ANA Discussion Forum
AN Community => AN Community => Topic started by: suboo73 on February 10, 2009, 04:25:00 am
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Hi everyone! Here is the update from Kim's husband, in his own words:
Hello all,
I just wanted to pass you guys an update on Kim's big day. Overall,
things went fairly well. Kim was in surgery from 7:30am-6:00pm. They
were able to remove the tumor (which Kim had named Manny) completely
and, while removing it, confirmed that he was benign. Unfortunately,
the surgeons are not optimistic that hearing in Kim's left ear will be
preserved, and there is some slight, temporary facial weakness on that
side. However, neither comes as a surprise (though we were secretly
hoping to somehow skip them). Kim is now in the ICU for the night
where they'll be monitoring her over night. Both Dr. Kerry and Dr.
Tamargo seemed to feel that the procedure went smoothly, and they will
be continuing to monitor Kim over the coming days to ensure she gets a
good start towards recovery. The hope is that she will be moved to a
private room mid-day tomorrow, which she'll likely stay in through
Saturday or Sunday.
Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and support, which have
certainly meant a lot to both Kim and I.
Phil
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My thoughts and prayers are with you, Kim, and your family.
Kim --I know there is a recovery period now... Be strong!
Sounds like you have come thru surgery just fine!
Sue
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As soon as I logged on this morning, I thought we must be getting close to the date. So happy it is over and hope the recovery is speedy.
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Sue - Thanks for posting Phil's update.
Hi Phil,
Thanks for your wonderful update on Kim. It sounds like things went well and hopefully Kim is resting comfortably (as possible). I hope you are getting some rest too. As I'm sure you know, the first few days are the hardest and things usually start getting better pretty quickly. Please give Kim my best wishes for a speedy and uneventful recovery.
Wendy
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Sue,
thank you for sharing this update. Please forward to Phil my wellness wishes to Kim... and congrats for now being a "postie".... prayers and wishes for a speedy recovery!
Phyl
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Good, good, she is out of the woods. Now rest and sleep. Take it easy.
Steve
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Sue/Phil:
I think it's safe to state that we all appreciate the update on Kim and are pleased to learn that she's doing well, after a 10½ hour surgery to remove 'Manny' (the AN).
We'll pray that any facial weakness is strictly temporary and that Kim will soon be out of the ICU, out of the hospital and home to a speedy and complete recovery. :)
Jim
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Thanks Phil - and Sue ;D
Best wishes to Kim for a speedy recovery - hope to see her as a postie very soon.
Jan
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Dear all,
I wasn't sure earlier, but Phil asked me to post the link to Kim's blog:
Phil said: "...I'll be updating Kim's blog for her, so you can
always look there for the latest news: http://adventureswithmanny.blogspot.com/ "
Take care.
Sue
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I read Kim's blog; it's quite good -- very concise, readable and well-written. Will look forward to her updates and I send best wishes for a speedy recovery.
Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)
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Wishing Kim continued healing, & a peaceful heart thru this journey.
Always good thoughts, Nancy
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Thanks Sue for the great updates on Kim -- and especially including the link to her BLOG. That really told the story of what this is all about. Please give our best to Kim.
David
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FYI, Kim posted herself on her blog. Sounds like she's doing fairly well under the circumstances.. If anyone's in contact with her give her our best, and remind her that neck pain after surgery is not uncommon and warm compresses and heating pads can help.
Regards,
Brian
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Best wishes for a speedy recovery!
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Wishing you good luck throughout your recovery - and may it be a quick one! As I'm learning, slowly but surely, patience patience patience. Just one day at a time - and take it easy!
Kathy
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Hi Kim,
The blog is so informative - great idea. Glad you could actually write on it today. I was wondering if you were out yet. Looks like maybe tomorrow?
I'm so glad that it seems like your facial weakness has not seemed to be as much of a problem. But am sorry to hear about the questions in how to link your diabetes treatment with the AN treatment.
I agree with what you said about some of the seemingly 'little things' that are annoying. I was so sick of the IV things. They way they positioned them, they were always painful and so they'd change the arms / locations, and i finally got them out, but they still feel bruised. Getting much better though.
I was whisked off to MRI's and CT scans at all hours of the night (initially) because the thought I had a blood clot that bothered one of the docs. All seems well with that now.
