AN Surgery Next Week

[CompassGeorge]

First of all, thank you to all who have posted your stories and acoustic neuroma information on this site. It has been very helpful to me since being diagnosed with AN in March of this year so perhaps my experiences may be of some use to others as well. However, to this point it seems that my story is similar to some others I have read.
For reference, I am a 63 year old male and consider myself to be somewhat fit and fairly active. I golf, hike, dive and run a couple miles on occasion.
Shortly after the new year began I realized that I was losing some hearing in my left ear accompanied with some slight "ringing". I scheduled a hearing test and afterwards met with my doctor. She suggested an MRI which revealed a 2.5 cm acoustic neuroma on my left side. My doctor recommended a retro-sigmoid procedure to remove the tumor and try to preserve some left side hearing. My surgery will be performed at the USC University Hospital by Drs. Voelker and Giannotta.
After learning of my condition people have asked me how I feel. I think that many are surprised and maybe skeptical when I reply that I feel fine. Other than my previously mentioned symptoms, which are very tolerable, I feel as healthy now as I have been in many years. It seems strange to have a major surgery for something that doesn't cause me any pain or even discomfort at the moment.
After my operation I plan on posting my experience here. I'm a little nervous, but at the same time I am thankful for being properly diagnosed and having access to the quality medical care I am receiving. I'm also curious to see how my body responds to all of this. I would like to eventually return to all the activities I currently enjoy but we shall see. Thanks for reading, George.

[Matthew]

Hi George and thanks for sharing your story. Have you had your procedure yet? If so, I hope you are doing well! Post an update when you are able. God bless!

[CompassGeorge]

Thank you Matthew. Yes, my surgery was a week ago yesterday. I wound up losing the rest of my hearing on my left side but my doctor says that he was able to remove the entire tumor which, of course, was the main goal. In the hours following the operation I had no facial nerve issues but the following day I developed some partial facial paralysis on the left side of my face which my doctor says is "temporary". In addition to that I have frequent headaches but most of them are not severe, maybe 3-6 on a scale where 10 is the most painful.
All in all I feel fortunate to be where I'm at at this stage of my recovery- no problems with CSF leakage, no nausea and not many issues with balance or dizziness. I've had a good appetite and am feeling stronger, physically. This morning I was able to walk about 2 miles and felt like I could have gone farther.
I appreciate the response!
George.

[ColleenS]

Great news George! SSD is not so bad - there are worse things for sure. Sleeping is pretty wonderful since all noise can be blocked out by sleeping on the good ear. Two-mile walk already - very impressive!

[CompassGeorge]

Thank you Colleen, I'm looking forward to sleeping through the entire night again but making progress there as well. I'm sure that I'll get used to "sleeping on the good ear" but now it feels a little unsettling not knowing if I'm missing sounds that require attention (running water, dog barking, alarms, etc.).
George.

[gunns]

Thank you Matthew. Yes, my surgery was a week ago yesterday. I wound up losing the rest of my hearing on my left side but my doctor says that he was able to remove the entire tumor which, of course, was the main goal. In the hours following the operation I had no facial nerve issues but the following day I developed some partial facial paralysis on the left side of my face which my doctor says is "temporary". In addition to that I have frequent headaches but most of them are not severe, maybe 3-6 on a scale where 10 is the most painful.
All in all I feel fortunate to be where I'm at at this stage of my recovery- no problems with CSF leakage, no nausea and not many issues with balance or dizziness. I've had a good appetite and am feeling stronger, physically. This morning I was able to walk about 2 miles and felt like I could have gone farther.
I appreciate the response!
George.

