Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break. I had ES surgery last Monday 11/25 on the right, symptomatic side of my neck. Dr. Samji told my husband it was one of the most extreme cases he had ever seen I have been on steroids for the inflammation (which is still pretty prevalent) and got off pain meds last night because they aren’t helping much and making my stomach upset.
I have my post-op with Dr Samji on Wed and plan on asking what made this case so extreme. I feel validated for all the times I said that my throat / ear / neck / face hurt but also kind of sad because this thing was realily affecting my life and I had to wait so long to get it fixed and now the recovery is going to also take a lot of time. I just want to feel good again!
Right now it seems my pre-op symptoms feel heightened but my condition is a 4.5 out of 10 - I have some pain in my throat and behind ear. Some discomfort when I swallow (less now than the beginning). The wound and surrounding area is very swollen and I can’t feel my right ear down to my jaw. The nerves will take 4-6 weeks to reactivate.
Will keep you all posted on what Dr Samji says on Wed. Thank you all for the good vibes and well wishes
I’m sorry you’re still struggling w/ pain & swelling, but you’re still in the very early stages of post op recovery. By the end of the second week, you will notice improvement.
Doctors tend to give optimistic time frames for nerve healing, but it can take up to a year for damaged nerves to recover. You will begin to notice little improvements in this arena as well by the end of week two. As time marches forward, you will likely notice your nerve pain symptoms will get better for a few days then worse for a few days. This is normal. Eventually the good days win, & the bad days disappear. It took 6-9 months for me to have noticeable healing of some of my post op nerve issues. That said, I felt great by two months post op i.e. energy was back, & I felt pretty normal. I could deal w/ the residual nerve stuff more handily once my energy returned. The time will pass more quickly than you think and the end result will be that you can resume your life as you knew it before ES.
It is early days yet…I second what Isaiah says, it does take longer than the doctors often estimate! I had post-op numbness around my ear & jaw; it gradually improved over a year! But that was better than pain, so I didn’t mind. If you’ve had symptoms for a long time- as most of us did- it will take a while for those nerves settle.
It will be interesting to see what Dr Samji says at your post-op appt., why he feels yours was extreme!
Will keep praying for quick healing for you, in the meantime keep taking it easy, it should improve!
I have been on steroids for the inflammation (which is still pretty prevalent) and got off pain meds last night because they aren’t helping much and making my stomach upset.
