Sinus Surgery

2026-04-15

I went for sinus surgery yesterday and thought it interesting in a bunch of ways. First of all it makes me value my health a lot, I even wrote out a small unofficial will just in case. I know it was very very low probability that anything bad would happen to me but I was a bit anxious going under and not being conscious during a surgery. I haven’t had a lot of surgeries and so this was kind of my ‘first rodeo’.

It also re-enforces something that trust is really important and perhaps the key part of business of any kind. I trust that when my money goes in a bank that I can get it out later, that if it goes in an investment fund that I will be able to sell it in the future, when I get my taxes does they are done well and in my best interest. And same goes for doctors, dentists, and other biological stuff. I really want a good trust worthy doctor and a good trust worthy dentist. Someone who had knowledge, a great understanding of their field, and is good at their job.

I talked to the surgeon on multiple occasions, he seems to know his stuff, have a good bedside manner, and the place he was working, Kaiser, has a good reputation and I do put some trust in that, that they will hire good people and keep the bar high. The anesthesiologist was nice to me, answered my questions, was professional and knowledgeable, and the nurses were nice.

Also having this surgery made me think of Sneha, she has had two c-sections, they dont put you fully under for c-sections but it is kind of similar. You are looking up at lights, there are machines all around you, a team of doctors and nurses, and you are having real surgery. C-sections are probably 10x the amount of dangerous than my sinus surgery, maybe even 100x (I dont know I am making these numbers up). And so I thought she was really brave for having our kids and I am super grateful.

And being a patient is not fun, my grandfather, my mom’s dad, died of diabetes, they cut off his foot. That must have be a terrible experience. My grandma, my dad’s mom, had a stroke (I think stroke) while on vacation and lost a lot of cognitive function and died in a hospital, that must have also not been fun. My mom had a stroke last year and we visited her in the hospital, no surgery for her thank god, she did have a bunch of brain surgeries in the past though which must have been scary. I think life is scary and random sometimes but I forget or it is hard to empathize sometimes. Going through being a patient, even though my procedure was very minor, was just a good reminder of how scary life is sometimes and hopefully I can try to prevent the issues I can prevent, like diabetes.

Yesterday I was a little dizzy after the procedure, there were some things that I didn’t remember, but so far it has gone well and I can breathe better through my nose. Hopefully that keeps up. I am grateful for the medical professional that made it happen.

-Gary