Hi, all! Just wanted to give an update now that I’ve had my surgery. Everything went really well! Dr Hackman and the staff that took care of me were excellent. I truly have never met a surgeon with such good bedside manner.
I’ve actually been feeling much better than anticipated, with minimal pain. I mostly just have an achy jaw and feel tired. I’m able to eat soft foods without an issue (just slower than usual). I’m so relieved it’s over - I was terrified of surgery since I’ve never gone under anesthesia. Hoping that things continue in a good direction as I heal.
Thank you to everyone here who answered questions and encouraged me on this scary journey! I would’ve been lost without you.
What a great report @Megs22! I’m so glad your surgery is behind you & recovery has been ok so far. The next week may be somewhat similar to the first one post op, but after that you’ll likely start noticing gradually improvements. Please keep us updated periodically so we know how you’re doing.
So pleased that it’s done, hope your recovery continues smoothly, and that you soon see an improvement in your ES symptoms! Keep us updated when you’re able
This is awesome, @Megs22! I love hearing good things about Dr Hackman… meeting with him on the 21st, with bilateral surgery the next day on the 22nd! How long were your styloids? I’ve heard others talk about the achy jaw… concerns me a bit, as I’ve had TMJ for years, braces (in my 50’s!), and now wearing retainers. Will be interesting!
Hope your recovery continues in a positive direction. Would love to hear how things progress. Sending you lots of healing energy!
@DeeCeeNorth - I have also had TMJ issues for years & had braces in my late 40s/early50s to realign my bite which helped reduce symptoms for a few years. I still wear a retainer at night on my upper teeth & a splint on my lower teeth.
After ES surgery my right jaw joint was pretty sore, but over time the pain stopped, & my fairly advanced TMJ hasn’t caused me pain in a number of years now. That’s to say that getting your styloids removed may help reduce your TMJ pain/symptoms as it has mine.
@DeeCeeNorth I’m glad you’re getting to see Dr Hackman and have surgery with him soon. He’s so great! Wishing you a smooth surgery & recovery.
My left styloid was about 5cm and my right was 4cm. Both of my ligaments had a lot of calcification too which I think was causing a lot of my pain when swallowing.
I also have TMJ and wear retainers so it’s possible some of my achiness is because the surgery irritated it, but overall, it’s not that bad. I haven’t needed many pain meds at all (I am on steroids though). Happy to answer any other questions you have!
Megs22, THANK YOU for the update. I also have surgery with Dr Hackman June 5th, and definitely looking forward to it. I will confirm that my first meeting with him was fairly awesome compared to the legion of medical morons I’ve consulted with over the last 3 years.
Questions… Did you stay on campus housing (SECU)? Assuming that you traveled into NC out of state, how long did you opt to remain in NC?
@HappyBear That’s great you’re getting surgery soon! I hope it goes well and you get relief soon.
I actually live about 30 minutes from Chapel Hill so I was able to go back home the next day. (I realize how lucky I am to live so close to such a great specialist and it was part of the reason I decided not to wait to have surgery - I was worried he wouldn’t be there forever!) Sorry I don’t have more info on the on campus housing. If you have any questions about the area in general or RDU, please let me know!
Thanks, @Megs22 and @Isaiah_40_31… I was curious if it was going to be painful or challenging to get my retainers in and out.
Megs… did he prescribe prednisone right away? Did you have to ask for it? Did you start with the pain meds? At what point did you know you could get by with less? I’m a little nervous about not taking them and then trying to manage the pain.
@HappyBear, after reading about others’ experiences, expecting more pain and swelling days 3-6, and talking to Marsela (Dr Hackman’s surgery scheduler), I’m planning on flying out on day 2 after surgery. Surgery on the 22nd, flying home (with 1 layover) on the 24th. Requested wheelchair assistance with the airline, and considering signing up for TSA Cares for help through the TSA line (but not sure if it’s available or necessary at RDU).
