So perfect! Especially the staff with the birds head on top. Reminds me of Kate’s first introduction to him. Now I’ll go get that pre-order taken care of . . .
So glad you like it ☺️
I rarely comment, but I must applaud all for that phenomenal cover art! Wow! Just WOW! I hope that art with most any Roman quote can be on a t-shirt and a hoodie! Mod R, please add to merch list. 🙂
Also, Ilona, glad you are feeling better, but make sure you take time to heal. We, the BDH, will w*it.
“W*it”!!!! Yikes!!!! You are using the Bad Four Letter Word.
Done. Very excited.
My son had his appendix removed and in addition to an anesthetic, a paralytic was used so his abdominal muscles and such would stay still. The pain from that was very bad and took several days to wear off. That might be some of what you are experiencing, especially the pulled muscle sensation, which is how my son described it.
Another member of the BDH who jumped on the preorder! 😀
Good to know you are recovering. Slow and steady is annoying but for the best.
Of course, like a very good member of the BDH, just pre-ordered.
I hope the Pre-Orders helps you feel better and get better faster (not that fast matters when pain is gone — yay!).
And lovely cover with the K Staff (as usual, I can’t remember its name).
Klyuv! It just means Beaky 🤭
😘 (hope it shows up – kissy emoji)
(I am a Boomer so since I discovered them, I like to use them,)
Glad you’re feeling better and hope you have a speedy recovery. I will be ordering Roman’s book as soon as I get home. I’m in the office and I almost said, “Hot damn!” out loud when I saw the book cover and the pre-order links.
I am so sorry that you have been in such pain! Hugs to you.
Oatmeal is awesome stuff. I haven’t had gallbladder problems, but I puked my way through 6 pregnancies though, while desperately trying to NOT lose weight, for my baby’s sakes. Another thing which always sat well and is along the same lines was sprouted wheat, which I sprouted myself.
I am glad that sushi sat well. It is good for you.
I wish you quick healing with zero recurrence.
I love the cover. kluyv reminds me a bit of the old Mary Poppin’s umbrella (one of my favorite movies as a kid and that bird had sass so not a bad thing!)
glad you’re recovering. I agree about it being really hard to write anything not terribly depressing about a traumatic medical experience on the first pass. at least for me I need to leak some angst before I can communicate from somewhere besides the sea of despair.
The weird pains in random places is caused by gas..No not farty gas. when they remove that gallbladder, they poke holes in you and pump you up with gas like a balloon. when they ar e done, they deflate you. Your body doesn’t like changing shape like that. Plus you have some retained gas that will ever so slowly go away. Oh, and watch for the fun gastric dumping. I hope you don’t have it for very long, but a very small part of the population will have that long term. Let’s just say that if I am constipated, I don’t reach for Colace. I reach for the bacon. Nuf said about that!
Eat at least a little bit at least three times a day after, It should help. After the surgery, If my wife skips a meal entirely it has negative side effects. But just a single banana or oatmeal bar is enough to keep things normal-ish.
So glad you are on the mend and feeling better. Enjoy the time and break to heal. Thanks for all you do and for your wicked sense of humor. I love that. 😉😀
Preordered, check!
Please take it easy. I had the outpatient gallbladder removal when my son was a preschooler. It was still a lot of pain and not pleasant, and I can’t imagine the full op version.
We appreciate your patience, kindness and updates (depressing or not) and probably owe you a basket of flowers, too. We will lean on the important lesson of waiting.
Oops- didn’t mean to paste the url. Please disregard.
Fixed 🙂
It’s so good to hear you are doing better. I am sure the twinges will get better w/ time and healing.
Kudos to Gordon for helping and insisting on smart choices.
Take care of yourself first, then worry about the BDH. We are not going anywhere any time soon.
Thanks for the link to “Sanctuary”. I am embarrassed to admit that I did the preorder before I read the post.
So glad you’re feeling better. My mom went through this several years ago. The change was amazing but the recovery had its own issues.
Super happy to order Sanctuary! Stats looking darn good at Kobo for just one day of availability:
#1 in Romance, Paranormal
#4 in Romance, Science Fiction & Fantasy
#5 in Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy
I’m ready for July. It’s going to be mine, mine I tell you. Only time I want it to be humid and 100 so I’ll have an excuse to sit in my ac and devote myself to the Black Vlod. I’m Catholic so then I’ll have to go to confession after reading the book. The drama of it all.
So happy you’re on your road to recovery. Don’t push too hard. There is to be no backsliding. You’ve scared the Horde way too much as it is.
I too had problems inhaling deeply and was told I had a bruised diaphragm from the gallstones.
Wishing you a speedy recovery. Ordered yesterday, thank you!
Please take your recuperation seriously and take all the time you need.
I am happy to hear you’re on the mend 👍🏻👍🏻
That Sanctuary cover is so beautiful. His story has been such a bright spot in a relentless winter. Thank you 🌼🌼🌼
Please look after yourself and give yourself grace to recover!
And pat yourself on the back for the decision to hire Mod R- she’s amazing and has kept us laughing all the way.
+1! Mod R is the best mod! Three cheers for her! Hip, Hip, Horay! 🥳🥳🥳
Definitely! HA’s HR department rocks.
Interesting about weight loss accelerating gall stone formation. No one ever mentioned that. I had my gall bladder out about 6 years ago after I spent a year slowly losing weight through diet and exercise. I lost 13 lbs, felt better than I had in years, and then Boom! gallbladder issues resulting in surgery.
I recovered pretty quickly, but still have bathroom issues if I eat a really high fat meal.
Oh, I want! Will it be available on audiobook?
