Hi, Nicole,
Welcome to this forum! I also find a great source of information and inspiration. I had AN surgery twice: in 1988 for a giant AN and in 2007 for its regrowth. I also ended up with one-sided weakness after the first surgery for the same reason as you and it got worse after the second surgery. Both times it took me two years to get to the point when it is not noticeable to the outside world but I can still feel it.
I feel that once you have it, you will always have it even in a minor form although after two years I reached a point when it does not stop me from doing anything that I want. Exercise can both heal it and camouflage what is left but I have to do it religiously and never stop. Once I stop, weakness returns. One type of exercise that helps is resistance or weight training, not endurance training, like running or walking and not flexibility training like yoga or pilates. They all have their place in an exercise program, don't get me wrong, I do all of these for various reasons. I learned though that if I skip my weights even for two days I have trouble walking on day three and appear to have scoliosis because my right shoulder is lower than the left. So, before I go to bed, I do weights even if I am extremely sleepy or tired. Right now they are the most important part in my exercise program because they give the most results in a short term. I am not prone to being obsessive-compulsive but I learned that I need it the hard way.When I travel, I put ankle weights in a suitcase. My husband once objected, but I said that I want to walk like anybody else!
I do weights every other day : M, W, F, S and next week it is T, TH, Sat. The entire cycle repeats over an over again. It works better than just 3 days a week. My routine consists of dumbbells and ankle weights. I do these at home but a gym is also great, whatever works for you.
My ankle was also very weak. I took PT twice - one for vestibular retraining and one for walking. The second time I learned that my ankle was weaker on the sides than front-back because when I walk or run, I exercise front and back more. So the therapist got me on Dynadisc- you just step on it and wobble for a few seconds. While you wobble, the sides of the ankle are working. I purchased it and do it at home. My foot was also affected much more severely after the second surgery. I am not sure if yours is but if you need exercises, let me know. When I do my ankle weights, I include foot and ankle exercises that I got from PT and Internet.
One-sided weakness (or hemiparesis ) can affect a body three ways:
1) gross motor and fine motor movements (handwriting, grabbing, holding, etc , or walking)
2) fatigue - moving the affected limbs takes so much more effort. My incredible fatigue has lifted only when my hemiparesis got to a certain level.
3) balance - your weak side cannot support you and you can fall easily. Any ANer has a double whammy here, no balance nerve and the weak side is not to be relied on! My balance is so much better now that my right side is strong.
Your age is in your favor. You should recover much quicker than I did. i had my first surgery at 25 and I remember how my handwriting was affected. I did everything with my left (non-dominant) hand, I even wrote with it. There were plenty of opportunities back then and I was amazed at how good I became at writing with my left hand. Now that I am in my 40's I cannot do it. My handwriting is not pretty to look at but it is legible and it exists. I purchased a netbook for typing instead and walk around everywhere with it.
Sorry about your forced isolation from your baby. That must be incredibly hard. Hang in there! Everything will work out, just give it time. If you have any questions, shoot. Hemiparesis after AN surgery is not common, but it happens. It can be dealt with. As soon as your doctor give OK, start with some form of weights and you will be on your way to recovery. I know it is not advisable too soon after surgery but all doctors (and all patients) are different on this.
Eve
