Work

I met with my bosses yesterday to decide when I was going to come back to work, my hours, etc. After the meeting, I said I'd stay and work for a while. Little did I know how exhausting it would be. I got there at 9:00 a.m. and by 1:45 p.m. I was completely exhausted. It took a lot more concentration than I've been used to and I didn't even do any work that was taxing! I left there feeling like I needed to sleep for a week.

Unfortunately, this is normal for me. I feel really great when I'm home but once I get out and do something, I get tired quickly. I know that it will take more time to heal but after 5 weeks of being at home, I'm ready to get back to normal. Being able to drive has helped a LOT.

Tomorrow, since I haven't bought anything yet, I'm going to try and do some Christmas shopping. I think I'll limit myself to the morning hours and if I need a nap when I get home, I'm going to take one!

Most of my symptoms are still gone. Headaches are still there most everyday but they move around and are becoming less bothersome. There have been a few times when I've had difficulty swallowing my food or medication but all in all, I feel good. My leg is still cooperating and not dragging so I'm super pleased with that. There haven't been any choking episodes at night so I think that my husband is probably getting a much better nights sleep than he was before. My chronic cough is gone. My scar feels really tight and it's irritating to lay on it but I think that I might get some vitamin E oil to put on it and maybe soften it up. My hair is growing back very rapidly so the scar is less noticeable.

Compared to five weeks ago, I feel terrific. Healing well and enjoying life. I have had an outpouring of love and support from my family, friends and church. What more could I ask for? Nothing! God is good!

I'm Free!

Had my one month check-up today with the neurosurgeon and he cleared me to do most anything now! I can't lift or move really heavy objects or go skiing or snowboarding for 6 months but at least I can drive. That alone will help me feel more 'normal'. I don't have to see the surgeon again until March.

I still have days when I feel completely exhausted but my good days are becoming more and more frequent. Today is the second day that I haven't had some kind of headache. That, in itself, is a reason to celebrate!

Now, I need to see if I can start back to work. I'll just take the days as they come and work as much as my body will let me. I also need to do some Christmas shopping. I've only got 2 1/2 weeks!

I know that my Chiari journey isn't over but has only just begun. I look forward to sharing with you how God continues to heal me and I pray that He will use my experience to encourage others. God is good!

Discouraged

I'm feeling discouraged today. As I've stated before, I've got this lump on the back of my head by the incision. They took a CT scan and said there was no leak. Regardless, the lump is still there and it's really hurting. I'm now having a headache that generates from that spot. It hurts to lay on it and the scar is starting to feel very sensitive right around the swollen place.

Up until the last several days, I've been feeling pretty good. Now, I feel like I've been set back 2 weeks. I'm just exhausted, don't have much of an appetite and I have a headache again. My neck has started to hurt. As I've said, I see the doctor on the 8th and was hoping that he'd release me to drive, go back to work, etc. He might still do that but if I don't feel better, it's just not going to happen.

I was reading stories online last night about people recovering from this surgery. Some people felt fine after 3-4 weeks and it took others 6 months or more to be able to function normally. It's been almost 4 weeks for me and I feel like I'm going backwards. I'm doing what I was told to do which is rest. I'm not doing anything that I shouldn't be doing. I'm taking naps when I'm tired. Yes, I've been out several times but I didn't overdo it. Am I expecting too much too fast?

More Photos

This is a picture of me in the operating room. I'm the one face-down on the table and the girl with the thumbs up is my nurse.



This is right after they shaved my head in the surgical suite. The white hat-looking thing that you see was a contraption that they used to hold my head still during surgery. If you look close, you can see where they screwed it right into my head. I've just recently found all the little scabs from the holes. Yuk.



Went back to church for the first time yesterday. When you're recovering from any kind of surgery, you tend to be home where it's quiet. At church, everyone seemed to be moving really fast and talking really loud. At first, it felt a bit confusing but I got used to it. One lady was so glad to see me that she grabbed my neck and hugged me really hard. Since she was 80 years old if she was a day, I refrained from yelling and pulling away. Let's just say that it didn't feel great. People were very gracious and glad to see me feeling better. I have a wonderful church family and have never taken their prayers for granted. Went to lunch and then came home and took a 4 hour nap. The excursion definitely wiped me out.

Today, I'm just glad to not have to go anywhere since my headache is back. It's right where the swollen place is on the back of my head. Unfortunately, I have a sore throat, too. I'm hoping it's just my allergies and I'm not getting sick.

In general, I'm feeling a bit better each day. I get tired pretty quickly but if I just stop and rest, things are fine. God is good!