Yes 🙂 ! The preorder for print and audio versions will go live closer to publication date.
When I ordered Sanctuary on Amazon, it didn’t offer a dead tree version?? I prefer to purchase both kindle and print. Did I misunderstand what types of formats are available??
PS: Glad to read you’re feeling better.
You didn’t misunderstand 🙂 !
The print and audio formats preorder will be available closer to release day, once edits are complete. That’s because the systems need to know exact number of pages and hours of recording before they allow the preorders 🙂
I had my gallbladder out in 2017 they HURT…The sucky thing for me was the pain wasn’t abdominal. Gallbladder pain can refer to your left shoulder blade. I thought I was having a heart attack.
So glad you are feeling better!
Sanctuary ordered. Love Roman and can’t wait to read it. I’ve been staying away from the serial on purpose because I was sure it would end up published.
I love the cover and can’t wait to read the epilogue. Hope you continue to feel better and happy to hear your doctor is still monitoring. I had my gallbladder removed in college and I had one last gallstone a couple weeks later after eating greasy pizza but thankfully none since.
So glad you are coming along. Take your time especially with food intakes.
I too sent flowers and cookies to my OBGYN office after surgery. After suffering from and dealing with endometriosis for almost 24 years, they were the first place to listen and take me seriously. I never once fwlt condescension or ridicule from them. The surgery should have been 1 day robotic, but I ended up with a basic c sec because it was so bad. And a 4 day stay at the hospital. The nurses came in checked on me at the hospital and even called once I finally got home. My surgeon/OB gave me the grossest pics so I could show my doubters 😂
As another with endo, the feeling of being heard is definitely a relief. I imagine there’s lots of people with many conditions that would emphasize as well, but I understand what you mean. 🤗
Pre- order done!! Download date on the calendar with alerts! Thank you!!
Good to hear you are improving and out of major pain. I expect as your appetite also recovers and you can eat more, you will have more energy. Hang in there! We’re all pulling for you.
That cover looks awesome by the way.
I’m glad you’re feeling better! Take it slowly and rest when you need to. My pre-order is in. Thanks for the heads up.
This is a bit odd…. I do not want to use Amazon, I do not have Apple, so I try Barnes and Nobles. I must be the xxxxth BDH-member that stumbles on the fact that they only want to sell to USA-credit card holders, even for e-books!!
What is their problem with somebody from Europe who wants to pay with Paypal, which they say to support as well???
Hi Judith, the links on the blog are not all the retailers where the book is available- it would be impossible for us to link them all 🙂
Please try to search the catalogue of your preferred retailer. Here is Sanctuary on Kobo, for example https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/sanctuary-373
Hi Judith, try your preferred ebook retailer. As Mod R said, we just can’t list all of them, so we chuck the 3 largest out there.
Was a bit of a hassle, but I got through. Tnx for your rapid reactions, both of you, and Good recovery to you, Ilona!
I’m guessing that B&N don’t want to hassle with paying international taxes or what have you and that’s why they don’t accept international payment.
it sucks, but a valid excuse IMO. also recommend Kobo as a good option and they are international.
Oof, I had gallstones, undiagnosed for about 18 months. I had attacks more and more frequently, until it was every other day, 8-14 hours of that pain. Eventually I went to the ER, got diagnosed after an ultrasound, and scheduled for surgery.
The recovery was more difficult than my appendix removal or even hysterectomy, and all three were laparoscopic. I ended up with PTSD that would pop up sometimes as I ate a rich meal, just suddenly seized with the terror that another attack would happen as a result. That faded over time, though the internal scar tissue adhesions took a while to work out (more than a year).
Take it easy, and give yourself time, is my best advice. Surgery takes more out of you than you think, as does being in pain with a gallstone attack.
” I ended up with PTSD that would pop up sometimes as I ate a rich meal, just suddenly seized with the terror that another attack would happen as a result.”
::hug::
I know exactly how you felt.
It’s beautiful 😍! Thank you, pre-ordered of course!! So glad you’re feeling better.
Speedy recovery too, pre-ordered
pre-order done! So excited.
best wishes for a complete & gentle recovery. it does takes time and rest.
I haven’t had gallstones but I’ve had kidney stones twice and the pain is traumatic. Those twinges in the back send me straight for the lemon water.
I think being physically miserable over time really takes a mental/emotional toll that definitely scars. For me, it was months of nausea from morning sickness over multiple pregnancies. Now when I get it from a virus there’s a some panic where as before pregnancy it was just like this sucks.
I hope you find good health & joy moving forward.
Please take care of yourself. Glad to read that you’re doing better.
Sanctuary is pre-ordered. Love the cover for the book. Very Roman. 😊
Thanks for the preorder link.
I hope you continue to heal and have no further issues.
So glad you are feeling better! And pre-ordered, but will reread shortly.
I made gifts for my OB care team. Some of them also seemed a bit confused, but appreciative. Kiddo came a little bit early and I hadn’t gotten them done yet (had the stuff, just not completed), so I made my sister help me finish them while I was in labor so I could take them to the hospital with me 😄.
Love the cover and glad you’re on the mend!
I remember someone telling me that it takes about a month to recover per hour spent under general anesthetic. It’s hard and frustrating and as you say the only thing that will help is time.
So yay for pain free, yay for Roman, and wishing you a smooth and speedy recovery.
Glad to hear you’re recovering from the surgery. I’ll give the medical advice I’m qualified to — take care of yourself.
I’ve pre-ordered.
