4 Days Post Surgery: Syncope post surgery from inflammation? ES symptoms still painful

To me its either the vagus nerve or an artery because i previously had these problems before but less. I believe i have most of the symptoms mentioned above in regards to vagal syndrome except for vomiting or tachycardia. I just never really heard of any ES patient with those kind of complications post surgery.

Hi Anthony,

You have tons of inflammation going on inside of your neck & throat right now. The inflammation is irritating the nerves more so you’re getting worse symptoms at the moment. As your post op inflammation decreases, the throat & nerve pain, numbness, tingling & hot sensations will start to go away. It will take 2-3 weeks after surgery for you to start noticing a difference. The first week post op IS THE WORST! You’re almost over the hump! Starting in a few days some of what you’re feeling should begin settling down.

As far as your right side hurting, you have bilateral ES. This is not uncommon after the first surgery & you may notice the symptoms get worse as the left side gets better (that has happened to many of us who had bilateral ES). Your swelling doesn’t confine itself just to the surgical side. Your body may be making excess inflammation to protect your “injured area” which is putting pressure on the right side & causing symptoms there.

So glad you feel a little better today than yesterday. Keep reminding yourself that even after the worst is over, you’ll still have good days & days that aren’t so good. Healing is a 3 steps forward & 2 steps backward process. Even then, recovery is heading in a positive direction.

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BrooklynGirl, our member who had her second surgery w/ your doctor had significant vagus nerve problems after her first surgery. You can type her name in the search box & read her post op posts. As I recall, her problems went on for about 4 months after her first surgery before they gradually improved & went away.

Hi Anthonyp8484,

I haven’t been on here for several months since my surgery nearly 10 months ago. I recall having similar symptoms as you post op. I don’t recall time frames real well for length of time post op., but I do recall having some real difficulties with flexion movements/looking down, ie. at phone, while reading, eating. I would get dizzy/faint, hot flashes. I had a lot of nerve pain in the roof of my mouth and some ear pain. I thought it was probably nerve pain and inflammation so would ice a lot and just not look down. It didn’t last long but was a bit concerning. Hang in there!! It does get better and you will be VERY happy that you had the surgery in time. I recall just taking each day of healing as it came because each day seemed different! Ice was really my friend initially. Best wishes!

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I think a good part of my issues are because i havent been very strict with pain medication. I just start taking it when i start feeling pain and i think im starting to pay for it. I believe that i also have alot of inflamation but I am starting to feel a little better.

At NIGHT.
But last night again i had a hard time sleepiong because of the tingling aches around my body plus pain. I am sleeping with a wedge but i find that it might be giving me a hard time to sleep on it. I hope that this week i get better now that i have 8 days POSt op.
**Its interesting you mention that due to inflammation it could also transfer to the other side. How far apart are the styloids left and right from each other?

Thank you isaiah, I do continue to remind myself. Something that i didnt prepare for was the psychological aspect that comes in with post surgery pain!

I also get those hot flashes and dizziness which i would get pre surgery as i also had few episodes of syncope and some episodes of passing out. The pain that im mostly feeling is in the neck, face and ears!!

What kind of ES symptoms did you have pre surgery and did they resolve?

I don’t recall any triggers, I’d just be sitting on the couch and all of a sudden feel warm. It was weird. But it passed after the first couple weeks. You are describing my pain experience exactly - a week after my pain was worse that pre-surgery for sure, very intense especially when I swallowed. I agree with you 100% that recuperation is harder than I thought, harder and taking a much longer than I had hoped. This is a tough grind for sure but we’re all in it together!

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I would say that i feel the temp issues either when i go into a hot environment and start to feel my skin prickly and hot. And if im indoors under airconditioning, i def get itching and prickly on the skin and feel sensitive to the cold.

The first couple of days was better then it is currently in regards to the pain. Yes recuperation is very difficult even coming from a 35 year old man who performs alot of vigorous exercises and would consider myself in good health (besides the pain). But we gotta stay positive and understand that right now isnt our reality while we recuperate. Like i told isaiah, I didnt prepare for the psychological toll that the pain takes on your mind post surgery.

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Anthony, I have my surgery in 6 days… OMG…I am terrified. I don’t know that I am prepared for any additional pain. I have hurt for so long. I exercise and eat right, I have no other health issues. I had to see a psychiatrist because of pain issues screwing with my head and I have never dealt with a psychiatrist before this past week. Thank you though for continuing to post updates on your recovery. I don’t understand how some people get over this so easily and some do not.