@akc shared a lot of great info regarding SECU housing. I can’t figure out how to link to the comments, lol, but if you search “SECU,” it’s in the first post that comes up titled “Questions… Scheduling bilateral…” So glad to hear that you are scheduled, @HappyBear, and I made note of your restaurant warning!
I came across this video yesterday from Caring Medical. I don’t know if Brian is on this forum, but I loved his detailed account of bilateral surgery with Dr Hackman. A definite success! https://youtu.be/2VaxUXEs-4M?si=tb7rfzL7igJpOvzN
@DeeCeeNorth So they gave me Tramadol after surgery (I’m thinking because I’m allergic to Hydrocodone and they didn’t want to give me anything similar) but it wasn’t enough so they switched me to Oxycodone and that helped a ton. That’s also what they prescribed for me (a week’s worth) along with the steroids. I did ask about the steroids in advance but they said that was one of the prescriptions they were going to give anyway.
In terms of pain management, I also didn’t want to let the pain get ahead of me so the first few days, I took oxycodone every 4 hours as directed along with Tylenol every 6 hours. The oxy also helped me sleep better (and often). By the 4th day, I was feeling a little achy but not really in pain, and honestly the oxycodone was giving me stomach issues despite doing all the stool softeners, magnesium citrate, tons of water, fiber, etc. so I decided to try tapering down and just did a dose every 8 hours. I really didn’t notice a difference in pain so then I just took one before bed and one 4 hours later to help me sleep well. I’m day 9 now and haven’t taken any since day 7.
Thank you @Isaiah_40_31 I did reach out to SECU House on “try #1” (you might remember that my wallet was stolen March 18, 2024, so surgery got rescheduled for June 5th). I understand the process. HOPEFULLY they have space available. I intend to stay in NC for 7 days so if I’m able to stay in SECU it would be ideal.
Also @Megs22 Thank you for the discussion on Tramado after your surgery, and switch to Oxycodone, as well as the steroids. I wasn’t aware that you’d be allowed to supplement Oxycodone with Tylenol ever 6 hours. Cool! Yes, Oxy does help with sleep. Dr. Ross Hauser at Caring Medical prescribes it before doing the 50-80 neck prolotherapy injections in his office. Only complaint with his office is that often they did not wait at least 1 hour for it to kick in, so I would end up taking Oxy right when I arrived at the clinic, while waiting in lobby.
Also you’re now on day 10. WAY TO GO!!!
I did get an email response from Dr. Hackman about “How long before doing any physical therapy” and his response was “3 weeks minimum”.
I think wearing your retainers will not be a problem… I’m 2 weeks out from 2nd styloid surgery and with both I have been able to wear my mouth guards (able to get them in and out even with the soreness). I think the extra swelling made it important to wear them since extra pain/inflammation = more grinding. I’m hoping when I’m all healed (have less head pressure) that I’ll grind less.
I hope you’re having a steady recovery from your second surgery @juliezuber , and that you keep seeing improvements! Take care & keep us posted with how you’re getting on
A question that just came to mind, @Megs22, @akc, @juliezuber, @Isaiah_40_31… I wear several rings. Are we required to take them off before surgery? If so, I’m thinking I will leave them at home (in addition to my wedding ring, I wear my dad’s wedding band and a diamond ring that was my grandmother’s). They are on me all the time. But I would much rather leave them safe at home if I need to remove them before surgery. Thanks, all!
@DeeCeeNorth I took off all my jewelry except two earrings that were recently pierced. I think they prefer all jewelry off but can tape it if you can’t or don’t want to take it off. Probably best to just not bring them if you’re ok with not wearing them.
Just have to update that I found the pictures of my styloids in my report and omg, they are so much longer than I originally thought. They were actually both 8cm long.
Also, still healing very well! I have a little achiness and numbness in my jaw still, but not bad at all.
@Megs22 - 8 cm is EXTREMELY long for styloids. I recall we’ve only had one other member with styloids that long! Your neck must be having it’s own celebration for those being gone!!
It’s so great to hear how well you’re doing this soon after surgery. I hope your recovery just keep moving steadily forward!