There’s a quote from one of Anne McCaffrey’s books (one of the Pern books) where the MasterHarper of Pern says in the midst of a heart attack, “no one ever really appreciates the absence of pain.” I discovered how true that is. Take care of yourself and get better.
Yay we have a date! I’m not a preorder kind of person, but will mark it on my calendar to look forward to 🙂
So very glad you are feeling better and have found some safe foods -especially sushi! (My boss is a no mayo sushi eater too)
Also, WOW! That cover! Is GORGEOUS! And has so many elements (the rune even!) plus brooding vibe🥰 And Klyuv looks so handsome & elegant-much better than pic in my head. Ms. Wheeler did a fabulous job!!
OMG I’m sorry you’ve had to fight the terrors of gallstones. Been there, threw the shirt away.
I was so happy to have defeated them (my surgical knight did a superb job) that I just launched myself back into life and
forgot about/ignored/threw a hex at
anything that might interfere with my recovery. So nothing did 👍
I now pay honour to the power of the Hex!
I’m glad to hear that you’re doing well after surgery. Gallbladder attacks are one of the most painful things you can experience. I had to laugh about cutting off a foot to stop the pain because after 22 years of attacks and failure to see the gallstones via imaging (x-ray and ultrasound) I told someone that if they had to cut from one end to the other to remove it I would have told them “do whatever you have to do-just get this thing out of me.”
I re-read the story last night and can’t wait for July! It gives us time to save up for the store merchandise.
It’s a beautiful day in the Horde neighborhood.
Glad you’re healing and feeling better. Gallbladder is no fun at all.
Dear Ilona
Please get well soon. All best wishes and thank you for Roman – just pre ordered
Kind regards
Claudia
So glad that you are feeling better. Few months time and you will definitely be feeling Fabulous!!
Also V V V Happy about the preorder of Sanctuary. Summer is coming and take some time to enjoy your life without gallbladder pain.
glad you’re on the mend. pre order done and count down widget on phone
Love the cover. That is so Roman.
Great! You and Gordon should take a few days and stay in a fancy hotel, and eat sushi. Glad you are recovering.
I’m glad that you are doing better. I hope the weather is beautiful, so that you can sit outside, sip some tea and rest and relax while watching the dogs play.
FYI, anyone who loves the graphic audiobooks, Chirp is having a flash sale. They are from $3.99 to $4.99 Rubby Fever is $5.99.
https://www.chirpbooks.com/authors/ilona-andrews-audiobooks
Thanks for the heads-up about the Chirp sale! I have all the Kate and Innkeeper GA productions, except for the Hidden Legacy series, so I may have to splurge 😉
So glad you’ve moved past the pain but hope that the traumatic memory stage moves along quickly.
I loved the cover of Sanctuary – it looks beautiful and I was so happy to have a visual of Klyuv now so thanks for that!
Will you please let us know when it’s available to request in Libby? I haven’t managed to find it yet, but there are so many with the same or adjacent titles that I haven’t figured out how to narrow the responses enough to allow a deep search.
The preorder flow is ->recommend to your library -> author/publishing area (I’m fuzzy here) -> Libby.
My library sends me notes when I try to recommend Ilona Andrews books with default statement “popular authors new books are automatically ordered.” As in, stop asking, it’s done already, sheesh.
preordered 🙂 Over here in Australia it is already showing as #1 Best Seller in Contemporary Fantasy.
Look after yourself Ilona I am glad things are getting better 🙂
I’m so glad you’re on the mend!
Placed my pre-order even before replying here, amd very excited to read the epilogue 🙂
Omigod, I LOVE that cover!
+ 1000!
I am really looking forward to the release! Words–yummy, yummy words to devour!
And I had an odd thought: Does Chernobog ‘get’ human cultural references? Like, Roman’s Eeyore slippers. Does he think “ha! fits!” or does he think “my priest has donkeys on his feet for no apparent reason, but I am filled with my terrible love for him anyhow’? Because, really. I would think that would be worth a Cherny-chuckle at least.
Hope your pups and cats are helping Gordon take good care of you! Sleep is your best friend right now, along with those saltine crackers, broth and tea!!
Love the art work for the Roman cover! Natanya Wheeler does gorgeous work!! July will be here before we know it!!
📚📚📚
Preorder done. :::squee::: I cannot wait, Roman is one of my favorites.
Glad you are doing better, it will take time to completely recover. After I had my gall bladder removed 20 years ago, I then found out I had “elevated liver enzymes”. I really hate you are going through this also. After MANY tests and two liver biopsies, the diagnosis was ruled to be fatty liver. I get my enzymes tested every 6 moths, they are all normal now but I have to keep checking as you never get rid of fatty liver (according to my doctor). My weight is the main driver on my enzymes, just a small weight gain will cause them to go up.
Good luck on your continuing recovery and staying healthy.
Dang, I’ve preordered about five hours ago but forgot to mention it here plus mention how lovely that you’re on the mend.
Everyone have a good and safe weekend. No dragging a tree without Roman to assist 🤓
yay going to put the order in now.
thanks
Tig Notaro’s new special talks about pain causing a panic attack and that resonates. So glad it’s in the rear view for you!
I would think there would be fan-girling hospital staff taking super extra good care of the famous author, no? Like, they bring YOU flowers and baskets! Heee!
Glad you’re on the mend, so sorry for you having to go through that!
Whenever our son is in ICU (he’s handicap so this has happened more than once) I take the nurses baked goods from our local bakery, which is fabulous. I can’t afford to pay them what they’re worth but they’re worth their weight and gold. Glad to hear you’re getting back to your old self. I’m insanely jealous. Everybody has lost weight on a Zimic, but me I have gained.