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Unfortunately it does seem to be a bit of a lottery post-surgery! If you keep up with the painkillers regularly it does help, don’t leave it until you’re in alot of pain to take them or it’ll take a while for them to kick in again. And most people find ice helps alot.
If you have a rough recovery it will pass & it will be worth going through in the end- remind yourself that this is your opportunity to get your life back :+1:

Jules, thank your for helping me to be positive. I need it!

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Everyday post surgery can be a hit or miss with regards to pain. Last night i had alot of pain but now im doing better. Its a game of patience and remember that everyone is different. I get spurts of pain around the insition, along the face and ears.

Your NOT nuts!!! I have never needed to go to a psychiatrist or a therapist which i currently see both But the frustration of not knowing what is going on and no one really understanding, it was inevitable to go to "them for thelp"which has helped. dont feel any shame in going to a psychiatrist for help, trust me… No one knows what you are going through except for the people on here. And even ES doctors really dont know what your going through, they just go by the symptoms you tell them.

I would go for it, because I dont think that you will be worse then you are right now. After months of pushing it back, I decided to go for it and be able to accept whatever outcome because LIVING WITH THE PAIN DAY TO DAY IS NOT LIVING.

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You may have already said this but did you have external surgery? Thank you for your understanding… you’re right, unless you’ve lived this, you have NO idea!

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Also, did you take prednisone afterwards? Sorry for so many questions. I’ve read so much, its all running together

luv4pj,

As Jules said, & as Anthony noted he hasn’t been good about, taking the Rx pain meds on the schedule the doctor gives you will make a HUGE DIFFERENCE in your level of post op pain. If you wait till you start to hurt, it’s too late. You’ll be playing catch up as it takes the pain meds awhile to kick in. The goal is to “head it off at the pass” i.e. take your pain meds before you’re back in pain. That’s why many surgeons write the Rx to take the meds at a lower dose every 3 hrs than to take a regular dose every 6 hrs. My doc also Rxed a 2 wk course of post op prednisone which was HUGE in helping w/ post op swelling. You should ask for that unless you have a problem w/ prednisone, of course. Ice & pain meds & laxatives/stool softeners to counter the negative effects of the pain meds are MANDATORY for a lower pain recovery. Keeping your head elevated at all times - awake, resting, sleeping will also help a lot! That’s why we recommend a wedge pillow. They aren’t great to sleep on but the purpose they serve makes them worthwhile. I piled a bunch of bed pillows on mine to make it more elevated & softer.

Anthony had external surgery & wasn’t Rxed prednisone.

My doctor only prescribed Oxycotine. Maybe if i had the predinisone Im Not sure if maybe because of my age he thought i wouldn’t need it but I honestly dont know. Tommorow im going for my follow up appointment. And dont worry about the questions “ive been there before”.

I

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Thank you Isaiah. I plan on asking about the prednisone, for sure. I bought 3 ice packs and a stool softener that I plan to take with each dose of pain medicine. I also also have a wedge pillow that I sleep on now and I will also use pillows. I am trying my best to be prepared. If I can just get over the fear and panic I feel. It is as bad as the pain I feel in my throat. :frowning:

I recommend you start taking the laxative/stool softener soon after you get home from surgery. You can’t start them soon enough. You may even find initially that you need to take an extra daily dose to get things moving again as anesthesia & the anti-inflammatory used during surgery seem to slow the digestive tract as well. Once your plumbing is “flowing” well, you can stick w/ a daily dose or whatever works best for you.

This is me speaking from my experience. I’m also fit & eat a healthy diet but those meds sure did a number on my digestive tract! It took a couple of days to get on top of the clogged plumbing for me. :roll_eyes:

Good idea. I’ll start on Sunday. My surgery is Monday. I even bought some Ensure drink supplements just in case I cannot eat regular foods. I am trying to do everything I can to make it as least stressful on my family as possible. You will never know what the support of this group means to me. Thank you all. God Bless you.

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I was really worried too, I can understand how you feel, but kept thinking of the damage the styloids can keep doing, especially with the vascular issues I had…there’s no choice really.
My faith helped enormously, will pray for peace about this for you! I look back now & am glad that I had ES- as well as my faith growing stronger I think it’s made me a much more compassionate person. I know my pain wasn’t as bad as others though.