3.5 months Post Op

Hey everyone,

So sorry i've been gone for a while. I just moved from PA to WA state and have been running around like a crazy person. A bit stressful but a really good move. I'm so happy to be with my family again!

Anyway, it is about 3.5 months post op from my bilateral arthroplasty. Things have been fairly good. I can move my eyebrows again, though still a bit weak on my left side. I can feel almost my entire face which is awesome! I still take daily motrin (800mg pills) and soma, though can limit it to once a day. This is more due to finances than anything else. I lost my health insurance with the move and don't have the finances to pay for anything (and I mean anything) until I get my first paycheck.

The big thing i've noticed is the pain. It is obvious that this surgery goes through your major facial nerves. Of course I knew this going in but didn't quite know what to expect. I get that horrible tingly/itchy sensation all the time, going up into my scalp. Many times I have these itching spells and look like I have lice or something! The other issue i've notice is I still have quite a bit of pain/discomfort. My jaw feels tense and is especially sore on the left side. I use my therabite several times a day, which helps some with the pain and helps me to maintain my awesome opening. The surgical sites are still very tender to the touch in terms of nerves. My neck has tensed up more since I stopped PT, though i'm trying my best to do home exercises to relieve it. I use heat a lot too to try and help.

What have others experienced at this stage in their recovery? At times, family and friends have a hard time understanding why I still am not "better". I've explained to them that i'll never be completely better though they have a difficult time grasping it. I think they thought this would be the miracle cure, no matter how often i've explained to them it isn't. I still think i'm better than prior to surgery, though definitely some days I don't feel it is enough. I think the stress of leaving my job, moving cross country, and the lack of finances has definitely added to my problems. I'm trying my best to work through the stress so I don't hurt myself much more. It wasn't a great time to move in terms of recovery, but the stress of my awful work situation was so much more. Gotta love the rollercoaster of life!

Okay, so maybe I did!

Sorry everyone, I know, I know, I promised to update soon and didn't! Things have been a bit nuts around here. I am moving back to Seattle so am busy saying goodbyes and packing. I leave on Friday and there is SO much to do!

I am doing pretty darn good with my recovery. I am now about 9 weeks out and am still maintaining between a 35-42mm opening as long as I keep up on my exercises and don't get too stressed. After I gave my notice to the congregations I had a doctor appointment and the stressed caused my opening to go down to 32mm. Lesson learned; exercise, exercise, exercise! That therabite is a miracle worker, i'm telling you!

Pain wise it gets better and better. I am still struggling with what i'm pretty sure is scar tissue, it feels like I have tight bands connected from my skull to my jaw joints. Each time I open or move my jaw side to side they pull. I'm sure this will go away with time and again...exercise. When I wake up I usually hurt quite a bit from the evil clenching, but once I get the therabite out and take my 800mg motrin and the muscle relaxant it calms down.

The stress of moving has definitely taken its toll, but I know once i'm able to relax a bit i'll see improvement. I was doing better before the move, that is for sure.

One of the cool things is I now have movement in both eyebrows! They are still weak but keep improving. I can also feel almost all of my face now, but have pin prick type feeling in my left cheek and some of my right. This is an awful feeling but again, will get better with time. My doctor keeps reminding me it takes a while for things to get better.

I will update again (with all the pictures missing) as soon as I am settled in Seattle. Hopefully next week I can get this done. Thank you for your patience with everything. I'm glad to know people still come to this blog to check in and to find information.

I didn't fall off a cliff! :-)

Just dropping in to say i'm soooo sorry for the lack of updates. I had a parishioner pass away on Thursday and have been busy caring for the family, preparing for the funeral, and of course, recovering from the surgery.

The funeral is tomorrow. Please pray for the family and that i'm able to lead the service well. I'm a bit nervous as my pain is still bad and I tend to mess up my sentences sometimes due to probably the swelling, nerve problems, and meds.

I've been taking pictures and have PLENTY to update you all on. I promise as soon as i'm able I will do a big long update.

Thank you for checking in, and again, please pray for this wonderful family. The woman who died was such a special person. I hope i'm able to do a good job in honoring her life.

Day 8 (One Week Post Op)

So, it is a week since I underwent my arthroplasty. In some ways it feels like it really, has only been a week. In other ways it feels like an eternity!

The pain is a bit better today, I guess. I still feel like my head is in a vice and every itty bitty part of my head is bruised. I just can't find a comfortable position for my head and it is oh so frustrating.

My facial paralysis and numbness is still there. I cannot lift my eyebrows and my cheeks are pretty numb. Also my left eye is still weak; I especially notice this when I try to wink (cannot be done) or squeeze my eyes closed. You will also notice in the pictures my smile still isn't quite there and one side is more swollen then the other.

On a good note though I do know things are improving. With time the bruising, swelling, and joint pain will go away. I feel my personality is coming back some. I am able to do more and took my sweet Caroline out on a decent walk this evening. Tomorrow I even plan to visit a dear parishioner who is not doing well after my physical therapy. These are all signs i'm doing better.

I am beginning to get irritated with my diet. I still am timid about chewing as it hurts too much. I can mush things with my tongue but that is about it. I'm finding after a week of liquid and mushy food, i'm bored. The soft diet I was on before surgery seems glorious compared to this! Applesauce and tomato soup just are no fun. Today I made bean enchiladas and mushed it up real good. This was so exciting to me, especially because it was able to be "chewed" with my tongue. That was the most flavor I have had yet; i'm so glad there are leftovers

So that is it. My friends are gone now so it is back to me and the furkids. I'm very thankful for all the progress i've made in the last week and look forward to seeing what week two brings!