Loved every installment. Ordering the book now. I’m so sorry about your pain, sending you warmest Aloha.
My day has been made in two way! 1) Ilona is mending. 2) That cover! It could not be more perfect!
I can hear Kate complaining about guys in hooded cloaks.
will the print be available through ingrams? As a indi bookstore owner I really don’t like to Order through A*****.
Yes, we will share an Ingram number closer to the date 🙂
Sanctuary is #1 in Contemporary Fantasy on Amazon UK – not quite sure where they get “contemporary” from, but Yay” all the same.
Healing can be very frustrating, and especially so when your brain doesn’t work as it should and you can’t even enjoy a book. Lots of sympathy, and I hope the brain fog goes, and the concentration returns lickety-split. Also of course that the odd pains go, they can be so frightening.
Beautiful cover. Am looking forward to re-reading and getting the promised epilogue at the end of July.
My sympathy for your dietary limits this week; had oral surgery on Tues., and am so tired of “soft foods”. I am a grown-up and know that it will get better rapidly, but am really sick of applesauce, soup, cottage cheese, etc. I want something that goes “crunch”!
Yay for feeling better! I know that terror of pain coming back. It’s horrible. Hopefully the brain fog clears up quickly, and your energy levels return too!
Wishing you a speedy recovery from your surgery! All the healings to you! So excited for the new novella!
Happy to hear you are making progress! Baby steps is still moving forward. off to preorder.
Beautiful cover! Take care of yourself 🙂
glad you’re doing better, and I hope your recovery continues with minimal drama!
So glad to hear that you are feeling better, Ilona! May your progress continue!
Somehow I thought that Sanctuary was going to come out in paper form, however, I am happy to read it in electronic form! So many questions about what happens next! Can’t wait to read the final version!
1) preordered, yay!
2) brain fog is the worst. Mine was from chemo, and it took a while to clear. Hang in there, you are still you.
3) I found it helpful to think of being in a “recovery period”. Even as I improved and went back to work and daily things, I knew I wasn’t fully back to normal for quite a while. I kept working at it doggedly, determined to get back to previous capability. PT, exercise, scar massage. I’m pretty happy with where I am now, a year after end of treatment. I wish you a good and full recovery.
I just had my gallbladder out too – I’m sorry Ilona – the pain is awful. After the first couple of weeks things drastically improved for me (other than not being able to lift more than 5 lbs for mult pile weeks which none of my kids approved of). And I don’t seem to have any intolerance with any types of foods. Wishing you a relaxing and easy recovery, filled with tea, fun activities, and no stress!
I’m so pleased for you that you’re feeling much better🙏🏻. I had kidney stones a few years ago & my doctor told me that’s it’s worse than child birth😤. Never having given birth I can’t compare but it WAS extremely painful & like you I would have voluntarily have offered any limb he wanted to chop off!!!
I have found though that at times of serious illness – clots on the lungs / breast cancer- brain fog & lack of concentration seem to ‘tag on’ if you like. I think it’s the brains defence mechanism as if it can’t take any more pressure. I found during those times I revisited all my favourite reads☺️😉& films.
All I have left to say is ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️THE COVER!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’ve done both. Your doctor was right.
Yes! I just found Sanctuary on Google Play Books. It wasn’t there yesterday.
With Google I can transfer a purchase to my PocketBook e-reader because it supports Adobe DRM.
Added to wishlist.
I know pre-order works better for you, because publishers love it.
But somehow pre-ordering never works for me, on any platform. I either don’t get rewards, or it just doesn’t happen, so I need to cancel the pre-order and buy anyway.
Ordering as soon as available works better and safer.
Best wishes on your recovery.
Two friends of mine had their gallbladder removed. The recovery wasn’t easy but both of them said it was still way better than before. The pain they had before removal was the worst either one of them had experienced.
Goody goody goody! Preordered!
Not medical advice! had my gallbladder removed last year, best thing I ever did. surgeon said it was inflamed and had probably been releasing toxins over a few years that my body was constantly fighting. Take care, wishing you a speedy recovery, looking forward to any and all releases!
Glad to know you are getting better! Wishing you a speedy recovery. Take care.
This has been a long haul for you. I am glad the surgery is done and you are taking care of yourself during recovery. Having watched my mom not take care of herself after a surgery, the road is much harder that way.
Walking helps, having good people around you helps more. <3
Hi! OR staff member here.
Even having your gallbladder removed with a scope, it takes 5-6 weeks to feel normal.
The twinging lower muscle on the right side is fairly normal as two of the ports put in go through those muscle groups. That will get better with time and movement too.
My mom lost 25 pounds after having her gb removed. Not everyone does, but you might still have some weight loss as you heal. Introducing higher fat foods should be a slow process as your body gets use to processing things in a different way.
Sounds like you are making great progress! Yay!! You got this!
Sending well wishes for your recovery, Ilona! 💜
The cover is beautiful. I’ve already pre- ordered. ☺️
First time I had a gallbladder attack, I thought it was a heart attack. Went to the ER and it was my gallbladder. Got that sucker out.
Turns out, this is a common presentation with gallbladder. The pain was the seventh level of hell.
Hugs to you, Ilona. I had surgery for this after I lost weight via gastric bypass. It hasn’t given me any trouble since, and it’s been a decade and change.
You’re a heroine to me, and I know you’ll be back and feeding your insatiable horde in no time. 🙂
Also, that cover rocks. Off to preorder.
Hope you get well soon. I just have one small question. In the list of the future editions of the books, you did not mention when Marie’s book will be published. Is there a release date?
