Hey Everyone!! My Apologies for disappearing since Surgery Day, life has been chaotic and healing has been anything but easy!! DR Hackman is so kind, I saw him when I went back into PreOp, he was in my Room before I was even in there.. he asked if I had any questions and my mind was all over the place that all I asked was if he was sure he would be able to remove all of the Bone Fragments.. he said “It may be a bit exploratory, but they will be gone in the end!” and he did not fail me!! He found Fragments that I didnt even know existed, beyond the ones in my Esophagus.. unfortunately, no Photos were taken of what was removed because it was all Fragments-even the 3+cm Styloid that I had remaining on the Right Side from my initial Surgery, as he couldnt remove it in 1 Solid piece and had to cut it into pieces to remove it.. he also had to remove Calfied Fragments from both sides of my Hyoid, under the right side of my Chin and near my Ear Canal on the right side.. I have been struggling with the healing process because I dont know what it means to RELAX so its just 1 step forward and 5 steps back.. since waking up from Anesthesia, Ive felt as if I have Cotton Balls in my Ears.. the left side has gotten a bit better, but the right side has gotten worse!! My PostOp TeleHealth Appointment with DR Hackman, he felt as if I still had quite a bit of swelling due to the amount of manipulation that was done in that area, and I possibly have a Seroma.. he put me on a 2nd Steroid Pack in hopes of alleviating the pressure and lack of hearing.. the first 2 days, I felt MUCH better, but then its just gotten worse and now I have non stop drainage from my right ear, constant pain (throbbing/aching/stabbing), and I cant hear.. I know I am only 3 weeks into my Healing and I am still VERY hopeful and trying to stay positive!! As for ALL of the other Symptoms I was facing PreOp, theyre pretty much ALL gone.. I am going to have to do some rehabilitating Work on swallowing, as it has been 15 Months since I have properly swallowed Solids, so that is tough.. but he worked absolute miracles!! As for my ear though.. he is wanting me to fly back to do an Ultrasound Guided Drain of the Seroma, which, I am just unable to do, so, I dont really know where to go from here…
Again, life has been INCREDIBLY chaotic, but, thats my update
WOW! Thank you for the updated. That sounds like a very invasive & complicated surgery! How awesome that your symptoms have gone away so quickly!
If there is any possible way for you to go back to NC for the seroma repair, it would be very worthwhile as it could expedite your overall recovery. I lost the hearing in my left ear due to Meniere’s Disease & would advocate for you to do whatever is necessary to go back to let Dr. Hackman take care of your ear so your hearing stays intact. One-sided hearing is better than total deafness, but it does make life more challenging.
The Hearing and Pain issues are definitely trivial in the healing process… his Scheduler just messaged me this Morning asking what time I would like to come in to see him (Thursday or Friday) but theres just no way… I feel soo, incredibly defeated!! I spent all night Saturday night in the Emergency Room with my 14 Year Old who broke his Funny Bone and a Growth Plate by jumping off of a Dock (same way he broke his OTHER arm 3 years ago ) so today was spent at his Pediatricians and tomorrow will be spent at the Orthopedics… all the while, my Special Needs Son is angry that he has low Testosterone and has skinny arms so Ive been dealing with Rage Fits allllll day… oh what fun!!!
So good that you have seen improvements with your ES symptoms, but the healing sounds really tough! So frustrating that you can’t go back to see Dr Hackman, it sounds like your boys are keeping you really busy!
I had a blocked ear after my 2nd surgery & lost hearing, the side of my face felt like concrete too, it resolved itself after a couple of weeks. I guess that was a nerve thing for me, so different to you. I hope that you can get some treatment for the seroma, is that something which could be done locally, I don’t know anything about it?
Sending you a hug, and will pray for your healing & for your son, and I’ll pray for patience for you too!
I just looked up seroma treatment & aspiration of the fluid is how they’re typically managed. It’s also concerning that you have drainage from your ear as that could indicate a perforated eardrum which would open you up to infection more easily.
Going back to Dr. Hackman sounds like it would be a needed short break from your kiddos to continue taking care of yourself which might serve you well. I also thought about suggesting you see a local doc, but I think you may be turned away as many doctors don’t want to touch a patient who is healing from another doctor’s work as in our letigious society, this can lay a foundation for lawsuits if something further were to go wrong.
I’m sorry for the craziness you have at home right now. Sounds like you have active kids which means they’re thriving - a good thing! Having a special needs child definitely adds an additional level of challenge. I’ll be praying for you today.
I developed vertigo after my surgery. I hope this helps. Maybe you can visit you PC doctor to ask if meds to help alleviate vertigo will help with you symptoms.
I was told to try Dramamine when my symptoms started and wouldn’t subside. The nurse said if it worked, it was definitely vertigo and to tell the doctor.
It helped a lot. But I’ve been told it can come back.
My reminder: ES is a neurological disease. One that worsens with stress.
In February, I allowed myself to succumb to a major dose of stress and had a setback; landing me in the hospital.
Vertigo raised it’s ugly head.
But, I’m still grateful. It had been a few years prior to that.
I hope you feel better soon! That is a lot to deal with!
I have been playing phone tag with Dr. Hackman’s office (his scheduler) for weeks, and I’m starting to lose hope! They have my referral and scans and they’ve left me several voice mails, and each time I call back, I also leave a voice mail! Lol. My symptoms are getting worse each day, so fingers crossed I hear back soon!
It’s amazing to hear such great stories about him. I truly do hope you feel better, soon. Remember, healing from surgery takes a lot of time and isn’t linear! You’ve got this!
My mother-in-law swears by Bonine (instead of Dramamine) for motion sickness because Bonine doesn’t make her sleepy. Interesting thought about using it to help stop dizziness. I suspect the mechanism for motion sickness & dizziness is the same at least in some cases.