Day 7

Ahhh, the bruising continues! As you can tell, the left ear area is really looking pretty ugly. My pain today was pretty bad due to the bruised sensation. Every nerve throughout my head; side, forehead, top, back, etc...it all hurts at the slightest touch. I was awake all night due to this, even to the point of seeing the sun rise. I refused to look at the clock which is what I think helped me make it through today!

I had physical therapy today; day 2. It went really well, and I was able to open to 32mm at the end of my appointment. Even better, I reset the therabite this evening to 35mm and was able to do it! This is the minimum normal and I am so happy to be there. My side deviations are getting better too. I was able to deviate to the left 10mm and the right 8mm. Normal is 15mm.

The pain was bad throughout the day but it went fairly well. I have two friends from my seminary days who arrived this evening to visit. They are pastors in central PA as well. One lives an hour away and the other about 3. It is so good to see them and even though I hurt they were able to help take my mind off it a bit.

So, that is my update for tonight. A bit short but I am tired and praying I get some sleep this evening. It is hot hot hot over here so that isn't helping. Praise God for air conditioners; I don't know what I would do without mine. As a native Northwesterner heat and I do not get along. I'm praying this crazy heat/humidity wave goes away for a while!

Day 6

This is how I spend most of my days, wrapped up in ice packs! These handy covers are leftover from my three foot surgeries. All I have to do is velcro them together and they wrap perfectly around my jaw; love it!

Today just call me Bruiser! The bruising is getting nice and colory. The pictures do not do it justice, as they are much brighter in person. While i'm thankful the swelling is going down, I now feel like my head is stuck in a vice. It has not been a pleasant day pain-wise and nothing seems to keep it at bay.

The good news is I can still open about 30mm today with the therabite. I'm so grateful that my opening is so good so early in my recovery. As i'm sure i've mentioned, the goal is 35-40mm with no pain. Looking at where i'm at, I think this will not be too difficult to meet once the surgical recovery is complete.

One of the more embarrassing side effects from this surgery that i'll only share for the benefit of others who may go through this, is drooling. Yes, it's gross but is very much a part of my life at the moment! Because of what I would assume is the weakness in my facial nerves and muscles, the drooling is out of control when sleeping (and sometimes accidently when awake!). Please, if you go through this surgery, before going to sleep grab a towel and cover your pillow. You will not regret it!

Today I got out with my dog for mini walks around the block. I'm able to get out a bit further than previous days which I am happy about (as is Caroline). I do get pretty dizzy though so I have to pace myself. My ears are still pretty plugged, with the left ear being the worst, so the vertigo sets in easily.

Other than that, I have been catching up on the show Six Feet Under. I'm almost done with season 1 and cannot wait to start season 2. I also have several movies now to watch thanks to my Aunt and Netflix. It is nice to take it easy and enjoy some good shows.

Which is exactly what i'm going to do now! Until tomorrow...

Days 4 and 5

Day Four

Morning

Evening

Day four started out a little rough as you can tell by the pictures. The swelling in my eyes became a bit crazy and I had a hard time seeing throughout the day. I'm still having some double vision due to the swelling but it is getting better. My left eye tends to get a bit lazy which is part of the problem. Once I have better control over the muscles and nerves I have a feeling my vision will be much more clear!


Day four was one I found had the most progress. As the day went on, my energy began returning. I have found with previous surgeries this tends to be both a good and a bad thing. While it was good I wanted to get up, walk around, and such, the body just isn't always as ready as you think. I insisted on doing a lot of things, such as the dishes, cooking for myself, and getting up for anything I wanted. My dog also decided she had had enough of vacation and wanted to return home, so she insisted that I be the one to take her out for potty breaks.


What ended up happening is my body crashed. By the end of the day I just couldn't move anymore. I'm thankful though for the progress that was made. My swelling went down further and I began having little "pops" in my left ear, signs that my hearing should be returning.

Day Five

Day 5 has been tougher than day 4. My friend had to go home today so it is the first one on my own. I'm so grateful for all her help and for the time to catch up (she is still in seminary). We had a nice time and it was a gift to have someone on hand to help with wound care, dishes, driving, and even laundry (thanks Andrea!).


Physical therapy really took it out of me. It is an hour drive each way to get there so PT is always a long day. Because the incision sites are still so new, my PT did not want to do any tens or ultrasound as it poses a risk for infection. So, we stuck with ice and range of motion. The good news is I was able to open 28mm, a good 10mm more than before surgery! Normal at minimum is 35-40mm, so i'm on my way.

I was already in a great deal of pain before arriving, and by the time I left I was done! My PT's are so happy though with my progress and had a great time calling me "chipmunk face" and other such terms of endearment. They even commented on how swollen my ears are, to the point they are flattening against my head. While this is true, they should have seen me a few days ago!!


After PT we had to run to the store to pick up prescriptions. This extra trip was another step in my road to exhaustion. I ran into a parishioner which was nice, though i'm sure he was wondering what I was doing out. We then went home and on the way picked up flowers my mother had ordered for me. They are so beautiful! I also got a package from my Aunt with a bunch of movies which I cannot wait to watch. Such a nice day full of surprises!


Once I got home, I took my pain meds/antibiotics, did wound care, took the dog out, and got some ice. I then laid down and took a nap for the next few hours. The pain today has been deep muscle and bone pain, the kind you would generally expect with this type of surgery. I think all the talking and exercise is what caused my problems. While it is good and expected of me to do these things, I believe I need to take it a bit more easy the next few days.

So, that is it for now. Progress is being made and everyday is a little better. I will try to update again tomorrow depending on how i'm feeling. Oh, and sorry for the low quality side pictures from today, I just couldn't get my camera to cooperate!