Showing Improvement

[Jeanlea]

My face must be looking better than it did in the beginning.  Today I was walking down the hall and one of my former students said to me, "Your tumor is looking better."  LOL  I'm taking that to mean that my face looks better to him.  I can even make a little smile if I'm not frowining at my students.  LOL

Jean

[Jeanlea]

Hi Boppie,

Yes, my photo is post-op.  I need to put another soon.  That is from around New Year's.  My smile is even a bit better now.

I do leave the battery in, but I open the case on my TransEar when I put it in the Dry 'n Store for the night.  I just ordered another set of bricks for it.  Looks like better ones are coming out in the summer, but mine is nearly gone now.

I'm finding the biggest difference to be the amount of time that the Radioshack batteries last.  Haven't tried Duracell yet.  I bougtht a 16 pack and haven't gone through it yet.  Does your TransEar beep when your battery is dead or nearly dead?

Jean

[nancyann]

Jean:  I just logged on & of course go to 'facial issues' & there's your post - GREAT NEWS !!!!!!!  Love to start my day with this info.  Keep the faith  my friend.
Always good thoughts,  Nancy

[Boppie]

My face must be looking better than it did in the beginning.  Today I was walking down the hall and one of my former students said to me, "Your tumor is looking better."  LOL  I'm taking that to mean that my face looks better to him.  I can even make a little smile if I'm not frowining at my students.  LOL

Jean

Did you do retraining exercises for your face?  I know you are a busy person with your teaching.  Looking great.  Thanks for encouraging us!

[marg]

Hi,   I just had surgery on May 14th.  They had to scrape the tumor off my facial nerve.... and now the left side of my face is  'paralized' although I can feel everything  on that isde.  My eye only closes about  1/3 of the way when I blink .. although I can make it close when I close my right eye all the way. I keep putting gel in my eye and drops.... but my focus is off and it sure makes it hard to navigate with the other balance issues I am trying to deal with.  Could someone tell me about the gold weight in the eye............... does it help a lot... and how do they put it in....is it an in office thing or are you out for the procedure?   I really want to protect my eye.  Also could an eye dr. do it or should I go back to my neursurgeon?   Thanks,  marg  p.s. it sure is hard to see this little print when I'm trying to write !   

[Jeanlea]

Hi Marg,

Sorry to hear that you also get to experience facial paralysis.  Do you feel like you are half blind?  That's how I felt in the beginning.  You do adjust to having "goop" in your eye after awhile.  Make sure to always keep your eye well-lubricated.  I see my eye doctor regularly.  I also have numbness which makes me even more susceptible to problems. I had my gold weight put in while I was still in the hospital, but they took me to the eye doctor's office.  Someone that does eye surgery did it.  You can have it done as an out-patient I've heard.  Compared to brain surgery it's a piece of cake.  I'm sure others will chime in with their advice.

Jean

[nancyann]

Hi Marg:  Well, you're doing everything right ! - putting in lubricant/drops frequently.  I had my eye weight put in outpt. surgery, went home same day.  Like Jean said, a 'piece of cake' compared with the AN surgery.  I couldn't close my eye at all due to the facial paralysis.  I'd check with your docs - don't know why they didn't discuss it with you unless they felt you didn't need it.   The ointments do make it difficult to see, but I/we adjust.   All the best Marg,  Nancy

[Meagan]

I actually don't have the gold weight but at the sutures (stiches) in the far corner of my eye.  I am slowly getting my vision back (cornea abrasion) but did go to my eye doctor and he referred me to an eye surgeon who is also with my hospital.  He did all the fun stuff and you can't even see that i have stiches, it looks really good.  I still can't blink on my own but maybe one day!

[nancyann]

Hey Meagan:  Sounds like you had the 'lateral tarsal strip'?   I had that done - it lifts the lower lid back where it belongs - yes, it does look good, nuch better than the wide open look.   Maybe your eye is good enough with closing the lid that you don't need the weight? - but you say you can't blink so, I'm wondering why they don't do the weight - you can hardly notice it.    Take care my friend,  Nancy  ps - keep putting in the ointment/drops - frequently !!!

[Meagan]

Sadly, i do have the wide open look.  My doctor had to decide between the side stitch or the weight and he said this was better for me...i am putting in steroid twice a day because i stil have a haze from the cornea abrasion.  Once i stop that i can actually see out of my eye.  After two months of dealing with the cornea i hope it goes away soon. 

Thanks for the kind words.

[SMC]

Jean
congrat on your recovery.  Your story has given me some hope.  I am 20 months post-op and I still have no movement.  My face looks MUCH better than after the operation it looks almost normal if I am not smiling or talking (except in pics it always looks worse in pics for some reason).  When I read that you started to get movement I have more hope now.  It seems like it will never happen.
I have another MRI on Friday and I am scared they might find the tumor cam back or something.  I know that is a small chance but I am still scared.
I am still putting all that ointment and eye drops I dont want to do the eye weight I hear that it makes the eyelids look more swolen and I just don't want anymore weird face looks.  I have enough. But my eyes hurt so much on some days and other days they are great.

Well I wish you all the best and hope you get more movement soon.

[Jeanlea]

SMC,

Good luck with your MRI on Friday.  It's a great day.  (It's my birthday.  lol)  I have the eye weight.  Mine isn't really noticeable.  I still have to use eye drops and ointment though.  I'm having a problem with my eye getting red.  I have no feeling so it never hurts, but I think that is contributining to the red eye problem. 

Good wishes to you.  Hope you get some movement in the future.  Nerves are slow moving.

Jean

[marg]

Thanks to all of you with information about the eye weight, stiches etc.  My eye actually has a little fluid of it's own (as of 2 days ago) so I don't have to put as many drops in although I put gel in at night to protect it.  Monday it will be 3 weeks since surgery and I am finally feeling better.  My eye still doesn't close when I blink more than a little but I am better at focusing out of the other eye ( amazing how the body learns to adjust).  I am so glad to be after surgery ... I still don't know about hearing in my ear yet.  Sometimes I think I hear something but I'm not sure... and I think there is still fluid in there.  I have a hearing test in little over a week but wonder if they will be able to tell anything if I still have fluid in my ear.  Those of you who retained hearing.... how long was it after surgery before you could really tell if you could hear?  Trying not to get my hopes up too much............but of course I can't help it.
Margaret