Category: Medical Procedures

Three Week Update

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At the three week mark, I need to step up my recovery and build up my stamina. Dr. Dave informed me yesterday he needs to get me OUT of the house and exposed to more stimuli. Hmm….wonder what that means…and just where did he get that direction?

Seriously though, I do need to do that. During my recovery after my rupture, once I started going into surroundings that I wasn’t seeing on a daily basis that had a lot of clutter, it was tough to process all of the data my brain was seeing. I am hoping I won’t have that kind of difficulty this time because the clipping wasn’t an emergency situation like the rupture in 2006 was.

I’m now trying to come up with a word or two to describe what my scalp feels like the last couple of days. It doesn’t hurt or ache really, it just feels…odd. When I psychically touch the left side of my head it psychically feels like my scalp has been shot up with novocaine and I’m told it could feel that way for months. That’s an easy one to describe and something other people can relate to.

However, when I’m not touching it, there are odd sensations and slight aches and pains when I’m simply sitting still. I’m assuming it’s all part of the process…just strange for me going through clipping this first time after multiple coilings

My hair is growing back and, if the winds are favorable, I can cover that area up with the longer hair around the 1″ wide shaved section and the incision. If it’s windy…well, people get the freak show.

When I have my 4-week follow up appointment, I’ll be curious to ask my Dr. exactly where the bone section of the skull was removed and to get a better idea of the size of the aneurysm.

From middle of forehead to ear Hair growing back And some hair covers it

Fresh Air

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Yesterday was a breath of fresh air…literally! It finally warmed up enough and wasn’t horribly windy or icy outside, so I took a short walk down the road and back with Dave as my crutch. Then we filled the bird feeders. It was chilly, but that fresh, cool air in my lungs felt great.

I think one of the reasons I get a little bit dizzy inside when I walk is that I have to turn around so much and if I get walking too quickly I turn around too quickly. When we walked outside, I could just go straight…and it was much easier. So I should either walk outside or go slower inside, especially when turning. Makes sense.

As we were walking into the house the phone was ringing. It was my fellow aneurysm survivor Lori, from Florida calling to check in on me. She had been reading my blog and wanted to let me know a few things. One was that my numb head could be that way for months until all of those nerves that were cut get aligned back up and heal. I get to look forward to prickly feelings! It was so nice of her to call and it’s certainly a comfort to speak to someone who’s gone through it and knows what you’re experiencing.

Then, while I was in phone mode, I gave mom a call and checked in with her, then had some lunch. Needless to say, I was pooped.

However, I’ve been craving scones for some time now and knew I had a scone mix in the pantry, so I thought I’d mix those up before collapsing for the rest of the day. There are literally 4 ingredients to the scones. The mix, one egg, butter and milk. They are SO easy and quite tasty, but wow, did cutting the butter in cause pure exhaustion. I took my time, but it took a LOT of time. LOL

15 minutes later I had fresh scones and I DID eat them with a nice cup of tea and some marmalade, then hit the love seat and crashed. Dave made some more stew for dinner and it hit the spot later.

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Outside! Finally. The killer scones.

 

Slogging Along

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Well, so much for quick relief. Unable to get into regular Dr. for an osteopathic muscle therapy session until Friday afternoon. Ugh!!!!

Took a shower this morning anyway in hopes it would make me feel better. First full shower and it wiped me out. One forgets just how much work the brain does for even the most simple things. Raise arm, grab shampoo bottle, tip bottle, move hand, pour, replace bottle on shelf, click top close, move arm up to head…..etc., etc., etc. I did wash my hair a bit more, but still letting it air dry. Feels better and I look a little better finally as swelling and black and blue marks are starting to fade.

Because the shower wiped me out, I took a very good, long nap on the couch while Dave went into town to get groceries. Felt great, but it was hard for me to get up and get going again. Back wasn’t hurting too bad either…maybe I’ll have to cancel my Dr’s appointment for end of week. One can hope.

The incision is healing very well, but still has a ways to go. The photos below show how it is coming along and the stitches in all their glory. Also my new hairline is coming back in and starting to itch just a tick. Nothing major though, and I do remember I have the incisions there, I just don’t always hit on it exactly when I got up to itch it. LOL Trying to go AROUND the incision, but my aim isn’t always perfect. I don’t believe I’m supposed to put anything on it until it’s healed better. So far it isn’t anything I can’t handle as far as discomfort.

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Scar

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Stitches

 

VIDEO: One Week Update

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