Looking ahead to surgery, but fear is setting in.

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When my throat gets tight, I have trouble eating. Do you have that problem?

Your's will go away, soon. I remember when White Castle Hamburgers came out in the 1960's. I was living in KY then. They were so thin that we had to buy at least 10 to fill us up. :cheers:

Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

You need a :hugs:

Take care
 
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It's not my throat, just the jaw. It's only a problem with larger bites and firm foods.
Never been to White Castle itself :( not in my area. But the frozen ones fit the bill for me. :)

Monday was a bit rough due to my IBS. But at least it shifted some of the pain away. :) Other than my IBS flare the day went well. I only used ice for about one hour. Just long enough to get my body in a relaxed mood. :)

I feel telling about my experience is also helping me recover mentally and physically from
the surgery. Although I do have some family around, they can't truly grasp my feelings.
They do try to understand, but it's just not the same.

Well I'm hopeful that today will be better. :)

Thx,

TTYL
 
Bigman
My jaw was sore for the 1st 3-4 weeks after surgery which made it a little hard to eat some foods.
 
The only bit of swelling I have left is near my jaw. It's a bit touch & go, but it's getting there. Tuesday & Wednesday were both good days, I didn't use any ice at all. Well it helps that I got a good 7-8hrs sleep. :) The pain was mild all day. S.O. Day is coming fast, this Friday. :) Then I can completely retire the ice for cold cloths.

TTYL :)
 
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Friday was a very good day. Staples are out!! :) They came nice and easy. Everything looks good the doctor said. Just a basic follow up in a month. :)
My head feels good. The pain is almost completely gone. :)

The cold cloths are ready if I need them. But ATM I feel good. :)
 
Sat. was a nice relaxing day. :)

:) June 1st, a great time to slowly regulate my diet while getting out for some walks. I'd love to drop a few pounds, but my exercise options are limited for obvious reasons. As I'm feeling better I'd even consider walking in malls, the air conditioned ones. I'll be taking the stairs instead of escalators or elevators.

My head is feeling good, stomach feels good. Why not get my whole body looking good. :)
 
June 1st & 2nd both good days. I just had some minor pain, which settles down after a
few minutes. Other than that I feel good. :)

I drank some extra water, instead of eating more food. Which helped my stomach some. Today I plan to take a nice walk around inside a couple stores. No need to boil in the heat or get soaked in the rain. :) Everything in moderation to keep it up. I'm looking at the long-term goal, but taking reasonable path to reach it.
 
It sounds like you are interested in starting an exercise program, and that is great! Once you have medical clearance from your neurologist to gradually start into an exercise program I would strongly encourage you to elicit the assistance of a personal trainer. Some hospital programs have exercise physiologists on staff that your doctor can refer you to; I would ask if this is available to you. He/she will be able to guide you into safely starting an exercise program.
If this service is not available, you can hire a personal trainer to help get you started. Your local gym might be the first place to search for one. Find ones who are appropriately qualified (eg. ACE certified). Most trainers offer the first session free, and then you can find out the extent of experience the trainer has with those who have chronic illnesses, level of knowledge in dealing with a seizure, etc. Trainers are expensive, but they will develop an exercise program that is safe and effective. You can generally expect to train with them for a couple of sessions, then when you are comfortable with the exercises generally they will give you a program to do on your own for about a month, then you would see them again for modifications of the program, progress monitoring, and so on. If you have the money you can train with them every time, but not many people can afford this.
 
Thx, :)

In a perfect world I'd be able to "afford" a trainer. But that's just part of the problem. Being able to get to the trainers is the other. :( Walking is the best and safest exercise for me to due for the time being. Later on I'm hoping to get bike riding. But that's if I can get a comfortable bike to ride. :)

As for yesterday I was able to get out for a nice day. I got some errands done, and was able to get some nice walking done in a department store. :)

Although I did have a headache, it felt good to be out and about. I don't want to push
myself too hard. But I do have a temporary goal to reach. I want to be able to get out and see a movie in a couple weeks. So far each day seems to be getting better.
I'm hopeful that first movie out in a while will be great.

