Home from PS & doing great! (cross post)

I'm back home from my plastic surgery and doing just fine! Dr. Shuster is fabulous!! Because of a previous facial surgery (tumor removal) I was at increased risk for major complications so I searched long & hard for a ps who had experience with my "special" cir****tance and I found a winner! Because he knew how anxious I was about waking up with one side of my face paralysed, one of the first things Dr. Shuster tried to make me understand when I woke up after surgery (I don't wake up easily) was that everything went OK. I was only in the hospital 1 night, then released to revcover at the hotel for 5 more days. When I saw him again on Monday (6 days post-op) he took out a few stitches and released me to return home. He said I'm "ahead of the curve" for the bruising & swelling, having less than most folks. I fly back to Ft. Lauderdale/Hollywood on Monday for a follow-up visit and to remove stitches. Sarah Margaret came to visit me on Saturday when I was still pretty swollen and various shades of lovely yellow and purple!! There has not been much pain, but I have been uncomfortable at times. Everything feels like it is pulled VERY tight (like you've pulled a pony tail waaaaaayyyy too tight) so I felt a bit head-achy at times. The bruising has not been as bad as I expected but the swelling has been annoying, especially around the eyes! By far the worst thing is having to keep my head & neck elevated at all times which means I have to sleep lying on my back at a 45 degree angle - not my ususal way of sleeping. Because of this, I'm only sleeping a few hours at a time so I'm feeling a bit worn out. The bruising is clearning up and the swelling has really gone down in my face (still a fair amount in the chin/neck area). I can begin to see the results and I think I'm going to be very pleased! My forehead is nice & smooth, no more "angry/sad" lines! And although there is still some puffiness around my eyes, they're looking so much more open and "rested" than they did before surgery that I can't wait to see how they'll look in a few months!! I think it is too soon to tell much about the jaw/neck area but I'm beginning to see improvement. The jowls are gone & so is the "turkey neck"! So at 9 days post-op I'd have to say I'm very happy with the outcome!! Vickie J.

Vickie, congratulations on the successful PS. I'm sure you'll be very happy with the results soon. Can't wait to see the New You, how exciting. Dana

Thanks Dana! Something happened while updating my profile & I lost most of it, so as soon as my profile is "repaired" I'll post some pics of my ps. Vickie J.

YaHoo! Vickie, I had my little ladies at the church praying for you. (Not sure they would understand PS, so they just knew that you were in the hospital and needed their prayers.) I'll report back that you're through the rough part. Keep those frozen peas, or what ever they recommend, handy! And manage that swelling! Get what sleep you can! So glad to hear you're doing well! Best Wishes- Dx

Dx, Thanks for calling in the prayer warriors - that always helps!! I'm trying to follow the surgeon's orders and do absolutely nothing this week, but it isn't as easy now that I'm back home. I see all the stuff that needs doing (laundry, mess in the kitchen, etc) and it is hard to just sit in the recliner and stare at it - but I'm trying! I'll keep you posted on my progress! When are your ps consults? Are you still moving forward with plans for summer ps? Hope things go well for you, too! Vickie J.

Vickie--So glad to see that everything went well for you. Dr Shuster is great.

Lynda, Thanks for well wishes! When are you seeing Dr. Shuster again? Got a date for your next ps? Maybe we can schedule appts the same day & get together for lunch or something! Vickie J.

So very happy for your great outcome Vickie. Be good to yourself and hope you get some good rest in the coming days and nights. Monica