Hi Yamit, if you mean Maggie, then there are no official updates we can discuss atm.
happy to hear your health is improving. From personal experience I think we all notice every ache and yes it does take time. Good luck and thanks for the preorder looking forward to more Roman.
Illona et-al (Gordon is assisting so he gets High Fives TOO), glad you’re recovering. My friend had hers taken out long time ago, and she is fine, no fatty foods. Take milk thistle for the liver thing, it will help. We have for years, levels excellent. We exercise too so that helps, you will get back to what is your normal, takes time, we aint kids any longer.
Love your books all of them.
I have a Kate Daniels question.
Was rereading the Wilmington series, so Curran has stopped aging because Kate and Conlan love him.
What about Kate’s friends in that case? Andrea, Raphael, Ghastek, Barabas etc., are they also still young or look their age?
Glad you’re getting rest, getting better, and taking care of yourself! And able to eat some sushi. Wishing you a safe and speedy recovery!
Glad to know your surgery is over and that you are recovering. Also, looking forward the July 30th release of Sanctuary. Brain fog and pain meds kind of go together, sadly. Take the time you need to feel better.
Sorry to hear that you’ve been through the gallbladder gauntlet . Not a fun experience. I hope you feel better than “back to normal” soon.
I ran across a funny tote bag gift set online this morning and I wish I could attach a photo. I thought it would be something that would make you laugh… picture a simple white canvas tote with a black drawing of a ball of yarn with a crochet hook. The caption is “ I’m a knotty, knotty hooker”.
😊wishing you a speedy recovery as you are v. important to the Horde.
That’s funny. At least when I crochet I don’t lose stitches. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Yippee! So glad you are recovering. Surgery. Just ugh times a million. (Though I am quite grateful for it.) May your small smiles every day turn into big grins soon.
I had my gallblader out in late ’22. As well as multiple other surgeries over the last several years.
Brain fog is normal, as is the extreme tiredness and fear of every little pain. I found that even the most minor of surgeries required AT LEAST two weeks to work my way out of the brain fog. They fixed my nose so I could breathe, the doc’s like you can be back to work in a week! Yah no, solid 18 days before I was up to it. And not because I heal slow either, every surgeon is delighted with my healing. It just takes me that long to get everything out of my system.
Love the cover! Can’t wait!
Ilona your body went through a traumatic ordeal…it will take time to recover. It takes a bit to recover from the Anesthesia, too. Hope you’re feeling better soon.
You’re doing great. Walk, mandatory. Not far, just regular. Took me about 2 weeks to feel better. But 5 weeks in hospital with strict food and walk instructions… you feel better until you get home and realize it’s not the same.
Protein and water and whatever didn’t upset my stomachwere my instructions. I was on strong (every 6hr IV antibiotics and my drain after having my insides washed) so was never far from the bathroom. I lasted 3 days on the pain medication, and they had to give me something from palliative care to keep them down. After that Tylenol and ignored the pain.
Did they give you the gas pills??
Keyhole or not it’s major surgery. Slow and steady. FWIW, kidney stones are worse…. been there done that, too.
I’m so glad got through it and you’re recovering! I had gall bladder surgery too and I completely understand the extreme paranoia that something will hurt. That was way worse than childbirth. But I’m happy to say I never had any more issues after recovery and I’m sure it will be the same for you once the post-surgery haze clears, and it will! Be patient with yourself and I wish you a speedy, full recovery!
Returning to “normal” isn’t easy after surgery and anesthesia and pain seem to screw with your mind and energy longer than you like. My preorder is in and now I wait for the audiobook as well. I do both! As a mature (old) woman I still get disoriented when an individual is referred to as “they.” 🥴
Ouch, sorry that you had to go through that. Just keep walking and be kind to yourself. It is usually trial and error with what foods will send you rushing to the bathroom and what makes your body happy. Thank you for Roman, my preorder is in.
Glad you are feeling better. Best wishes for a speedy full revovery.
Best wishes for a complete recovery. I am a hospital pharmacist of 40+ yrs, post GB surgery of 30+yrs and type 2 diabetic. Many of the posts have great advice. You do get brain fog from general anesthesia because the drugs used are longer acting than the ones used for short procedures. You will have to watch your fat intake or your colon will protest, but after recovery from the surgery you should be able to eat what you like with some moderation. liver enzymes respond to red wine so watch that and abstain for a few days prior to lab tests. Thanks for another entertaining book.
I am so sorry to hear about your gallbladder ordeal but happy that you are now on the mend. Like you said, time is what you need now to feel completely better. Take care and rest before you jump back in to writing. Thank you for the preorder which I immediately clicked on. Hopefully that will keep the horde happy while you recover. I’ll send some prayers your way that you feel 100% soon!
So sorry you had to go through that! Wishing you a speedy and easy recovery! ❤️
Ugh, brain fog is the worst! But I’m glad your troublesome gallbladder is gone and that the pain has eased up. I hope you feel back to normal soon!
Preordering done.
So glad you are feeling and doing better Ilona.
My father’s gallbladder decided to pack it in too. February 2020 – right before lockdown. It was pretty scary. He was 84 at the time and he had also had a blood infection too boot. But, he had it removed (didn’t get that surgery until July 2020 when they had a bit of a handle on procedures) and he is doing fine today. He still has the odd digestive issue here and there, but thanks to bile supplements, most of the digestive hiccups are gone and he still gets to have his fatty foods. Go figure.
YAY for the pre-order. So far it’s only the e-book version here in Canada but I will be watching for the paperback pre-order to show up, hopefully soon.
Again, so glad you are feeling better.