Pictures

This is what my head looked like the morning before the surgery.




This is me in ICU. Apparently, I sat up in a chair for 2 hours. Don't remember it at all.




Lovely bandage on the back of my head. Looks like a feminine pad.




What is this? No one seems to know. My back started itching and when my husband looked, here's what we found. Looks like a contact burn of some kind. One person said it was probably the grounding patch. Another said it was a patch that they put on you that helps to pull the skin taunt. All I know is that it's healing but STILL itching.




Lovely stitches.




Preparing to get the stitches out.





This picture and the one below are right after I got home from having the stitches out.





Since we took these pictures, I've had a haircut to even out the back. The scar is healing nicely. It's even getting hair on it! My shaved hair is also growing back quickly. It just itches like crazy now.

I still have a lump on the left side of the scar that's really tender. They did a CT scan and found that there's no leak so I'm trying not to worry about it. It's just very tender and makes it hard to sleep on my back.

I've been out and about several times now. We went to my parents house for Thanksgiving lunch and I was wiped out but yesterday, we went to the mall to look at refrigerators and I did really well. I was super tired but feel good today. I'm enjoying being out of the house. Just have to make sure that I don't do too much.

I go back to the doctor on December 8th. I'm hoping that he clears for me to drive and go back to work. I don't know if I can work for a full 8 hours straight but I'll just work myself into it.

I've really been pleased with the outcome of the surgery. As strange as it sounds, I feel different. I'm much more emotional than before (for those of you that know me, I can see how that's hard to believe...). My head is really clear except when I'm tired. Then things seem to get fuzzy like before. Sleep remedies that. My hips hurt but I think that's because I'm walking normally now. The hip was used to dragging a leg, not propelling one. I still get headaches but they're different and move from spot to spot. Today, it's on the left back side of my head where the lump is. I'm sleeping a bit better than before but still can't get to sleep until several hours after I lay down. I'm not taking any more pain medication but I am taking a muscle relaxer twice a day. It helps my neck not be so stiff.

All in all, I'm really happy with the results. Time will tell if the changes are permanent.

Haircut

Today, I went for a haircut. Whoever shaved the back of my head did a pretty good job except that it was all uneven and looked like they did it with a blindfold on. So, today, I really didn't get a haircut but more of a "hair shape-up". It still looks really strange but at least it will grow back into somewhat of a shape.

After that, my mom took me to lunch then we went to Wal-Mart to get my muscle relaxer filled. To say the least, I'm exhausted. From what, I have no idea but I feel like I've run a race or something. I guess all of the relative inactivity from the past few weeks is catching up with me. Tomorrow, I'm taking things easy. Sleeping in and then taking a nap. Hopefully, that will help with my energy level.

I can't believe that it's been 2 1/2 weeks since my surgery. I feel so much better than before. Everyone that I see tells me that I look really good - like my "old self". I've felt bad for so long, I don't even remember my old-self. My head is getting clearer every day. I even started a book and could follow it much better than before. I didn't drag my leg around Wal-Mart. I wasn't completely blinded by the sunshine. I'm not choking when I eat or sleep. My chronic cough is gone and my fingers all have feeling and no tingling! I know that I keep mentioning these things over and over with each blog but it's still hard to believe that they're gone. God is SO good!

First Day Out

Well, today I woke up without the pounding headache. I still have a sensation of my head being 'full' but no pounding...yea! The place on the back of my head is still sore and pulling on my scar but I'm hoping that will go away soon.

Besides going back and forth to the doctor, today was my first day out. My husband took me to lunch and to Wal-Mart. It was strange but yet good to walk around Wal-Mart without dragging my leg. I'm really tired from the trip but, for the first time in a long time, not tired from dragging around a semi-dead leg. I'm still a bit unsteady and wobbly feeling but I can't describe how good it feels to walk limp free!

Wrote 5 thank you notes when I got home. It was more difficult than going to the store. I really had to concentrate on what I was writing. I think it was because I was really tired from the outing.

My big symptoms are still gone, praise God. People are still commenting on how good my face looks. My scar is still sore but getting better each day. I'm still not getting to sleep very fast. I lay there for a couple of hours at the least however, once I get to sleep, it seems to be a better sleep than before.

I am so grateful to God for his healing touch, for my family and friends who have prayed for me and are making sure that I don't have to want for anything. Just trying to rest and get well so that I can enjoy the holidays.

Oh, I get to go and get my hair cut on Monday. My hair is growing back really fast so she's going to even-up the mess on the back of my head. Yea!