3 year follow-up MRI & all is well

[Syl]

It's my 3rd anniversary next week & I had my 3 year MRI yesterday. Results are stable. No new growth. That's a relief for me because for the past 6 months I've had constant brow twitching on my AN side. It twitched when I sneezed & bad things can happen when I sneeze. It was after a sneeze that I had my sudden hearing loss 4 years ago. So you can understand my concern. My brow also twitched when I yawned, and often throughout the day. But it's the twitches after the sneeze that scare me most. The twitching lessened in the recent weeks. The day that I scheduled my MRI appt, the twitching stopped. It hasn't happened since.

I wasn't supposed to get another MRI for another 4 years, but the incessant brow twitching had me concerned. The surgeons left a tiny speck of the tumor behind & I feared that it hadn't died off.

Maybe the twitching is part of the healing process as I had slight facial weakness days after my surgery. Some prednisone helped clear that up really fast. I know that the facial nerve is very resilient, but takes a long time to heal.

Syl

[Mickey]

Geat news! Best wishes, Mickey

[Jim Scott]

Hi, Syl ~

Thanks for sharing the splendid news about, not only the MRI results but the cessation of the twitching that had you concerned for awhile.

Jim

[JAndrews]

Great news!

[CHD63]

Syl .....

So happy for the good news.  Stable MRIs are good MRIs!!

Clarice

[leapyrtwins]

Stable is good.  Congrats!

Jan

[Jackie]

Syl,

We love stable MRI's! Congrats! May the worries be behind you!!!
Jackie

[kareno]

 Syl,

So happy to hear good news!!   No more worries and thanks for sharing with us.  It is so helpful to all AN'ers and their families when people share their own stories.

Karen

[Syl]

Not only am I happy about my MRI results, but I should also share with you all that I still continue to see improvements with my balance & progress with my headaches.

A few months ago I went to a local casino. I noticed that it's much easier for me to make my way from one part of the casino to the next in search of the slot machine that's gonna make me rich. It used to be quite challenging walking down those narrow aisles, turning my head from left to right looking for an open machine. The slot machines are often occupied, making the narrow aisles even narrower & a bit more challenging for my balance. And the noise!! That only made it worse. So the last few times I've been there have been better for me. I haven't won any grand jackpot, but I enjoy myself more now that I can get around the building with much more ease & stability.

As for the headaches....those are still an issue. I still get them often enough that they're still considered chronic headaches. I still use my heating pad every night while I'm watching TV & winding down for the night. There are still times that I wake up with a headache 3 or 4 days in a row. But there are also longer stretches of time of headache free mornings--2 or 3 weeks is becoming a more common occurrence. This is a great improvement considering that I used to wake up with a headache on an almost daily basis.

As for my hearing...Needless to say that what is gone is gone for good, but it's amazing how the brain adapts to the changes that come with hearing loss. It used to drive me crazy not knowing the source & direction of so many noises & sounds. It almost made me appear paranoid. Maybe because many sounds, like the sound of a car engine or garden tools, which used to be familiar sounds, were no longer familiar to a brain that was used to listening with 2 healthy ears. After 3 years of living with partial hearing loss, my brain has reacquainted itself with so many sounds that used to be unrecognizable. Now, I don't appear so paranoid. I have adapted.

It does get better, even after 3 years.

Syl

[Suu]

Syl, you've given me hope for the future.  Thanks for writing a detailed account of what you've been going through.

That is wonderful news about your MRI results and it looks like a bright future ahead.

Thanks also for giving me a reason to go to play slot machines - it's therapy! 

Best wishes,

Suu xx

[Syl]

Suu:

What have I done?

Syl

[Suu]

 

[ppearl214]

Syl

What a wonderful ANniversary! Congrats and continued wellness wishes to you!
Phyl

[tweety]

Syl,  Congratulations.  It is a reason to celebrate and may the casino's get easier each time.  Tweety

[Syl]

   I'm hoping that finding my way to the ladies room gets easier in concert venues with dim light & stairs. I went to a concert a few days ago & had to ask for someone to accompany me to the ladies room. Going up or down stairs alone in dim light is not a good idea when there isn't a rail to hold on to.
   At the end of the concert, I felt wobbly making my way up the stairs. It's a challenge standing on 1 foot as the other foot makes its way up to the next step but the person in front isn't moving. Good thing I had someone to hold on to.

Syl