All Is Well...

I saw Dr. Gardere for my 2-month follow up appointment a couple of weeks ago. While they initially told me that I'd have a number of additional check-ups, I was pleasantly surprised with "no more need to see us unless you have a problem." Woo hoo!

The only lingering symptom I have is swelling at the base of my nose (no channeling Samantha through a nose wiggle) but he said that will remain a minimum of 6 months. He would like for me to come back one final time at one year post-op but that's mainly just to get the final 'after' pictures to complete his file.

It's so nice to have this little venture behind me. I no longer snore (unless I'm really tired) and can breathe and blow my nose like a normal person. It's fabulous! Apparently my snoring lulled Dave to sleep, though, because he hasn't slept through the night in a couple of months. Coincidence?

Back in the Groove

I'm trying to get back to the real world this week. I came back to work yesterday and it went really well. Unfortunately, by the time I got home, I was utterly exhausted so I was asleep by 9pm. I'm still pretty sluggish today as well but I'm told that is to be expected. Besides, only 5 more work days to go before Christmas holidays - I'm definitely tough enough to handle that :-).

It is super cold here and my nose doesn't seem to like that very much. It's got less feeling in it, is a bit more swollen and there's a lot more pressure when I try to turn my head. But it could be worse (and was a couple of weeks ago) so we're just moving forward and getting into the spirit of the holidays.

Trial Runs

In preparation for going back to work next week, I've been trying to get out of the house each day and have slowly built up some endurance...I think :-). Yesterday Dave and I ran errands and had lunch so I was out and about for a little over four hours. Tonight is his Christmas party (dinner at Ninfa's) so I'm going to use that as a bit of a trial run as well.

The Nasonex I received at my last appointment has worked wonders with my nausea as it dries up all of the drainage and does so immediately. The reduction has been like a Christmas miracle! I learned the hard way that I still can't bend over or really let my nose be anything but level so that's been kind of challenging. Being able to breathe and sleep through the night, though, is definitely worth it!

Follow-Up

I had an appointment with the doc this afternoon and things are, for the most part, looking really good. Due to the ever present nausea, he's given me a prescription to dry up the excess drainage so I'm hoping it works really quickly!

I've been a little worried because my nose was more swollen on the right side than the left but he felt it and told me it was fine...and to stop messing with it :-). I bent over to pick up the newspaper and thought I was keeping my nose level but apparently I was not so it began swelling again and I have a bit of a headache today. Needless to say, I got a bit of a scolding and was told to continue walking like a "snobby princess" for the next 4.5 weeks.

The only real bummer is that I found out I can't drive long distances until 6 complete weeks of healing have occurred so I won't be able to see my family in Louisiana over the holidays. To cheer me up, the doc gave me a script specifically for Dave - it stated there is to be no housework for 45 years, breakfast in bed for 4 weeks and a trip to Hawaii next year. Wouldn't that be the life?

I am looking forward to being back in the office next week...Dave's been working a lot this week and I figured out I'm not all that much fun to hang out with all day, every day ;-)...

What a Difference a Week Makes

Things are definitely looking up this week as I'm becoming more independent and even took Taylor to school myself this morning. Granted, I probably wouldn't have if Dave hadn't been working but it was good to feel a sense of accomplishment. The crazy thing was that it hailed on me the entire drive back!!

The swelling continues to go down a bit each day but the right side remains much more swollen than the left, which is wild because the left is the one that was obstructed. I have an appointment with Dr. Gardere tomorrow afternoon at 2:15pm so hopefully he'll be able to tell me if that's normal or not. I do have feeling back in my cheeks again and I can manage a half smile. About half of my nose remains numb...mainly the bottom part as that's where the swelling is the worst. It's really strange to watch yourself touch your nose and then have a couple seconds of delay before you actually feel it.

All in all, I feel a little better every day (except Sunday...I overdid it a bit on Saturday and paid the price) and the nausea comes and goes now instead of being an all day event. Definite progress!

It Actually Happened!

So this morning I was actually able to breathe out of the left side of my nose - albeit briefly - for the first time in five years. I still have TONS of congestion so I have to make a concerted effort to blow my nose three times a day. Not the most fun thing I've ever done but it's also not that bad since most of my nose is still numb.

I haven't had to take anything for pain except Tylenol since the ginormous splints came out on Thursday and the nausea gets a bit better each day. That plague apparently won't go away completely for some time but it's at least manageable now. I guess there's a lot of drainage after have a blockage for so long plus, Mr. Respiratory Authority (aka Dave) explained to me that "as long as the nose is healing, it will continue to produce copious amounts of mucous as a healing mechanism." That was just music to my ears - insert facetious look here...at least I know why it keeps happening now, though.

In other news, my face remains really swollen but it decreases a great deal each day. My nose, however, appears to be taking the longer road on getting rid of the swelling. I guess that's to be expected since I have stitches across, down the sides, across the top, down the base of the septum and at random places throughout since they had to piece it together. The only really annoying thing is that I can't smile...too much swelling and no feeling...so, if you see me out and about, please don't be hurt if I look mad ;-)... I have more energy now in brief spurts but require frequent naps after doing much...all in all, MUCH better than a few days ago.

Thank you for all of the prayers - they are definitely working!

Definite Progress

I actually got some good rest last night for the first time since Saturday so that really improved my mood for this morning's appointment. All of the packing was removed and my exterior sutures were as well.

That was, by far, the most painful part of this process. The splints that were in my nose went all the way to the back of my throat and had inflated balloons at the ends - not at all fun when they're pulled out!! The sutures on the left side (where most of the work was done) probably could have stayed in another day or so as they were incredibly painful coming out.

Once all of that was done, though, I found immediate relief and only need to take Tylenol for pain now. Apparently most of the pain comes from swelling pressing on the nasal splints. Now my nose is pretty numb and I still can't breathe out of the left side because there's a tremendous amount of swelling. We're making progress, though!

Moving forward, I'm supposed to use saline several times a day for the next week to clear out the congestion. The next follow-up appointment is on Wednesday. Please pray for relief from nausea as it's still an issue and will remain one until my system gets used to properly draining sinuses again.

Things are better and I would give you a great big smile if my face wasn't numb :-)