Hi Julia,
I had Gamma Knife 14 months ago, for a 2.4cm AN. It was a great choice for me and I've been able to manage my way through any post treatment issues without needing time away from work. I've obviously had some pretty wonky days during the first initial 6 months, most likely due to swelling, but nothing that Advil couldn't help.
I have never experienced the whooshing sound you refer to but I did have some numbness on the tip of my tongue and the corner of my mouth that came and went for several months pre treatment. Within roughly 4-6 months post treatment I noticed the numbness was gone and it has not returned!
As for my hearing, I was told it would go eventually and that GK would most likely just slow the process down. My word recognition was down to 20% at the time of treatment and on my 1 year follow up test it had improved to 40%. The hearing in my good ear is not so great (just an aging thing) so I did invest in the Phonak BiCros hearing aid 6 months after my treatment and it was the best thing I could have done.
My balance issues did get worse as during the first 9 months post treatment, but to be honest, I'm doing pretty darn good now, and very pleased over the improvement from last year.
Don't hesitate to contact me directly if you have any questions regarding my Gamma Knife experience.
Cathie.