I was also in ICU longer (almost my whole 6 day stay) because a room didn't open up. Every time i got up to go to the restroom (if there was a new nurse on duty) they would freak out because i was standing up and walking (slowly).
When I got out of the hospital, after a few days I started feeling better. So started overdoing a bit! Watch out for that!!!! Sometimes I get these headaches (incision site) where it feels like the filler 'fat' they put back in my head is just swelling up and really hurting. this has been one of the worst things to deal with. That and the facial thing. Anyway, when i get one of those headaches, I have to take it easy, sometimes for hours!
I have been going on walks. One was by a creek by our house. Much muddier than i thought - it started getting dark - i realized - gee this is really stupid of me or maybe good practice for my balance! I had my whole family with me plus a walking stick at least.
Am regaining some facial movement on my left. When i would read people's posts about how this affects your eye closing, i just never realized what a pain that could be. doesn't hurt so much anymore (because i've been using a good lube) but it's hard to either not keep eye open, or it's blurry. As a result, i type in incomplete sentences that probably don't make much sense!
I'm glad you havne't had to do too much pain med either. I try to back off, but every once in a while take a percocet. then i feel a bit drunk into the next day. am trying to keep it to tylenol and advil.
Also, when you get out and start feeling better.... don't feel too bad if you have a couple of off days too in there. That happened to me last week and was so discouraging. but it seems to happen to many. I am getting way more rest that i've ever gotten, but can still do more than i thought i would be doing. (like back to doing laundry - yuck!)
On my sister's last night here (friday; she came to help out for a week), we decided to drive down to DC (silly us)! She's never drivien in DC, but i couldn't drive. we got a late start so didn't get down until 10:30pm! It was beautiful too see the memorials at night, and we climbed up to the Lincoln. Then i got us a bit lost on the way home (we almost hit a limo coming out of the capitol!) it was fun, but the 'killer' aspect was going to bed at midnight and having to get up at 4:30am to get her to dulles by 5:30! the rest of my day was shot and half of today! but i'm back to resting resting and am starting to feel normal-ish again.
sorry for all the rambling and advice (no night time hikes!!! no midnight visits to DC!!!)
I hope you're able to get out of the hospital soon and your feel progress everyday.
Keri
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Haha, thanks for the advice, Keri! No, I definitely won't go on any midnight trips to the monuments :) Glad you're doing ok!
Thanks, everyone, so much for your support! I was indeed able to go home on Monday night - I think I would be way worse off if I hadn't because I really wasn't able to sleep at the hospital. At night, I would wake up and just count down the hours until morning. It was horrible.
Things are ok so far. Walking isn't too bad, but staying in a straight line is a challenge. Turning my head is tough, but we're working on loosening it up. Still no real pain, so that's a good thing. The blood sugar control is getting a bit better since I've been tapering off the Decadron more. My left hand is still numb, which I was not expecting to be an issue at all, but hopefully it will start to come around soon. I imagine that pinched nerves take some time to fix themselves. My blink is still good, and any facial weakness is very minor. I know that my smile isn't quite what it was before, but it's pretty darn good considering that they did have to remove some of the tumor from the facial nerve. I have a black eye where some facial nerve monitoring went too far, and that's starting to get a little sore now. My eye isn't tearing that much, but since I can close it, I think it will be ok, plus I use drops. My throat weakness from being intubated twice is starting to go away, but I still have to eat slowly, which is ok with me (I like eating like a mouse). I guess that's where I am in a nutshell. One week ago I was still on a breathing tube and in ICU. That's pretty amazing.
I'm allowed to wash my hair tonight, so we'll see how that goes. I am not expecting miracles in one washing. I would almost rather shave my head than try to clean it at this point. Hehe.
Take care, everyone!! You guys are awesome. I would be freaking out so much more if I hadn't found you all and read through so many stories over these past months. We took a Magic Scarf photo at the hospital that I will work on posting soon :)
Cheers!
