Friday, December 30, 2011

a tale of 2 surgeries

Hard to believe that I'm back on here already. Yes a mere 2 and a half weeks after brain surgery, my second. I had my first 19th Feb 2010 and this last one 12th Dec 2011 and the experiences were poles apart. Just briefly (I am post op still after all).
1st: I was in theatre 12 hours (roughly)
2nd: I was in theatre 3 hours (in anaesthetics pre op for ages and I cannot recommend midazolam highly enough as a pre op relaxant)
1st: I don't remember the first 2 days (spent in ICU and high dependency)
2nd: I remember the first night telling my husband to go home to the kids at 10 o'clock (spent the night in high dependency)
1st: I slept more than I was awake, for weeks!!!
2nd: I only have 1 nanna nap
1st: they only got 80% of the tumour (it probably would have killed me if they'd tried to get it all admittedly)
2nd: it's all gone, even the bit in my ear and around my trigeminal nerve
1st: I needed allied health therapy of every sort and a walking stick
2nd: so far I haven't needed any of it

All told I am very grateful to both doctors at the PA (princess alexandra hospital) even though they didn't get all the tumour and were very much against me going a 2nd time, as well as Dr Teo (at the prince of wales private) for getting it all out, with far less side effects this time. With luck this is the last time I ever have to go through this. While I still have to recuperate (face still fairly numb, ear still pretty deaf and eyes still not coordinating), I have no permanent nerve damage and no tumour. I am also eternally grateful that I had a benign tumour and not a cancerous one and send out my best wishes to those fighting a cancerous tumour.

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