Hi George!
I had my surgery at USC as well (Friedman and Giannotta)  on July 25th 2017.  Mine also was a retrosig in efforts to save what was left of the hearing on my left side.  I lost all hearing on the left side anyway.  It's taking some getting use to SSD as you can't tell where noise is coming from.  It's annoying and can be a safety issue as well.  At 69 I'm a few years older than you but have a lot in common.  I'm very active - motorcycles hiking, backpacking etc.  Like you I had no facial issues initially.  About a week or two post-op I began having issues.  I couldn't blink my left eye and it wouldn't stay closed while sleeping so it was drying out.  They started me on over the counter eye drops and a prescription ointment to put into my left eye at bed time.  I also may have had a minor CSF leak.  A small (very small) amount of fluid would drip from my left nostril.  Additionally the left side of my face was sagging about a quarter of an inch.  Like you I was told that all of the facial issues would probably resolve themselves in time.  I'm happy to say they have all cleared up on their own.  A week and a half after surgery I was spending 10 hours or more working on our property.  Last Friday it was 14 hrs.  The physical work felt good at the end of the day. 

I plan on getting back on my Indian.  Been riding for over half a century.  I'll start with my mountain bike then move up to my dirt bike and if all goes well then my Indian.  The bicycle and dirt bike parts are a lot cheaper that the ones on my Indian. LOL!!

I don't like sleeping on my good ear.  Like you, I feel the need to hear if anything that needs attention is going on.  Hearing my breathing is also annoying.

I'm working on getting fitted with hearing aids now as I have high frequency loss in my right ear.  Phonak, ReSound and Oticon have some units for us SSD people that work off our cell phones.  The new ones work directly off the phones.  You don't have to wear anything around your neck which is great for people that are active like us old guys.

I wish you the best!
Gunnar

[CompassGeorge]

Gunnar, Sorry I missed seeing your post sooner. Wow! It does seem like we have a lot in common. Thank you SO MUCH for responding. I am especially encouraged by how quickly you recovered from the facial paralysis. I know that my recovery may be much longer but it's good to hear some success stories and I am happy for you. Before surgery I was concerned about facial paralysis but more for the cosmetic impact. As you mentioned, however, the dry eye and associated effects it is having on my vision is what bothers me more.
Today marks 3 weeks since my operation so other than the paralysis I think I am doing very well. I was even able to mix in a little light jogging with my daily walk yesterday. I too will be looking into hearing aid options so I appreciate the info on that as well. Again, thanks and take care! George.

[gunns]

Oh you Bumb!  LOL!  Before all this started I was giving a lot of thought on getting back into jogging.  I've had four back surgeries.  Two fusions, a disc removed and what I call a roto-router to open up the spinal canal that spinal stenosis was choking off.  I was doing a lot of walking and was giving jogging serious thought.  I'd been jogging for 30 years or so just to stay fit.  Didn't worry about time - just got out there to pound the pavement - it felt good.  At our age it's the old saying - "Use it or loose it".

Having the facial issues clear up has been a great boost to my spirits!  My face needs all the help it can get!  LOL!

I'm walking about 3 miles several days a week and doing a lot of work around our property.  I don't hesitate to try new things.  If it brings on the Wonkey Headedness I know it's something that I need to repeat again and again.  Gotta reprogram the mainframe - right?  Turning my head to look right or left, rolling over in bed and sitting down and getting back up seem to be the activities the bring on the Wonkies the most.  When my wife goes grocery shopping I try to go with her.  I walk down the isles by myself and constantly look right and left at the shelves and try to walk in a straight line.  It's kinda like a field sobriety test. LOL.

You're in good hands with USC.  They've been great for me.

Stay in touch and let me know how you're doing.  We can't live too far away from each other.

[CompassGeorge]

Thanks Gunnar, Unfortunately, most people can't see the difference between my walking and jogging but I know- ha! Like yourself, I will also push myself and try new things but not too aggressively yet. I've been swinging a golf club in my living room,  maybe about half speed, and it feels like I'll be able to golf with my friends again in the future.
Yes, I get those "Wonkies" at those same moments too. I think they are getting less noticeable and of shorter duration so that's encouraging. I also hear you about our faces needing all the help that they can get.    Take care, George.

[gunns]

I understand the the jogging vs. walking thing.  I feel that as long as there is a time (even micro or nanoseconds) that both feet are off the ground at the same time it's called jogging/running and I'm doing great!  LOL!

Your mention about practicing your golf swing in your house brought back an incident in my youth.  I was practicing my tennis serve in my bedroom.  I made the mistake of doing it in the middle of my bedroom and took and took out the ceiling light.  I can laugh now but it was far from funny at the time.