May you feel better each day. It’s great the pain stopped and surgery just takes time to recover—from the incisions and the shock to your system.
As for the hip pain, I had a friend who moved in with me after she and her husband broke up. On New Year’s Eve she started crying because of the pain in her stomach and of course, no doctors were in the office that day. I just looked at her and said, “get in the car.” I took her to the ER and she had emergency surgery for a gall bladder filled with gall stones and other nasty stuff. After the surgery she would complain about hip pain, which was nowhere near her incisions. Hers went away over time. Of course, in her sleep she rationalized the pain by dreaming the hip pain was from a broken leg she got in a plane crash. We laughed over her broken leg for years.
Ilona, prayers for your continued healing! I’m glad the surgery went well.
Hubby had to get his gb out years ago – it went well too except that he had to stay an extra day because he kept throwing up after he woke up. Some kind of anaesthesia hangover. That was not fun.
BTW I have heard that ox bile is helpful to some after gallbladder removal. Just something to keep in mind.
Your healing (including the surgery) is enhanced by this being Mercury Retrograde for this particular planet … Merc Retro is all about unfinished business and fixing things that are broken or need repair. Your timing is exquisite. It’s to be expected that you have a mild PTSD from this pain/surrender/surgery/incapacity/recovery experience … so, no pressure on yourself, you’ve finished Sanctuary, so no pressure there, you’re free to relax for a bit (Merc Retro ends on the 25th of April) and just let your body, your emotions, and your mind heal up. Read, relax, dream, plot dastardly events. You have so much love and affection coming to you from the BDH … just rest up, take care of yourself, eat sushi, drink tea, and know that you are healing up perfectly, it just takes a bit of time … just a few more days in the Nav, and you’ll be good as new.
I understand the gallbladder pain. I am wishing you a speedy recovery. I had min removed several years ago. Similar story. I lost weight to prepare for a gastric sleeve surgery. right before the scheduled surgery, my gallbladder went bad. since I was already scheduled for lapriscopic surgery, I got a twofer. my gastric surgeon did both at same time. recovery went well. I do have trouble with dairy now. so I avoid it when eating out or traveling. Embrace the downtime and enjoy some luxury.
Glad to hear you are feeling better! Yay for the pre-order!
Sorry you’ve been hurting. I’m relieved to hear you’re not in as much pain. Best wishes for a speeding recovery.
(And yes, I’m delighted to pre-order)
30 odd years ago my daughter described it thus,
“One minute mom was on the couch sitting next to me eating a hot pocket,
next thing you know, she’s on the floor screaming in pain.
Hasn’t been a hot pocket in the house since.”
looking forward to Sanctuary.
I preordered on Amazon. Ilona Andrews is the only author that I preorder! I noticed that Sanctuary lists text-to-speech as enabled… what does that mean?
So glad you’re healing! Please ask your doctor (or you can do it) to alert the FDA that you were on ozempic and then had to have your gall bladder removed https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/index.cfm?action=reporting.home. It’s a known potential complication, but they’re only starting to grasp the real-world numbers. It could be a consequence of the drug causing significant weight loss or the drug itself,so they are parsing this out. I hope you continue to heal well and get your brain back soon. I’ve had Long COVID for 4 years so I understand how debilitating the brain fog and fatigue can be.
What an ordeal – wishing you a speedy recovery!
Glad you are on the road to recovery. I had my first gallstone attack while on vacation in the Poconos. Not fun. The pain was so intense. Came home had my gallbladder removed and 15+ years later and doing great. Hope it is the same for you. Looking forward to the new release. I don’t usually read the serials if I know it is going to be released,so I can’t wait to read it.
Glad to hear you are feeling better. Gallbladder issues are not fun. Had mine out 38 years ago before robotic surgery was even an option. You will feel whole in about 2 more months. Hang in there.
Cover looks great. I’m monitoring the countdown clock. So glad to hear your recovery is progressing normally. Brain fog is traumatic all by itself. At least you were able to get off the oxycodone quickly, which will help your brain recover sooner. Although losing the pain is enough, I hope you get to eat all the things you like very soon. Give yourself a break. You’ve more than earned it.
Just reread whole serial. It’s great, and I picked up the clues about the brother this time, which I missed in the weekly read. I’ll buy on kindle as part of my IA complete collection.
Dear Ilona,
Thank you for the update on your health.
I was really worried.
And it was not because of your wonderful works.
You and your blog are a part of my everyday routine and one of the best things in it. Thank you for always sharing so much with us and thusly helping us through the day.
Feel hugged, feel loved and appreciated.
Best wishes
Marina
I’m so glad to hear you got your pesky gallbladder taken care of. After I healed, I didn’t miss mine, except when I try to eat too much fat at once. So, be careful until it heals. And from no on, when you have any chest or abdominal scan, it will be noted that you don’t have a gall bladder!
Glad you are back with us. Bear in mind that we loveyou.
Sending healing energy in your direction. A candle has been lit.
I had to battle a lot of bad diagnosis when I had issues with my gallbladder, so I understand the struggle. I’m glad you were able to get yours out. If I hadn’t fought so had for the right diagnosis I might be dead. There was no pain like gall bladder pain.
The phantom flinches you get from eating things that used to cause you pain will go away. It’s natural to feel anxiety too because that was the worst pain I’ve ever had in my life. Just take your time recovering. You got this!
So glad to hear you are getting better. I know it can feel like forever.
I had my gallbladder out when I was 27. Afterwards, it took months to be able to eat pork, or lamb without doubling over. You may also find that certain wines do the same thing. I learned to take a small bite and give it an hour to see if it bothered me. One thing that hurt me (and took me total surprise) was Moscato wine. It’s a dessert wine. (Years later I can have a glass, but it has to be dry.)
