28 November 2019

Surgery is behind me...mostly

Judith D Collins, Online Marketing Consultant

well, I am up.  Second day after the operation.  My mouth is a sore, and swollen, but not bad. I need to thank the wonderful horde of surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and assist staff at University of Louisville. They made the whole process very easy. I couldn't have been in better hands - Dr. Kushner and Dr. Oppenheim.  They are tops!

They removed the tumor/cyst.  Ameloblastoma.  The thing is sort of a pilar cyst/keloid caused by the trauma of me breaking my jaw in March after my husband's death. The removed bone material inside the jaw to protect it from trying to come back. This sort of growth was born of trauma to the jaw, and since surgery is trauma they wanted to be careful too do everything to prevent it happening again. They removed the teeth were the roots are been eaten away by the growth, and removed three others that were feared invaded to prevent them from harboring tumor material in the roots. They left several on the left side, so I can chew, though that isn't option for a couple months.  Full liquids, which I had been preparing for, so that is no biggie. If it goes into a blender, it can go into me...lol. They will address the issue of replacing the teeth once things are headed, but that won't be for a while.

It's not done, yet. They had it "dry packed" inside the jaw. I go in once a week for 4-6 weeks, and they will remove the packing and put in a new smaller step down size packing. They did not put in a steel plate. The surgeons felt there was enough lower bone left to - for now -- permit the bone to heal. However at 2-4 weeks there is danger the jaw will break. If that happens, it will be back to surgery for the plate to be insert. Knock wood that doesn't happen...lol. No bone graft, though that could be down the road from 6 months to two years. Again, I will try to skip at that.

Swelling is going down fast. I have pain pills, infection pills, but no real pain. He said he wanted me to return to my daily walking schedule today, that walking prevents blood clots from forming.

They made the whole procedure easy.  It was the nightmare week before that was so hard on me. Blood Pressure stayed 120 over 74 whole time, sugar was normal, temperature was 97.4 whole time, so guessing no infection. No nerve damage, as the tumor didn't touch any nerves and they didn't hurt them in the removal process. So all in all, I think I came out the best that can be expected.

So think everything came out better than they could hope.  The doctors were smiling and quite happy with the results. Good Beans, Wellington!

Wishing everyone a thanksgiving.  We thankful for the small miracles of good doctors and nurses, who will be serving this day, helping saved loved ones and aiding others into healing.

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06 November 2019

Grow Old With me....

(ignore the feet...lol)

The other night as I was drifting off to sleep, old memories were floating through my mind. I had a house fire 9 years ago, nearly died in it, lost both my cat Foutchie, and Dawn Thompson's Mizz Fuzz. When Dawn was dying, I told her I would take Mizz Fuzz, an elderly kitty. Fuzz traveled from New York to Kentucky, and ultimately made a place in our hearts and home. It hurt so much to lose the two cats, that I was numb for a long time. I forgot in that grief - losing the cats, losing everything, losing the whole-- for you will grieve for that loss too, I forgot that my husband had given me a sundial for our anniversary over 20 years before. I walked off from that mess and never looked back-- and left the sundial. I was in crippling pain, for it has "Grow old with me the best is yet to be". SOMETHING that I could have held onto from "that life", something from him. Well, I howled like a baby, but then I got mad at myself -- for being so careless, though not without cause, and for something lost I treasured. Howled for the treasured memento lost.


Instead of letting that take hold, I got online and bought me an "anniversary" present from him to me....again. I found the same sundial. Yes, it isn't the one he gave me. He is not here to grow old with me. But I can grow old for us both, I suppose.