Hello one and all, I couldn't wait for this day to come, when it is my turn to give the customary one year postie update! Yes, I remember it well, on that fateful day on December 9, 2009 at about 1pm, as I was being wheeled into the OR...after that, not much to remember
. Then I woke up, saw everything tilted 90 degrees and the promptly passing out again. It took about six month after that to find my mojo. My recovery was very good considering. Nowadays I still have a wee bit balance thing going, the hearing I would guestimate at about 50% word discrimination (maybe even less but hey, I CAN hear!!!), somewhat to really annoying tinnitus and still get tired when I really overdo it too much. I also seem to have a small memory problem that either did crop up after my surgery, or I just wasn't aware of it before but now do because I am more focused on things that seem different. Those are all the bad things I have, which I can definitely live with versus the other of having a mass growing in my noggin or a not so good recovery. I still visit this discussion forum regularly, offering comfort and advice when I can. I find more often than not that I reach out and try to help the newbies who are like I was a year ago....full of questions, frustrations, and more than concerned about what's gonna happen. I guess it's sort of a pay it forward kind of thing since I had gotten so much help when I was a newbie myself. Since my surgery, I saw this as a second chance at life, doing things I wouldn't have dreamed of. So I am pursuing my engineering degree, and am starting classes this spring. I also am trying to stop and smell the roses a little more than I used to. I still am working like a dog sometimes, but that's what pays the bills so I must. But no one said I couldn't dance a little at work now and then (well, I really don't, but in my mind I do!). I go in for my one year check up on the 22nd. Sometime after that is when I'll get my first MRI since my surgery. I am not concerned at all about what it will reveal. I am eager to get a hearing aid, as it really sucks to constantly keep asking people to repeat themselves if they are on my AN side talking to me. So that's it in a nutshell of how I am doing. If you are a newbie reading this, just know there is life after surgery. You'll make it just fine, one way or another! Thanks to all you regulars whom I've had the pleasure of knowing this first year, I am looking forward to many more years with you guys! Oh, I just thought of another good thing, I've kept my hair real short since my surgery so now I can cut my own hair at home, saving me money and time, and it doesn't look half bad. So much nicer to manage, for sure!! Thanks again guys, and have a happy holiday!!
Jay
