A lot of life has happened since my last post; all of it good.
First and most important was the Nine Inch Nails concert. It was loud. It was brilliant. It was close-up. It was most definitely not my last NIN show. I did not wear ear plugs and it was fine. I think I worried so much that I would have a weird reaction that it caused me a little anxiety, but once the show started--What Brain Surgery? I could go on forever, but I can imagine the eye rolls, so I'll move on.
Once I passed that test, life at home became almost normal. My husband went back to traveling for work and the kids resumed a summer vacation filled with video games, marching band practices, staying up late and sleeping late. My oldest son worked as a pizza delivery guy and my daughter got her first job as a library page.
I kept myself busy with crossword puzzles, housework, and gardening. I've reestablished the habit of wearing a hat outside when I work because I've bumped my head twice (little ones) and it causes unnecessary worry. Not only does it help protect my skin against the sun, but the brim warns me when my head gets close to any objects. The abdominal pains are few and far between. The muscles on the shunt side are still tense, but I'm working on it.
My hair is starting to curl.
I still question my mental ability, constantly asking my husband if I act normal and speak normal, just to make sure. (He says I'm fine)
I continue to walk and practice yoga regularly, which reminds me to mention something I noticed today while doing a balancing pose. My balance had slowly decayed in the months leading up to my emergency surgery. Poses I had previously executed fairly well had become a challenge. I rationalized it as fatigue or distraction, when in reality it was brain pressure. But today I had no trouble. In fact, today I was able to hold a balancing pose I was unable to do in class. If I didn't practice yoga, I would have never known my balance had been affected. It was so subtle, I didn't notice until after.
The last couple of weeks have been busy. School started before Labor Day for my two youngest, one in high school, the other in junior high. On Saturday, we dropped our oldest son off at college. We asked him to send us a quick email to let us know he was all right (hey, it's our first). Saturday night, while were were camping, we received an email with the subject line: "I'm not dead".
Yes, I went camping. Granted, it was at a local state park ten minutes from home, but it counts. We had planned to camp a lot more this summer, but alas...
So today was my first day at home completely alone (except for a dog and cat). It was wonderful! I wrote a little, did some research for my novel, did some laundry, some yoga, watched some TV, and right before I had to pick up my kids from marching band practice, I squeezed in this post.
My appointment with the TSC specialist at the Herscot Center got pushed to October, so I may not post again until then. I expect to discuss medication possibilities to control the tumor growth so I don't have to do this again in four years. Until then, no news is good news!
First and most important was the Nine Inch Nails concert. It was loud. It was brilliant. It was close-up. It was most definitely not my last NIN show. I did not wear ear plugs and it was fine. I think I worried so much that I would have a weird reaction that it caused me a little anxiety, but once the show started--What Brain Surgery? I could go on forever, but I can imagine the eye rolls, so I'll move on.
Once I passed that test, life at home became almost normal. My husband went back to traveling for work and the kids resumed a summer vacation filled with video games, marching band practices, staying up late and sleeping late. My oldest son worked as a pizza delivery guy and my daughter got her first job as a library page.
I kept myself busy with crossword puzzles, housework, and gardening. I've reestablished the habit of wearing a hat outside when I work because I've bumped my head twice (little ones) and it causes unnecessary worry. Not only does it help protect my skin against the sun, but the brim warns me when my head gets close to any objects. The abdominal pains are few and far between. The muscles on the shunt side are still tense, but I'm working on it.
My hair is starting to curl.
I still question my mental ability, constantly asking my husband if I act normal and speak normal, just to make sure. (He says I'm fine)
I continue to walk and practice yoga regularly, which reminds me to mention something I noticed today while doing a balancing pose. My balance had slowly decayed in the months leading up to my emergency surgery. Poses I had previously executed fairly well had become a challenge. I rationalized it as fatigue or distraction, when in reality it was brain pressure. But today I had no trouble. In fact, today I was able to hold a balancing pose I was unable to do in class. If I didn't practice yoga, I would have never known my balance had been affected. It was so subtle, I didn't notice until after.
The last couple of weeks have been busy. School started before Labor Day for my two youngest, one in high school, the other in junior high. On Saturday, we dropped our oldest son off at college. We asked him to send us a quick email to let us know he was all right (hey, it's our first). Saturday night, while were were camping, we received an email with the subject line: "I'm not dead".
Yes, I went camping. Granted, it was at a local state park ten minutes from home, but it counts. We had planned to camp a lot more this summer, but alas...
So today was my first day at home completely alone (except for a dog and cat). It was wonderful! I wrote a little, did some research for my novel, did some laundry, some yoga, watched some TV, and right before I had to pick up my kids from marching band practice, I squeezed in this post.
My appointment with the TSC specialist at the Herscot Center got pushed to October, so I may not post again until then. I expect to discuss medication possibilities to control the tumor growth so I don't have to do this again in four years. Until then, no news is good news!
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