**graphic photo warning - 2 post surgical pictures included**
Well here I am almost 4 weeks post-surgery and I had my follow-up appointment today. Good news all around! The surgeon said things went well and although the tumor was bigger than expected...it was non-cancerous and the after-effects that I am still experiencing are normal and will go away eventually.
YIPPEE YAHOO!!! yeah I'm smiling silly.
When I went to the hospital and checked in, I didn't have to wait long before he called me back...which is odd because he has nurses to do that. I'll admit I got a little freaked to have him call me back personally. After a quick chat and a look inside my ear...he pronounced me on my way healing.
Many of you have left me notes or messages asking how I'm doing and so far I'd say I'm doing pretty well. Thank you for asking and for checking in on me. I am still healing and still have the constant headaches and a shooting pain that is like an electrical feeling in my jaw. I still need to be careful with my activities and not bending my neck or lowering my head too much....but....I'm slowly healing.
Well here I am almost 4 weeks post-surgery and I had my follow-up appointment today. Good news all around! The surgeon said things went well and although the tumor was bigger than expected...it was non-cancerous and the after-effects that I am still experiencing are normal and will go away eventually.
YIPPEE YAHOO!!! yeah I'm smiling silly.
When I went to the hospital and checked in, I didn't have to wait long before he called me back...which is odd because he has nurses to do that. I'll admit I got a little freaked to have him call me back personally. After a quick chat and a look inside my ear...he pronounced me on my way healing.
Many of you have left me notes or messages asking how I'm doing and so far I'd say I'm doing pretty well. Thank you for asking and for checking in on me. I am still healing and still have the constant headaches and a shooting pain that is like an electrical feeling in my jaw. I still need to be careful with my activities and not bending my neck or lowering my head too much....but....I'm slowly healing.
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I debated whether or not to share my post-surgery pictures and I hope I have not offended anyone by doing so but the procedure is hard to explain without a visual aid.
I had a tumor in my parotid gland which is located near the jaw below the ear. This gland contains a lot of facial nerves and the doctor was concerned about facial paralysis or a dropping face, but luckily for me... that does not seem to be a problem. I can smile, I can make kissy faces and I can even lift my eyebrows up...all systems check.
The picture on the left was taken on the Saturday two days after surgery. The white bandage is covering where the drainage tube came out (I didn't share that picture as it's kind of gross). The other picture was taken two weeks after surgery and it looks even better now.
The scaring is minimal and I'm very impressed. I asked if he had a plastic surgeon sew me up and he smiled saying he did it himself. Where you can see the stitches around my ear going up the front...did not leave a visible scar. The ones down around my jaw and at the back of my ear are still a little red but well on the way to healing. He hid the worst of it in a natural wrinkle in my neck. Unless my hair is up, you can't even see it. He did a fantastic job!
I'm still moving slow and I can't be on the computer for too long and texting hurts...but I will heal. Sleep is a far off thought and getting comfy with this ear isn't always easy but I do have my naps to fall back on. My hearing is down a bit and that's okay...just means the music gets turned up louder. So overall I'd say I'm doing pretty good and I'm on the mend.
Thank you for all the support, kind words, thoughts, messages, and prayers you have all sent. I do believe they worked.
take good care of you
Tammy
I had a tumor in my parotid gland which is located near the jaw below the ear. This gland contains a lot of facial nerves and the doctor was concerned about facial paralysis or a dropping face, but luckily for me... that does not seem to be a problem. I can smile, I can make kissy faces and I can even lift my eyebrows up...all systems check.
The picture on the left was taken on the Saturday two days after surgery. The white bandage is covering where the drainage tube came out (I didn't share that picture as it's kind of gross). The other picture was taken two weeks after surgery and it looks even better now.
The scaring is minimal and I'm very impressed. I asked if he had a plastic surgeon sew me up and he smiled saying he did it himself. Where you can see the stitches around my ear going up the front...did not leave a visible scar. The ones down around my jaw and at the back of my ear are still a little red but well on the way to healing. He hid the worst of it in a natural wrinkle in my neck. Unless my hair is up, you can't even see it. He did a fantastic job!
I'm still moving slow and I can't be on the computer for too long and texting hurts...but I will heal. Sleep is a far off thought and getting comfy with this ear isn't always easy but I do have my naps to fall back on. My hearing is down a bit and that's okay...just means the music gets turned up louder. So overall I'd say I'm doing pretty good and I'm on the mend.
Thank you for all the support, kind words, thoughts, messages, and prayers you have all sent. I do believe they worked.
take good care of you
Tammy
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