TTYL, :)
 
Hi Bigman,

I haven't been around much lately; I just saw your post about surgery. Congratulations! Glad it went well :) I had an awake craniotomy the 23rd of April. I had my staples out just a little before you; I was really surprised by how easily they came out. I was expecting some tugging and at least a little pain, but they came right out :)

My surgery was to remove a tumor, but it had the added benefit of stopping my seizures. Mine weren't anywhere near as bad as yours must have been, but they were not fun either :P

Good for you going walking! I'm doing physical therapy and walking a bit when I go to the store, but I need to do more to build my stamina.

Continued good luck with your recovery! Take care :)
 
Thx, yes I was lucky that it wasn't necessary for me to be awake during surgery.
The staples came out nice and easy. It felt like someone was pulling hairs out.
But the overall pain was nothing compared to the day after surgery. :)

So far no seizures in sight for me. Hopefully we both stay that way. :)
Walking is the best exercise I can do safely. Even without medical restrictions
I enjoy a nice walk around the neighborhood. :)

Keep up the good work. Good luck to you with your continued recovery.
_________

Thursday was a long day. I was out an about for most of the day. I needed to get some more errands done. But I felt good all day. :) No real headache to mention, if anything maybe a 3 or 4. For me that is typical headache. I'd barely notice it if nobody asked me. :)

Today looks to be even better! :)
 
The weekend was nice and easy. I was able to have a nice walk around the neighborhood.
On Sunday I took a walk to the corner store to grab a newspaper. Overall pain is still very minor, a 3/4. But my goal is to reach "this Friday".
 
6/14/14 One month & a day after surgery :)

The pain is still very minor, a 3/4. But that should go away once all my swelling does. :)

This past week I was very active, which may have stirred up my brain some. A few times I experienced a "warm feeling" which lasted not more than 10-15 seconds. It's a little concerning since my "auras" I used to have started like that. But I haven't had any auras in over 15 years. The good thing is those "warm feelings" pasted quickly with
nothing happening. :)

I plan to inform the doctor at my next follow up. I feel that the extra activity, an my brain still in the process healing caused them. Thursday 12th & Friday 13th were both
good days. I took it pretty much easy both days. Neither day had "warm feelings". :)

Other than that I feel good. :) I'm looking forward to 6/20. :)
 
travel bug said:
I had an awake craniotomy the 23rd of April. I had my staples out just a little before you; I was really surprised by how easily they came out. I was expecting some tugging and at least a little pain, but they came right out :)
Click to expand...

:agree: yeah i thought it would hurt alot more than it did. hardly felt any of them (how many did you guys have, i only had 27 yay!), except for two in the middle of the incision. they got my attention, but it lasted for as long as her pulling then was gone.

the scar can be fairly itchy tho, even 10.5 months later i still have the odd bout where i want to scratch it off! certainly enjoy having long nails, they ease it nicely.
 
The worst staples to come out were the ones used for the drainage pump.

All the rest were a breeze. The scar line is looking good. Just some minor itching, but there are tricks to combat that. Try scratching your arm, or pulling/twisting a towel. It
redirects the itching sensations. :)
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Saturday was a great day. I went for a nice walk around the neighborhood. No problems at all. The pain is getting better, I'm reducing to pain meds. :)
I'm very hopeful this week will be great. I can't wait until this Friday!! :)

Next week is my next followup, but I'll take that when it gets closer. :)
 
:) Just one more day!!!!! Then I can go to Jersey..... as in Jersey Boys!!!! :)

So far this week has been going well. The pain is very minor. I've been using OTC
pain meds when needed. Everything else looks and feels good. :)

Next week is my next followup. I have a few questions for doc, but nothing major.
 
What a great day & movie!! Opening day, the "Jersey Boys" was a great movie. :) What a great way to kick off summer. Now if my healing continues on it's current path, summer will be great!! :)
 
My follow up yesterday went good. The doctor felt that those few auras I experienced in the beginning of the month were normal. I was too active, too soon for my healing brain.
That was a relief. :) The doctor cleared me for regular activities. I only need to wait a while before I do two things: go to the dentist, cut my hair.

Because my jaw is still a little sore and I have some swelling, I should wait on cleanings. That sounds fine to me, my teeth are fine. :) Even though the doctor said my wound looks good a cleared me for hair cuts, I'll wait. I feel a couple more months would be better. Especially because I don't get "hair cuts", I shave my head. :)

Looks like my summer is off to a great start. :)
 
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