JUST NEED TO VENT

[mylump]

You sure SOUND better!!    Good for you!
Ciao, Lorenzo

[nancyann]

Oh yea Lorenzo:

I'm on a roll today !!!   Anyone's 'butt' I can kick for you ? lol

Thanks for all your support too !  Couldn't have gotten thru yesterday without everyone's replies (well, I could have, but it would have been ALOT harder, that's why we're here !!! )    Nancy

[mylump]

Ya Nancy, I can think of a few people, but you'd have to make your way over to this side of the pond to deliver the kick, unless you have a very looooooooooong leg.
Glad you're feeling better!    Always glad to help. This place is wonderful, makes me laugh too!
Ciao, Lorenzo

[matti]

Nancy - Did a little butt kickin myself this morning, it's good to feel a little feisty ;D  Had a phone chat last night with Phyl, (our lovely cruise director) and she always puts me in a good mood.

I saw on your x-mas wish list that you want to take dance lessons..me too!!! I am really interested in Ballroom, but lord help me on the twirls and spins LOL. I kep begging my husband to go with me, but he has no rhythm, (ever see Elaine dance on Seinfeld LOL)

Have a great day!!!

Cheryl

[Jeanlea]

Hi Nancy,

Glad to hear that you are feeling better today.  I had total left-side facial paralysis for the first 3 months. I've ever so slowly gotten some movement back.  Maybe 25-30%.  It's hard for me to judge.  I still don't have a real smile.  I'm very close to a little smile.  I can still walk around with food on my mouth without knowing that it's there.  I think I have enough movement to not get the facial surgery.  Does that help your blink?  I still don't have that.

Jean

[nancyann]

 Hi Jean,
Glad to hear from you.    I'm also glad to hear you have approx. 30% movement back.   Gives me hope, 'cept it's been almost 6 months for me & still no movement.  I wouldn't get the facial surgery either if I had your results, I'd just keep praying !
Yesterday (against better judgement ), I had some Danish, & no one told me there were crumbs on my lips !!  - walked around all day like that !  (jeez, I'm the first to tell people something's showing, etc.).  well, anyway
Yes the gold weight helped tremendously, my eye was horrible before that, like I've said, would NOT have been able to go back to work without it, it was really bad (whew, glad that's over with).
Do you get facial EMGs at any intervals.

Take care Jean,   Nancy

[Pembo]

Keep the faith on that facial paralysis recovery! I am 2.5 yrs post op and still recovering. I started facial therapy this summer and have improved from 31% to 62% in only 4 months.

As for sensation, that has been recovering slowly as well. I saw the biggest improvement after 18 months. My facial therapist said that they see sensation returning after 5 years! I definitely have more sensation now than a year ago.
I am a HUGE napkin user, a little obsessive even. Then I have to use the chapstick. I'm sure people around me think I have a chapstick fetish.

Facial paralysis and lack of sensation are the worst and have gotten me down many times. Then you cry and only ONE eye waters and you feel even worse. I can't even cry right.   But I will say I had a cold a few weeks ago and to only have one side of the nose running was kind of nice.

I highly recommend facial therapy! If anyone is near Pittsburgh, Todd at UPMC is wonderful!!!

[nancyann]

I LOVE YOU PEMBO,

heck, I LOVE EVERYONE ON THIS SITE !!!!!

[BB]

This topic hit home for me.  It has got worse during the holidays for me.  Its been six months and I seem to have a venting problem several times a week.  Has anyone had more trouble during the holidays?  I have also noticed the evening time is worse.  My husband says I'm like clock work everynight around seven or eight o'clock at night.  Kind of strange.  I"m usually quite until that time then I just want to talk non-stop, and then sometimes end up in tears.  Just wondered if anyone has experienced this.  Still having trouble with my writting and spelling and sentence structure. I think just a lot of frustration, and just want someone to understand.  Thanks for bringing up the topic.  I guess I needed to vent.

[Lorenzo]

HI BB, yes, sounds familiar. I think when I got tired during those times I talked a lot more. I'm a very quiet person normally, so it was noticeable. In particular I talked about the An and all related to it. I think it's perfectly normal, why wouldn't we? It's a rather major thing we all went through, the stress alone would make itself felt that way. Frustration and lack of patience (spelling) were present. Had a tendency of flying off the handle very easily and for no reason, which is most unlike me. It's normal BB, and it will pass too.

As for the spelling and sentence structure and writing, ya, that is still here with me, but not quite as bad as a few months ago.

Hope you'll get back to your 'normal' self soon

Ciao, Lorenzo

[terracotta]

Although its painful I think the emotional struggles we go through has a healthy component. For me my post op difficulties were so over-the-top it took along time for me to grieve my losses. At this point, I'm dealing with the tailend of a cascade of physical problems. This gives me much hope, but still, I finally needed to confront the new me, which brought on sadness, anger, frustration, etc. I once read that it can be helpful to indulge and allow ourselves say 15 minutes per day to wallow and then move on. In my daily living situation I don't like for others to walk on egg shells or only see me as a person overshadowed by medical problems. The truth is we've all become stronger and know ourselves better through the high and lows of our experience. Recently, I got so tired of how this whole thing has affected our marriage that I decided to try scuba diving with my husband. He'd been a supper caregiver and it was a new start--the new me isn't all about what I can't do.  I did it!
T 
       

[Dealy]

I was reading the replies to this thread during my break at work and it just rang that proverbial bell in my head again. I work a 40 hour job so when I get home in the evening I am totally bushed. My wife asked me how my day was and was I okay. I told her "you know_ I am never okay". This thing has altered my life forever. One reason-with only one hearing ear left-all sound now is distorted-however I can still hear-just not that good. I cannot listen to music-radio etc. because I cannot make out the words. During football season I normally watched every football game their was (especially my beloved Pittsburg Steelers) yes I am a Steelers fan from Kansas- even though I have closed captioning on TV my interest has waned in that too-so am I normal. "Heck No". What scares me sometimes is the prospect of going completely deaf and how will I deal with that. Am I normal- "heck No". So each one of us has our own cross so to bear and issues to strive to be normal. This group is like a saviour to me-because then when relating with other's and their struggles-I feel normal and lucky to be alive. Ron

[nancyann]

Hi Ron:

Just a thought re: the one hearing ear.  I know it's scary, I also am worried if something ever happens to that 1 good ear.  My docs told me I have to protect that ear at all costs.  Don't know if you already HAD diminished hearing on the 'good' side or not.
For what it's worth, since my good ear still has 100% hearing (Thank God), I bought what's called a 'musical plug' to use when I play piano, go to concerts/jazz clubs, etc. so the noise isn't so loud.  I found out from Cheryl she uses it also for meetings, mall (I think) to lessen the noise (decibels), but I wonder if it would help the distortion so you can once again listen to music, watch (what's the name of that silly game - oh yea, football  lol) football.    Don't know if it would be helpful for you or not, thought I'd put in the 2 cents.

Best wishes my friend, Nancy

[BB]

THANKS LORENZO FOR THE WORDS OF ADVICE.  I GUESS WE CAN JUST NEVER HEAR IT ENOUGH.  YOUR WORDS ARE HELPFUL AND GIVE ME HOPE THAT THIS WILL IMPROVE.  BB

[Lorenzo]

Hi BB, things will improve, they do all the time as time goes on. It's just a slow process. Hang in there.
Ciao
Lorenzo