post treatment question: nausea a few weeks after gamma knife?

[maxine]

Hi,

 I had gamma knife about two and a half weeks ago.  I had a headache and fatigue for a days and then started feeling physically back to my new normal -- deaf in one ear, very mild occasional tinnitus, some eye twitching and lip tingling, no balance problems I'm aware of beyond whacking into door frames, and fatigue by mid-afternoon.  The past week or so, though, I've started to have mild nausea much of the time.  Has anyone else had this a few weeks after gamma knife, or can this have to do with the AN rather than radiation? Has anyone experienced nausea without balance issues? As always, thanks so much for your input,

Maxine

[PaulW]

If you are being whacked by door frames and feeling tired there's a good chance that your balance is out..
I had single session Cyberknife which is very similar to Gamma Knife. I did get mild nausea on and off for many months.

As for the "New Normal" hopefully your "new normal" will be very different in two years.

I no longer bump into door frames, fatigue is gone, and my hearing has returned.
The biggest temptation is to do nothing, staying active, walking, was definitely good for me.
Not that I did it as much as I should have.

Nausea
The Doc prescribed stemiltil, I did not really want to take any drugs for a prolonged period.
As my nausea was mild, I tried a natural motion sickness medication.. Ginger Extract.
I found that when taken at the maximum recommended dose it did help.

Radiation really is a 2+ Year journey. The first 6 months you typically get the most symptoms.
Many of these symptoms are no different from what an AN can bring anyway.

I am sure you will feel a lot better as time goes by.

Fingers crossed also that your hearing may actually improve after radiation, it can happen if you are lucky.
 

[cindyjarrett]

Maxine,

I had gamma knife on October 12, so I am a month out.  So far I have done great.  My tinnitus has not changed and is constant all the time.  I have learned to just not pay attention to it.  I have had two headaches, but I am a preschool teacher and have 14 three year old children.  So I kind of figure it is all the noise.  I haven't been tired.  I am taking a multivitamin, fish oil, vitamin C and E.  Occasionally I feel a little dizzy but never to the point where I have to sit down or anything.  Sometimes I feel a tingle in my face, but I felt that before the gamma knife.  As for my hearing, I had 94 percent word recognition but had lost high pitch hearing on the left side.  I can't really say that I have felt sick at all.

I just do a lot of praying.  It seems we are on this journey at about the same time.  Ever have any questions, just let me know. 

Cindy

[maxine]

Cindy and Paul, thanks so much to you both.  It's good to hear that things do get better, although I do feel very lucky that my symptoms are not as bad as they could be. I am taking fish oil already but adding vitamin C and E  for inflammation and ginger for the nausea is probably a good idea, along with daily walks.  I would be thrilled if my hearing came back, but I don't really expect it to-- I lost it all very suddenly and have basically no word discrimination at all in that ear, but I have been adjusting to that.

I just wondered about the nausea because  I was thinking I might be imagining it. I thought it only came with microsurgery.  I think there's a tendency on the part of the medical profession to compare gamma knife to microsurgery and act like it's a piece of cake and all over in one day, except for keeping up with followup MRIs, and so along with those around me, I have probably underestimated what it takes to actually fully recover.  But hopefully this too shall pass... and if not, I guess that's okay too.

Maxine