I have a lot of spare parts these days: one cochlear implant, three stents, two hearing aids, one plastic lens (thanks to a cataract), a few dental things, eyeglasses. Isn't modern medicine...what's the word?....wonderful?
Day 13...Here's where Iyam....
The incision
This is healing nicely. No more scabs to pick, and I'm enjoying scratching my scalp. Cathy gives me hell for this, but it FEELS GOOD. Further, I still have 5 different colors of hair on my head. This is a genetic variant common among the Celtic races. The reason I know I still have all five colors is because some of the scabs I've picked have had little BLACK hairs in them--mine, all mine. Even though most people would describe me as "strawberry blonde," it's a mixture, an illusion, folks. Further, people on my mother's side of the family especially don't get grey so much as their hair color simply f a d e s away.
Curiosity
People are very CURIOUS about this operation, and I spend part of every day doing show & tell.This mostly grosses them out, but now they know. This is an OPERATION in which there is cutting and bleeding and that. But they are reassured when I show them that it's all growing back together. One of my ears has wound up lower than the other, and it sticks out farther, and it's kinda RED. But that's getting better (i.e., going back to normal). They GLUED the ear back after cutting it loose to scrape out an indent for the CI. The glue did not hold perfectly. They say even the slightest cut on a woman's face is very traumatic. Hmm...I've been through this before with eye surgery back in the 70s. It IS weird, but there are other, better things to be thinking about....like impeaching George W. Bush.
Ringing in my ear
This is calming down a bit, but I still get two variations fairly often: the symphonic (when I bend over or cough), and the "New Year's Eve in Times Square" when I take me pills at night. Better living through chemistry just sets it off. Doesn't last long, but it's spectacular.
Taste disturbance, black eye, etc.
Thanks be, my sense of taste has returned--and (not so hot) brought my appetite back with it. Just when I'd lost almost 10 pounds, too. The bruising has mostly gone from my face and neck.
Your description tells me this was a pretty serious operation! I'm glad all is returning to normal, and you are feeling so perky! And I'm pure Celtic ancestry... so are you telling me my hair colour is just going to fade away? Oh dear, I may have to do somathing about that!
ReplyDeletehmmm you could have a "jack & jill meet henna" party....
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment about the Pi Day picture... I did a search for the Washington Post Express but didn't find anything!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'll make sure I invite you to the "Henna" party when I have it... OK? :-)
I searched for it, too, and danged if I could find it, either. I know that's where I saw it. I think. Too bad I didn't save it and scan it for you.
ReplyDeleteAre you being snowed on today? It's pouring rain here and cold. ish.
I'm new to your blog but was very interested about your cochlear implant. I have a friend of 40 years and his partner has one. It has opened the world up for him and you hardly know he has it. It's unconnected at night and when I stay with them they have a system where, if the phone rings, the lights flicker on and off...since Dwayne can't hear without the implant.
ReplyDeleteIt really surprised me the first time it happened.
I hope your implant will be as effective.
hi, ginnie...what a wonderful blog you have! I really enjoyed your post about the trip to the italian monastery. Thanks for stopping by.
ReplyDeleteIt's just a little more than 2 weeks now till they activate this thing in my head. hope it works as well as it has for your friend.
m.e.
Sure glad that you are healing so nicely, but from your discribtion you sound like a mess! But the rewards will be fantastic! Will stop in from time to time to check up on you.
ReplyDeleteNice to hear your progress report and I also enjoyed your previous post. It's a pleasure to read great writing. The news from Chicago is that Grandma has been in the hospital with pneumonia, but rallied today and is scheduled for discharge Friday! She really toughed it out - as she always does. On the youngest end of the family, Mia has begun to use words to communicate, for instance asking for toast ("toe") at the point she starts refusing more spoons of cereal. She's also identifying things by name, those that have only a consonant+vowel name that is.
ReplyDeleteHope Times Square empties out soon.
Love, H
H...thanks for the news. Wow...Mia is amazing! She's not only learning new words, she's using them to tell you what she wants....as in communicating.
ReplyDeletegrandma is amazing, too. she just pulls out of one crisis after another. way to go, grandma!
less than 2 weeks now till this thing gets turned on. i feel like i did when i was a kid waiting for my lone ranger decoder ring.
happy first day of spring....xo, m.e.
Have a look at
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thetelegram.com/index.cfm?sid=18184&sc=85
for the story of a 9year old girl with a cochlear implant.
Mary Ellen, I saw your "Cochlear Implant 14" blog on my Google blogreader, but for some reason I can't see it here (stuck on a cached page?). Is there an email address where I could write you privately? My email is ronniecat at ronniecat dot com (the "at" is "@" and the dot is ".", of course).
ReplyDeleteronnie
Ronnie:
ReplyDeleteHiya....I hit the wrong button and accidentally published CI 14 before I was finished with it, so I hauled it off and put it back in the draft stage, where I'm still working on it.
I sent you an email...hope you get it.