Day 9: Sleeping, Slurping, Smoothies, and Slimming
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Today was a great day, I slept more last night / today than any other
night combined over the last week. I seem to sleep for about four hours
maximum and then I am completely awake but last night I awoke at around
4am and then was awake until around 6am and then I told myself to try
and go back to sleep which I did and woke up at almost 9:30am!
Fantastic!
I do very much look forward to sleeping on my side again rather than propped up in a bed but if I want my jaws to sit straight and also be able to breathe then that, as they say, is the sacrifice you have to make.
I had to laugh today as I find myself slurping
for want of a better word more than ever! By this I mean I seem to be
producing a serious amount of excess saliva and given that my mouth is
closed shut the only way to swallow it is to slurp it back to my throat! Not sure why this is suddenly happening but it is and so I am slurp monster presently! Nothing more pleasant for the family than sitting down to dinner and every minute or so have the conversation interjected with slurp, slurp, slurp. . .
A
good friend brought around a Jamba Juice smoothie later this afternoon -
they taste so good, although cursed be my back left sensitive tooth for limiting how much I eat! :)
It was a peach and mango smoothie and although it obviously takes an
eon to syringe, it is worth it plus it is healthy for me so a double bonus!
Another
thank-you is in order, this time neighbors who brought
around dinner this evening. They made chicken noodle soup and I am not
kidding, it tasted sooooo good being syringed down my throat. Ah, the
simple pleasures of life :)
Everyone should try this exercise; clamp your teeth together and try to syringe food down you throat. Try it with your favourite meal and see what you think. Tastes the same doesn't it! :) To think you thought it would taste disgusting! Now remember, once you have finished with the syringing you have to wipe you mouth, lips, and throat because believe me, you just drooled all over yourself! :)
The
bruising continues to dissipate and I confident by the end of the week I
will not look like someone has mugged me! I need to ask the Doc. why my neck
is so bruised all the way from my chin to my chest. What did they do to
me in the operating room? Anyone have any ideas?
Breathing
is almost back to normal although I continue to use the nasal medicine
as when I do not take it I become rather congested which again, is
neither a pretty sound nor a pleasant feeling. I look forward to being
able to blow my nose! Again, the things we take for granted . . .
A few people have asked about weight loss and how much I have lost to date. I will try and remember to add that to each post from now on. So far, since the surgery, I have lost approximately 13lbs! I will write more about this topic in the next day or two.
I have another follow up with my
surgeon, Dr. Egbert, tomorrow. Looking forward to perhaps getting a few
rubber bands off my teeth?!?! Fingers crossed.
I am still taking the meds of course (learned that lesson) and I have made a few observations of cause and effect if I follow, or do not follow, some routines:
Applying Heat and Ice:
This is a key to recovery! For three days, ice your face to help reduce the swelling and numb the pain. After the third day, start applying heat in rotation with the ice. If I do not do this constantly, within about ten minutes my face starts to tense and tighten if that makes sense and that does not feel so good let me tell you.
Medicines / Prescriptions:
I am almost forty years old so you would think I should have known this and perhaps it is because I have never really had anything major happen to me but pain management is critical to recovery. Continue with the meds until the Doc. tells you to stop taking them. Stop taking the pain meds too early = lots of discomfort and delaying recovery cycle.
Eat (albeit through a syringe!):
I really have not felt like eating very much, especially those first five or six days as I felt so crummy but you need to stay hydrated so eat.
Support System
Seriously, you look horrible, feel worse , and the last thing you want is company, right!? Definitely my take on things but I genuinely have felt better when people have come around or contacted me; it made the time go by so much quicker which was a blessing! A support system, in whatever form, (in person, email, mail, etc.) is absolutely critical for recovery. I cannot even imagine going through this type of surgery without a support system.
Well, that is about it for today! Tomorrow, the visit to the Doc and hopefully more freedom will be granted to me!
As for what foods were eaten today:
You can see additional photographs under the ‘Photo Journal’ section above
If you haven't figured it out by now, the brushing in your neck and chest area isbjustbthe blood that was once in your head area that has made its way down through the tissues by gravity. So far no brushing for me, but we'll see if any appears.
ReplyDeleteBruising was interesting as it didn't show straight away. Took a few days and after a week or two I looked like I lost a fight in an alley! Combine that with the fact I couldn't talk and I was swollen, I looked great!
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