Day 5 - Things are Still Looking Up

It's been five days since the surgery. The highlight of the day was that I took my narcotics at 7:30 this morning and then again at 8:30 tonight so I can sleep! Yay! It hurts, but not in a shooting pain that makes me want to cry sort of way. It is a really achy, sinus infection hurting the teeth sort of way. I also got out of the house! I am showing some bruises on my chin and neck. There is an obvious fingerprint on my neck. It's not black and blue, a little more yellowish. Not bad enough to scare little children - that or people were just polite enough not to stare.

I tried not to go into this surgery and recovery with too many expectations. So far, things are going better than I thought they would. Tomorrow is the first follow up appointment with the surgeon. Looking forward to seeing what she has to say!

Challenges for today:
1. A Chick-fil-a milkshake, while delicious, is very cold on the back of my throat. Not going to be able to do that too often!
2. Taking the pain meds makes me tired. Not taking the pain meds makes me dizzy. The room did a lot of spinning today. Also had to go back to the nausea medicine after my car ride.

Good things:
1. I got to ride in the car to pick up the boys from school. It's hard to go from full time parent to pretty much hands off.
2. I snuggled the baby today. He even played with me a little. I just can't smile at him. Not even a little. Mouth won't do it.
3. My lips pretty much have feeling. One of the side effects of the surgery is losing feeling in parts of the face permanently. I was so afraid that I would never feel a kiss from my husband or children again. My cheeks and chin are still numb, but I can feel the baby's sweet, soft cheeks when I give him a kiss.
4. I didn't write a single thing today. If I needed to communicate, I said it. Talking makes me tired, but I can be an active member of society if I can talk. Not going to try the phone just yet. It's getting better, but I still need a translater.

Things I learned today.
1. Yawning hurts. (Did I mention that yesterday?) Goal for tomorrow - do whatever I have to do to keep myself from yawning.
2. Not all potato soups are created equal. Mom got me some that is smooth, but it had too much garlic. We will try again tomorrow.
3. My sense of smell is very heightened. I can smell lots of things and lots of smells bother me. It will be interesting to see if this keeps up.
4. I cannot brush my teeth because I can't swish the water around to rinse. Going to have to see what the doctor has to say about that.

Every day is better. Just because I am feeling better, I have to remember that I am still healing. There is no shame in taking a nap (or two) every day! The sooner I heal, the sooner I can be more helpful.