howdy all, lo-pro lately.
met dr john mcelveen, from raleigh, on jan 20th.
he does about 50 ANs a year.
(roughly half are trans lab, about 15 posterior fossa, and about 10 middle fossa)
all looks/sounds/FEELS "right"
we scheduled a middle fossa approach.
in addition, a Dr Hitzelberger is flying in from LA to assist.
they do this 3-4 times a year.
there will actually be two neurosurgeons, and two otologists
he is anticipating about a 5-6 hour operation.
dr cunninghamm, (dr mcelveen's otology partner at carolina ear, in raleigh) ALSO trained at HEI.
based on my video nystagmography and ABRs,
my AN seems to localize to the INFERIOR branch of the vestibular nerve.
as such, this places it nearer the auditory/hearing nerve fibers, which somewhat diminishes chances of hearing preservation.
overall, he is rating the chances of a facial nerve palsy at about 5-10%, and about 50/50 on hearing preservation.
my hope and expectation is that : this represents a degree of "hanging crepe" or managing expectations, (i.e. UNDERpromising, in the hopes of OVERdelivering).
essentially no PERCEPTIBLE changes in hearing loss,
essentially no changes in tinnitus, but it does still wax/wane a little.
i HAVE fallen twice
---once i may should have been able to recover balance and not fall, had it not been for the AN.
---the second fall, i simply forgot i was still standing on the bottom step of the stoop, and took off to walk across the garage, . . . but the garage was 12" below me. - - - sprained both ankles, (8 days ago) so i am still a little gimped up from this, but mostly recovered)
after april 5th, i have the rest of the month off, and ALL of may off.
it sounds like it is all IN network for blue cross/blue shield,
so that works out GREAT.
sister arrives night of the 5th, and stays through the 14th, to keep the kids
i hope to be home on the 12th or 13th,
not really nervous, yet
i AM, however, kinda worried about sleeping, afterwards.
working in the e.r., and swinging from stretches of day shifts, to stretches of night shifts, . . .
i on rare occasions in the past, have used ambien (or sonata) to help me sleep, and switch from one circadian rhythm to another.
i have found that i sleep well, for the 1, or 2, or 3 days i use them,
but then the first and second night, after discontinuing them, i can't sleep for anything.
i know that benzo's such as these sleeping aids, (as well as nerve pills in general) are pretty habit forming (god knows i see enough people coming into the e.r. fiending for them, as some M.D. has aided them in becoming addicted.)
it has been >12-18 months since i have used one, just because i hate not being able to sleep after stopping them, and have found behavioral ways (mainly shift scheduling techniques) to help me convert from nights to days
so i hate the idea of using them, even if briefly
my wife, a physical therapist of 13+years experience) says "don't worry, you're gonna feel like crap, you're gonna need to sleep, just use em (if needed) and worry about sleepless nights off them, later
that is what i will probably do,
silly, perhaps . . .
but that is really my biggest worry right now
overall, i have a really good feeling,
and am anticipating/expecting a really good outcome.
not really sure just how poorly i should expect to feel when i wake up.
or how quickly i will bounce back.
i have lost 30 lbs, so there'll be a little less fat for the anesthesia to soak into, and linger around in.
thoughts, and advice welcome.
thanks for reading the ramble,
if you are still here.
jesse
