Day 3

Major bright spot today...... I received a beautiful flower arrangement of roses and hydrangeas from Dr. Simon and Dr. Tiwana.  Throughout all the surgeries I have had in my lifetime, and there have been a few, I have never received flowers from the doctors.  This was awesome!  Such a sweet touch!

This was perfect timing, since this has been the worse day so far.

Pain has still been at its peak and swelling seems to be there as well. The swelling has moved down into my neck and is putting pressure on my throat, which is causing me difficulty in swallowing and breathing. It feels like someone is sitting on my chest. Rather a strange feeling actually. I have a pocket of swelling that is sitting right on top of the middle of my clavicle. So strange.

We put a call into Dr. Tiwana's to ask if we could increase frequency of my Norco and to ask if the difficulty breathing and swallowing was normal. He called back himself and said it was very normal and that it should pass.  He also said I could increase the pain med frequency..

This morning I tried eating cream of wheat.  It actually tasted really good. It did however take me over an hour and a half to eat a small bowl of it, but in the end I was victorious!  I ended up having more chicken broth, some squash soup, chocolate Ensure and an orange smoothie as well.  Felt like all I did was eat / drink all day.  Not really that much when you look at it on paper, but it felt like a lot as I was shoving it down all day.

Each time I tried to sleep the swelling in my throat made it feel like I could swallow and breathe.  This was very difficult to handle.  I kept having to remind myself to just breathe and not panic. Each time, it ended up passing, but still caused me quite a bit of anxiety. Had a bit of an emotional low today. The pain and swelling ended up getting to me and I just sat and cried for a bit.  Sharon was so supportive and just held my hand and prayed us through it. She has been so amazing and so supportive. It got me through and I was able to face the rest of the day.

Last but not least, let me say that I took a hot bath today!  That felt so amazing to get clean and refreshed!  It has also felt great to be able to brush my teeth and swish with mouthwash several times a day. It is exhausting but the baby toothbrush is genius and fits so well in my mouth!  The prescription mouthwash is actually pretty refreshing as well. I am an obsessive tooth brusher and was really concerned about being restricted, even if only at first, from being able to brush my teeth.  Yet another reason I'm thankful for not being tightly banded.



Another day of recovery down. They are already starting to run together but hopefully I will have more and more progress to report as the days go on!

Day 2

Swelling has taken up residence!

Being home from the hospital made such a difference.  It just felt good to be home, in my own space and, even if not in my own bed, I was in my own recliner.  Not to mention its also comforting when your little dog takes up post at your feet to protect you from whatever it was that caused your face to look like that in the first place.  LOL.

She hasn't left my side since I got home. Once she figured out who I was!

My pain level has still been pretty high. Most of the time 7 or 8 out of 10.  When the pain meds kick in, I get a good 2 1/2 hours of pain relief and then it escalates.  I must admit I have spent most of the day watching the clock waiting for more pain medication.  I hate this feeling, not to mention I have been getting severe headaches that I feel are caused by the pain medication.  But I do know its part of recovery, and again, I am very thankful that I'm not numb. I started alternating Ibuprofen with the Norco and its helping with the headaches a little.  Hopefully, it will help with the swelling a bit as well.

I haven't mentioned this, but a big thing about my lips and tongue not being numb is that I can speak.  The splint makes it difficult to speak clearly, but I am fairly understandable. Its very exhausting and I work pretty hard at it, but its still easier than using a white board.

My appetite has been fairly non existent, so not being able to eat hasn't been a problem yet.  Sharon has been very good at making sure I get something in my tummy before taking any meds.  This is a good thing because if it were left up to me, I wouldn't be eating anything. I say "eat", but what I really mean is, Ensure, chicken broth, or apple sauce.  Actually, I had forgotten how much I like apple juice and apple sauce. I have rather enjoyed them.  Chocolate Ensure isn't half bad either.

Sharon's Mom dropped by and brought a beautiful plant with pink flowers.  She is such a precious woman and just her presence made me smile.  Well... at least half of a smile!

Tried to watch a couple of movies today and just can't seem to get through a whole movie without falling asleep. I know rest is good and is a requirement, but I have about an hour of awake time during each "cycle" and then I'm groggy again.  Put on Steel Magnolias in the middle of the night to pass the time while I was awake.  It was good because I enjoyed the funny parts and passed out before it got to the sad part.

That's really all there is to report today.  Lots of pain and swelling.  Eating (drinking) okay, a little nauseous here an there, but for the most part, just a day of sleep.