Kim
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Hi Postie Kim,
Nice to see you back! I'm not sure why you are eating like a mouse in a nutshell, but I hope your shampoo experience is a good one. :D
I am looking forward to the Magic Scarf photo, you better not let us down. ;)
Steve
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hi kim, im glad to see your home now too, i kept you in my prayers the day of your surgery and everytime i thought of you throughout my own hospital stay and recovery!! I can feel your pain on the hair...eeeeww
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Yea, Kim. Keep it up. And you were sort of the conversation at lunch the other day. We were trying to figure out who had the magic scarf. Where's it going next? And is the journal still traveling with it?
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Yes - I'm still trying to get my hair clean :-[ It's gross! A few people on the board said to use Dawn on it. I guess it cuts thru the grease...
Good luck and soo glad your home!
Jen
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Shampooing was a success. I didn't realize how much they shaved off, but I'll manage.
Here's the Magic Scarf photo (never mind the dried blood in my hair):
(http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j5/zinger1905/photo2.jpg)
I just checked the calendar - looks like there are a few events coming up at the end of Feb/beginning of March. To whom should I send the scarf? And, yep, the journal is still with it as well.
Talk to you later,
Kim
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Gorgeous!
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Hey, Kim! Thanks for the photo of the Magic Scarf...and You, of course! You really do look great - you also look quite happy! Sure you are happy to be through the worst part of this journey.
Wishing you the speediest recovery possible,
Cindy
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Wow, Kim, that is the best looking post-op photo I've seen. You look radiant!
I would see if Steph (highlife) or Ernie (EJTampa), who have surgery Mar 4 and 5, are interested in the scarf. Steph is doing endoscopic - don't know if the scarf works for that. Ernie is a guy, but Ken (1cANAdian) has established that it works for men too.
Take it easy and get well soon!
Steve
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Kim: You are a doll baby ! ! Glad to see your beautiful smile ! ! continued healing.
Always good thoughts, Nancy
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Kim,
You look amazing!!!! What a beautiful BIG smile ;D Continue to heal and keep us updated.
Remember to listen to your body and rest when your body says no more!
Anne Marie
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Great picture, Kim. I'm with Steve, you look radiant. Didn't anyone tell you that you're supposed to look like you just spent 5 hours in a brawl with Mike Tyson? How are we supposed to get any sympathy if we look refreshed after surgery? ;)
Have a great recovery.
David
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Lovely picture, Kim.
Nice scarf ;)
Thanks for sharing,
Jan
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I'm with David.. How the heck are we supposed to garner sympathy from those around us with great post-op pictures like that? Still IN the hospital no less! Jeesh! ;) Great picture.. glad the scarf did as intended... Now, share the wealth..
Regards,
Brian
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Kim:
Thanks for the photo. Your hair looks fine and you look stunning, especially compared to how some of us looked, post-op. Be honest, are you sure you really had surgery? :)
Jim
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yes, you look great.
what's the background on the scarf?
my post op picture scares me to death. it's awful!
keri
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Keri- It's the magic leopard print scarf :) How are you doing today? I just went for a decent walk outside. It was good to get out there, and I felt less self-conscious because I was wearing a hat to keep my head warm. Today has been a good day so far :)
Kim
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You know I really must have a chat with the 3G honchos over at Blackberry. This lil Barbie Doll puter will NOT let me see pics on the forum! WILL NOT! It sucks. Other site, picture all over the place but here? Noooooooooo! Guess I'll have to wait till I can get to a Big Girl Puter! See ya soon, Kim!
Capt Deb P-)
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It was good to get out there, and I felt less self-conscious because I was wearing a hat to keep my head warm.
What kind of hat? :D
Steve
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Wow Kim. I can't believe how good you look! I hope I do that well with my surgery on the 5th! I'd be happy to receive the scarf next, and wear it proudly as a man :) (unless Steph wants it).
Less than 2 weeks away for me...I'm getting a bit nervous now :).
Ernie
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It was good to get out there, and I felt less self-conscious because I was wearing a hat to keep my head warm.
What kind of hat? :D
Steve
Steve - A knit hat. :)
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Hi Kim! Welcome back to the forum! (sorry i am late chiming in....) You look fantastic! (I never ever looked remotely that good in the hospital ;D) Keep resting when you can and moving when you feeling like it. Lookin' great! All my best to you, Phil and your family!
Sue ;)
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Kim,
Rather than surgery, you look like you just won a prize! Well, maybe you did. ;D You look great and I am so happy for you.
Marci