Week 3

I have decided to update my post on a weekly basis as most days are the same....more or less

I had booked a Pampered Chef Party for the 9th - my birthday but decided to cancel it as I wanted to concentrate on getting better and be 100% better to entertain my guests so will have it on another date....I still felt dizzy and trying to recover from my long day out on wednesday the 7th in which I visited Ikea before my pre-op and visted a friend at the hospital...I was out of the house for a total of almost 7 hours!!!
Friday 9th March was my birthday so I thought I would have my first shower and hair wash (like a present to myself) - 2 weeks to the day of my operation - I felt fantastic, leaning back to wash my hair in the shower, I felt heavy headed and as if my ear was going to fall off and my ear canal pulling back which is a weird sensation (my surgeon said that he had scraped the muscles off at surgery and I guess it's still rebuilding), my husband said that he would come up and check on me to see if I was ok and stayed with me throughout to make sure I was ok, my scar smarted after I washed my hair, felt like vinegar was being poured over a cut, I quickly patted it dry after and it felt a bit better..upon washing my hair, I had noticed the difference in the lenth of my hair, it was considerably shorter on my right side than my left side because it was shaved off and am now contemplating shaving off the other side of my ear to make it even....I also smelled tobacco again, it was coming from my ear, the water must have contributed to it starting the smell again....ho hum...

Later on in the day, I thought to tidy up the living room so it looks presentable, I had a pounding headache immediately after even though I felt fit as a fiddle :-( so had to rest for the remainder of the day, my brother visited after work which was a nice surprise as not seen him for a while and was nice catching up, then my mum came with my step-dad and they stayed for an Indian takeaway - my choice as I felt that I could taste spicy foods more than normal everyday food and boy, I did enjoy it very much - was shattered that evening!!

Weekend was a little hard as I was easily worn out and having the kids at home - phew! Had debated on going over to my mums a few times to get away from it all and bless my husband, he struggled to keep up with everything and has been a star...on Sunday we all also went to visit a relative in southampton (perhaps I should move there considering the amount of times I've spent going there lol) and spent all day there, was nice and relaxing as they have a garden and the weather was fabulous, kids played outside almost all day, chatting to my relatives etc etc, totally chilled but by evening, I was shattered and just wanted to go home and once I got home, I vegged out on the sofa leaving hubby to sort the kids out..bless him x

Monday morning, I still felt light headed and dizzy if I turned my head too quicky - I was desperate to get better as missed going outside on my own and also being able to drive as my surgeon had said to me at my pre-op that only I will know that I am ready, and I wasn't yet.....my headaches came in waves, esp trying to tell my son no, no and him wanting my constant attention (he is 2yrs old and too young to understand - yet!) and me telling my husband to see to him instead...ughh!!

Tuesday, I felt brighter but still not yet 100%, I have now re-discovered 'The Sims 2' and been hooked on my laptop almost all day yesterday and today - determined to get better and rest loads, which is now starting to show results (yay!), dizziness subsiding unless I'm walking around too much and the headache comes on suddenly rather than gradually, it pounds on my head until I sit down for five or ten mins then it gradually calms down. My ear is improving greatly, scar is healing really well, it feels bumpy to touch and dry in places where it's healing. I even managed to give my two youngest boys a bath.

Wednesday, it was coffee morning at the deaf club in Reading, was debating on whether to go, Lee said that I should as it'd be good for me to get out of the house and I had missed chatting to my friends as well as wanted to see my other friend who had her implant 11 days after I had mine, it would be great to see her and compare notes..I felt fit enough albeit a bit dizzy upon setting foot out of the house and that was nice!
Saw quite a few people at the club and was great to catch up and they all seemed pleased to see me, I had felt a bit isolated since the operation, so it was nice.
Upon catching up and comparing notes with my friend who had the implant - she had the same surgeon as me and chosen the same device as me (AB Harmony), it was interesting talking about how her recovery was and her feelings etc - she had a massive bruise on her forehead from where they probably tied up the bandage, took a while before it went down and because she was lying on her good side (the left side, her implant was done on right like me), fluid was going to her face, I had recommended getting a V-pillow, her mum went out and bought one, lying on her back helped it go down...
Comparing other notes as half of my tongue feels numb and can't taste much, her's feel fine, my head feels fine and only numb on the top of my ear alone whereas half of her head feels numb all down to her ear....she feels when she stands up for too long - like five or ten mins, her legs give away easily and I feel fine...we both have the same pins stabbing in the eardrum, I can only say to her that it'll get better once the wadding comes out as it did for me, she looks like as if she is recovering better than I am, probably due to having no partner and only has one child at home.
I got back home from the club feeling shattered, probably due to the fresh air and chatting too much! Rested for the rest of the afternoon - playing the Sims2 again :-)

Thursday, I rested all day, was itching to get going but decided to sit on the sofa on my laptop playing my games, my ear seemed fine, scar feels tender to touch, neck feels stiff if I get stressed - that comes from having two little boys at home who are little monkeys!! I can still wiggle my ears to my delight, still numb in parts but feeling more, my ear canal feels weak when I lean back in showers, it feels as it is falling out of my ear...wonder how long it takes for it to stop feeling like that and for my muscles to repair itself....

Friday, writing all this today, my memory is so good now and recalling events in the past week, am glad my memory is still sharp even though I have days when I feel like an old woman! My legs feel stiff from moving about a little more than usual in the last few days, it'll go eventually and I'll be back on my feet.
I cleaned the kitchen today, put one wash load on, felt fit and wanted to make the most of it and I like seeing my kitchen clean, after I had done that, I felt a bit sweaty and light headed, I knew it was time to stop and sit down with a cuppa tea, I have to remind myself to take baby steps and now have a headache!!
My scar doesn't hurt so much now, the swelling has gone down loads and has a little bump, the bottom part of my scar feels itchy and one area feels like as if I have a spot and am trying not to itch it! Annoying, will see how it is tomorrow and perhaps take a picture later on....I really need to put pictures up on here rather than rely on facebook - I'll have to try and find that cable to upload from my phone, I hope I haven't left out any details...if so, I'll update it..

Will update if I can tonight and close it for another week or earlier as I have another appointment on 21st to see Mr Hellier for my follow up appointment from the pre-op, if all is well, my switch on date - already booked for the 28th March will go ahead. Exciting times ahead and I have no idea what to expect!

xxx