Don’t give up trying different foods to see what works for you. Hubby and I discovered different dishes and cuisines to get through it, which turned out to be fun.
Hubby is so excited for Roman’s book. He didn’t read the serials because he said he’d rather read it all at once. Pre-ordered today.
Pre-order is on the list. So sorry to hear about the gall
bladder surgery. Mine came out at 27 after Nutri-system. The pillow hug technique shown in the hospital was a big help. Give yourself grace – a study about anesthesia showed without surgery, athletes take 6 weeks to return to pre-general anesthesia levels. Also, ox bile was a big help before meals for months after my surgery. Wishing you a rapid return to health.
Oy! I will pray for your rapid return to good health with no complications and no lingering after affects. Sending you prayers for healing from Maryland.
And my pre-order is complete
Do you have a link for Kobo? I can’t seem to find it.
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/sanctuary-373
Pre-ordered! Hope your recovery continues well.
Dear Ilona,
I’m so sorry to hear about your recent troubles and am so glad that you are on the mend! I understand what you said very much about pain and being worried it may come back. That’s wonderful that you have your head in a positive space…that’s half the battle. I’ve had 20 abdominal surgeries for Crohn’s disease since I was 16 (I’m 44) and wow does that anesthesia wipe you out! Thanks for sharing this part of your life..I am sure that your privacy is dear to you so it’s a really big thing that you did that. Lots of love from Waco 😉
Ihad my gallbladder removed and my body adjusted after about six months, to the point where I don’t really watch individual meals anymore so much as overall eating pattern to make sure I’m not having too much grease. It gets better.
Glad you are feeling better and on the mend Ilona.
That cover is gorgeous!
Hugs, Take care of yourself. I was on oxycodone for awhile till I realized it messed with my little brain. The walls were wobbly and I began looking for alternatives that didn’t mess with my mind so much. I really hope your pain passes quickly.
Love sent from Canada
GRRR! Barnes and Noble doesn’t accept the use of gift cards on pre-orders. Guess I’ll have to wait until the July release. Oh well, just another day in Nav.
I used to throw up after particularly fatty meals (including a lot of Chinese). I thought it was food poisoning. I still remember the look on the intake nurse’s face (the literal expression of “Ya think?!?”) when I connected the dots.
Speedy healing!
Julie
Glad to hear you’re on the mend & that the terrible pain is gone! Recovering from surgery is frustrating, try to remember that you & your body deserve to take whatever time you need to get back to normal. They took a piece out of you. That’s traumatic no matter how you slice it (pun sorta intended… 😉
Love the cover for Sanctuary. Can’t wait to read the final version when it comes out!! 🙂
Will of course pre-order Sanctuary. You all write and I buy and read and then reread! Take your time healing from MAJOR surgery. Take the time, get fussed over and pampered. Do not rush your healing. Repeat.
Very happy one half of my favourite author is recovering and has been looked after so well. All the best for your recuperation.💐
Can’t wait for it. Glad you had your gallbladder removed in a timely fashion. I lived with it and adapted my diet for 40 years until I was finally hospitalized. Tests showed nothing, but after hearing that I had essentially removed most of the fat from my diet, they operated only to find it had nearly died. “Black and gangrenous” is what I was told. At any rate, really looking forward to the new book.
Gall bladder attacks are the worst pain I have ever felt, and this from 3 natural child births and 2 broken ankles.
The surgery is abdominal and takes at least 6 weeks to recover from, so be gentle with yourself.
The nurses at the hospital told me the best way to get rid of the gas is to walk as much as possible. It seemed to help with all the extra aches and pains.
Also, not spruiking anything and it might be a placebo, but digestive enzymes have helped manage the gastric distress whenever I eat fatty foods. It takes a while but eventually your body resets.
Thanks for Roman’s book, and joining in on the excitement, the cover looks stunning. Can’t wait!!
So glad you are feeling better! Please take it easy and focus on you.
A few years ago my dad was in the hospital for extended period of time with multiple surgeries and ups and downs. My mother spending so much time there. She’d bring back sweets and cookies for the hospital staff. Right around Christmas bought poinsettias for the nurses station ( one of the nurses named them Coco and Chanel). They adored my mom.
Pre-ordered Sanctuary!
You have my deepest sympathies. I also suffered from gallstones and it’s excruciating. Since diagnosis and surgery I have been gallstone free for 8 years. I have a lot of gallstones/pancreatitis-friendly menu ideas, if you need them.
I hope that you feel better soon
Thank you so much, Janet! I would love some breakfast ideas that are not oatmeal. 🙂
The # of people I know that have had gall bladder issues (and removal) after weight loss (especially women) is pretty high. High enough I’m pretty shocked it’s not warned as a potential side effect in large, bold print.
Happy to see you’re recovering – hang in there and get plenty of rest!
Glad you are on the road to recovery and positive vibes your healing will continue. That cover is lovely!!
Do you get to keep the beautiful paintings used for the covers? If so, how do you display them? I’d be hard pressed to choose which ones would be n permanent display, and which would be in rotation!
Please, please, if you feel severe pain in your abdomen at all, don’t put off going to the ER. I swear they would rather give you a laxative and send you home than have you die between the CT scan and the operating table the way my brother did. Aortic dissection. Had he not waited several hours, he might still be alive. Other brother also tried to put it off, fortunately his girlfriend was a doctor and he had his appendix safely removed.
I was the one with the laxative and when I tried to apologize for taking time and resources that someone severely ill might need, they told me almost what I first said. Not to mess around with abdominal pain.
