I know it takes time and I read about recovery for over a year but my god is it hard to remember to be patient. I had both sides done on Monday at Kaiser Sacramento and am just in so much pain. Head feels like it’s going to explode, ears numb, can’t chew, etc. The surgeon only got one pic of I think the left side. Wanted to share it because he said it was causing my jugular to almost be flat and you can see from the pic length wasn’t an issue just width. Of course now I’m freaking out wondering if they were wrong about my VES because my styloid is so short and I’m still having pain. I will say immediately after surgery I felt like I could finally get in a full breath of air and my fingers/toes no longer feel like a dead person.
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Hey there,
I know others will chime in, I have not had surgery yet… But just wanted to say if you’re having that much swelling, hopefully they have prescribed a steroid for you. If not highly recommend it. The swelling will likely cause all kinds of nerve issues while you are healing. Hoping you were getting the care you need.
Leah
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Hey Leah 
I called and asked for a steroid today and was told they avoid those because it can impact the incision healing process - which I thought was odd. I’ll definitely call Monday and push if it’s still bad! Thank you 
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Hi @mfinch27 - Bilateral styloidectomies are terribly painful up front but once healing gets going (2+ weeks post op as swelling starts to abate), you’ll be really glad you got them both out at once. I had each done separately & having to heal from ES surgery twice was no cake walk.
@Leah is totally on target about getting a Rx for Prednisone or some other oral steroid. It will be super helpful in reducing swelling & pain. My surgeon routinely Rxes it as part of the post op meds. I wouldn’t worry about it making incisions slow to heal. It won’t make that much difference so your suggestion to press for it on Monday is a good one.
Bodies respond to injury by putting lymph fluid into the injured area to act as a “pillow of protection” around the injured body part(s), but that protective layer adds pressure to the injured site which in turn causes pain which alerts you to take it easy on that body part for awhile. The cumulative effect of all this is healing.
Your incisions look really good for so soon post op. They will nearly disappear over time. The first 3-5 days (or a bit more for bilateral) post op are when swelling & pain are the worst. You’re nearly to the end of that period so you may start noticing some lessening of symptoms over the next week or so (especially if you can get Prednisone on board).
Regarding the IJV compression, styloids don’t have to be long to cause that. More often it’s the angle they’re growing or how thick they are rather than the length of the styloid that causes that problem.
Please keep us updated as your recovery progresses. We’re here for you!
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There’s certainly a nobbly bit on the styloid which makes it quite wide, so could easily have been compressing the IJV. While you still have swelling you probably won’t feel the benefits of surgery…Focus on the positives like getting a full breath & better feeling in your fingers & toes, that should reassure you that you’ve done the right thing with surgery.
Obvs bilateral is going to be more painful to recover from; not being able to chew or open your mouth wide is very common; I had smoothies for a week or more after just having one side done. Numb ears are common too, hopefully the feeling will come back with time…mine are still a little numb but I think that’s better than pain!
Take care of yourself, keep icing & keep propped up, hope that you feel better soon 
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Hello @mfinch27
I just had the one side done recently and ice packs were my go to for swelling and general discomfort.
I was told twenty minutes on twenty min off, this helped me get over the hump, and calmed down the pain when I irritated it by moving to much
Did they prescribe and pain meds to help you ?
I took Norco and that had really helped me tolerate the recovery in my first week.
Wishing you a pain free day
And praying for a complete recovery
All the best
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