Sister almost died from an abdominal torsion and she waited a day. Can’t believe I forgot that one, but it was a very long time ago.
Preordered!
So glad you are feeling better.
Wishing you a steady and increasingly easy recovery.
Gallstones are no joke. You have my empathy and understanding.
I had a cholecystectomy (pre-scheduled gallbladder removal surgery) the first week of March 2020, just before the world shut down. A couple years ago (about 2 years after mine), my mother had to have the same surgery: but same-day/same weekend she went into the ER with the pain, because her situation was more severe, they said.
You are still healing, and things will get a little better each day, each week, gradually. Promise. 8 days is still a ways to go before eating/feeling back to normal again. I’m glad to hear your pain is gone, and it’s so awesome you sent thank-you gifts to the hospital. The other symptoms will fade and get better with time. I had to take ibuprofen off and on to manage similar twinges of pain, but it got better…between 4 to 6 weeks, I think. (I was a bit distracted by the first wave of pandemic and quarantine, like everyone was.)
Recovery from gallbladder surgery was a bit longer and harder for my mom, more like 8 to 9 weeks. She says there are still some things she can’t eat like she used to (without stomach upset), but it’s mostly gotten better.
The 30th is my bday. I am hoping I’ll be able to get a signed book plate and preorder a printed copy. I haven’t been able to get a bookplate from an author I admire yet so its be a first. I really hope life doesnt continue to eff me over. I feel like its a sign lol.
I love the cover. A silly side of me is sad there isn’t a shirtless buff roman with a christmas tree rope harness strapped to his chest striding through the snow.
I can’t wait!
In regards to the gallbladder. I spent a good bit of time trying to figure out what was wrong with mine, (I ended up going to the mayo clinic and everything). While I was there I participated in a research study. All the issues I was having stopped after they took it out. I never had stones, it was just chronically inflamed.
I am also able to eat completely normally, just some really fatty things I should avoid. And I can’t have ham anymore (It makes me sick for some reason, doesn’t matter what type it is. It’s weird, but it is what it is. I can have pork without an issue). It’s been over a decade now since I had the surgery.
Happy to hear that you are on the mend, albeit slow and painful. I’m looking forward to reading Sanctuary in full. Any tumble through Kate’s world is welcome.
Glad you are on the road to recovery. Kudos to you for sending baskets to the staff. I know they were excited to get them!
So glad you are doing better. Do what you have to girl. I know you are a real person with stuff to deal with like all of us. Take your own good time. May Gordon have oodles of patience. Thank you Gordon for taking care of our favorite writing team. Tanks for the followup.
I told my husband that gall bladder pain is like labor without the incentive. I didn’t have stones so I did not have surgery, but, I realized it all related to what I was eating. I cleaned out my fridge and freezer of all processed meals and salad dressings (home made is MUCH better anyway). Red meat and fried food are no longer in my life. I lost 35 lbs, and had only 1 bad day in the last 7 years. I’m very grateful my body convinced me to start eating with wisdom.
Good luck in your recovery, stay well, and we’re really looking forward to Sanctuary!!
So glad you are feeling better. Gallbladder issues can be miserable. As a nurse, thank you for the kind shout out to your care team. I know they appreciated it.
Glad you are improving. Take care and healing thoughts still being sent your way.
YEA your on thre mend! Take it easy as it is difficult because your brain says one thing and your body scream what the @#$%! We love you guys and are trying to be patient ❤️ ♥️ 💕 💖
Wishing you all the best! (I tried adding heart emoji, but the site turned it black – while that’s a fun twist, I wanted my meaning to be more clear 😊.)
I’m so sad you had to deal with so much pain. I’m glad you’re in recovery and doing better!! Thank you for Roman as always!
Best wishes to you both in your recovery!
Currently #1 in Paranormal & Urban Fantasy on Amazon- BDH strikes again!!!
Please also post Kobo links…my preferred vendor these days, since they try to support indie bookshops.
Hi Oracle, the book is available on many retailer websites, it’s not feasible to post them all on the blog page.
It’s worth searching their catalogue if we have not mentioned them 🙂. Here is Kobo https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/sanctuary-373
That cover looks glorious. Glad you’re recovering.
My 89-year-old mum had her gallbladder removed laparoscopically just before Christmas. She was miserable for almost 3 weeks. Then one day, she woke up and felt all better. Since then, she hasn’t looked back. I hope this gives you hope that this shall pass.
Intense ongoing pain like that is just pure torture. It sucks the life out of you. So happy to hear that you are pain free and healing well. My brother just had the same experience a couple months ago. He said the pain took him to the floor. And can we talk book covers? That cover is beautiful – simple and elegant and such a strong POV. Just lovely.
Preordered! Looking forward to the complete story!
Very glad you are better.. Hope you have a speedy recovery!
Surgery gas is the worst!
Sanctuary Kindle Edition
by Ilona Andrews (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
#1 New Release in Paranormal & Urban Fantasy
Woo Hoo
I will never, ever forget the blessed relief that I felt once the morphine kicked in when I FINALLY went to the ER rather than being bent over all day from pain. I hadn’t been in pain in so long I’d forgotten what it felt like. I had a stone that got stuck in a duct, which complicated things, but eventually, I was finally able to get my gallbladder removed. Hopefully you are feeling much better!
Sorry I’m late. Try vitamin B1 250-500mg. It helped me with the fatigue and brain fog. It has other benefits as well. Boil eggs or a simple (steamed) omelette with spinach, diced tomatoes and turkey is delicious for breakfast. I really miss my bacon!!!!