What to Expect After a Sinus Surgery #deviatedseptum #septoplasty #polyps #polypectomy #sinuses

I promise that this post won't be gross, bothersome, just informative.

If you're a new reader: I just had a deviated septum surgery. My septum was really crooked on the inside! I was born with it. I had polyps that really did some damage. They ate through nasal receptors. I don't know if I'll ever be able to smell again. I'm really lucky they didn't eat through that bone by my brain! 

1. Typically this kind of surgery is outpatient. There's a few things you'll have to do before they'll let you leave: Walk and pee.
   
   Walking wasn't hard, but for some reason I was shivering up a storm! I wasn't cold, so I imagine that it was just from the anesthesia. It was odd because I didn't shiver at all when I was laying down.
   
   I did learn that the bladder is the last thing to wake up after having anesthesia. I felt like I needed to go, but not a whole lot comes out. The nurses wanted to make sure I could go well before sending you on my way.


2. At first I just relaxed. They sent me home from the hospital with gauze, and something that helps hold the gauze on. If I had to do it all over again, I'd buy more gauze! Enough to last about 4 days, with changing it every 4 hours.
   
   
   


3. Everyone is different with how long the anesthesia stays in your system. I needed those pain pills. I took one before bed for a good solid week regardless of how I felt, so I'd sleep better. I still have a lot of pills left over.


4. Naps are wonderful! I can't always nap when I want to. There was one day where I fell asleep at 1, and slept until 5! Keep in mind that I didn't sleep all night for the first week of recovery. 


5. I had to sleep propped up for the first week and a half. No bending over. I still have to use your knees to bend over. They want your head above your heart. 


6. The breathing tube from surgery really hurt my throat! I got lots of people telling me to try this and that. The things I thought worked great for me: Less talking, lots of cold water to drink, and have a few boxes of popsicles in the freezer! Real fruit is better than others, but I bought bomb pops for the boys for the 4th of July. You can also make your own with your own molds. Smoothies taste good in the molds! I'm sure everyone is different with this. Other things to try: Warm tea with ginger and local honey, and water with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar that has the mother in it. Keep in mind they say no spicy things. I'm used to cayenne pepper in a drink I have. I still have to be careful of that, and I'm on week 3 of my recovery. 





7. I have to have someone around for my first few showers. I made sure it wasn't too hot! I get really fainty on those pain pills.   


8. Ice is great! I wasn't able to use it much until about day 3 of my recovery process. It's just too hard to use it with the gauze. About day three or four I didn't have to use gauze as much. You can use ice packs, or small bags of peas (that you keep refreezing to use just for your nose).
   
   To make your own ice packs: 1 part rubbing alcohol to 3 parts water. This gets really cold, but never hardens.





9. Have soft washcloths on hand! I'd wet them, put them in the freezer for 10 minutes, and they felt wonderful for my nose! I started using them in replace of tissues because they are much softer. If you have access to baby washcloths that's the way to go! Bamboo ones work great too!


10. Take a few Tylenol before getting the splints out. No Ibuprofen. It isn't comfortable. They are much bigger than I thought. I read that there's a lot of relief when those splits come out. I actually hurt a few days afterwards. I've never been able to breathe through my nose fully. With the healing process it's very dry! Air going through everything is so painful I thought. Maybe this was just me. I've read that a lot of people feel so great when the splints come out. 


11. I took ALL of my antibiotics as prescribed. One huge pet peeve of mine is when people don't take antibiotic as prescribed. People that do that - sorry, but you're part of the problem with Super Staph not being able to be treated now a days. (Speaking from someone that had a child with a Staph infection). Take your antibiotics, and probiotics to put that good bacteria back into your body. 


12. The ENT doctor will have you do sinus rinses. I expected it to burn. NOPE! It didn't burn at all. Prior to surgery I bought Flonase. Check with your ENT to see if they'll want you on that after surgery. Mine wants me on a specific Steroid that replaces Flonase. Now I have a whole bottle of it that won't get used. This sounds really odd, but I need something bigger than a tissue for sinus rinses. I use old spit up rags. They work great. I have a stack of them, and wash them after each time. 


13. I can sniff, but not blow my nose. What's the difference anyway? I can't plug a nostril and blow. I can blow softly out both nostrils. 


14. Have a few saline mists on hand. I love Ayr Saline Nasal Mist! Other brands sting when I spray it. I've been so dry. This is much of the recovery process. You know when you skin your knee? How it hurts and is dry. That's how my nose is inside. They say spray every two hours, or more.


15. Reading is overrated! I got books to read. I'd read about 2 pages, and feel like falling asleep. About the only things I got done with surgery is: I watched a lot of TV (sad, but true), I paid bills, I played board games with the boys, and I did crafts with Isaak. Thankfully I did have some meals made ahead of time. Travis has been busy with yard work, dealing with insurance because of hail damage we had, working, and he's in the middle of an art residency. When I did make meals it seemed like I was wore out afterwards. Mica washed dishes by hand for the first time (I did have to check his work), both boys unloaded the dishwasher, and I had the boys lug the laundry baskets up and down the stairs for me. 





16. Shaving is overrated. Remember that I can't bend over unless I use my knees. I went awhile without shaving. 


17. I had very little appetite after surgery. It helped to have applesauce, JELL-O, smoothies and anything soft like that. 


18. My upper jaw is sore. I had to ask, but it's normal to have a sore upper jaw. All the work that was done, was above that spot. Biting down on food that's thick just wasn't something I could do. It's still a bit sore on week 3 of recovery, but it's getting better day after day.


19. Makeup is overrated! With a sore upper jaw I can't put lipstick on easily. I don't even want to touch my nose, so rubbing base in is out of the question. I wasn't a big makeup person, but I always wear a little bit. 


20. One thing I never did much is swell, or get bruises. I read that a lot of people do swell and bruise. The spot where they poked me to put in an IV looked worse than my nose, or eyes. That was a pleasant surprise. 


21. Sneezing and yawning are all awkward and uncomfortable. I have to sneeze with my mouth open. I can't really do anything about yawning. Yawning is like stretching a wound. 


22. Where my nose and forehead are the skin on the outside is so dry! Of course it hurts to even touch my nose, let alone put lotion on it.


23. I had to tell my son Isaak, "No Eskimo Kisses!" 

Surgery Update

No pictures of my nose as of yet. For 1 they wouldn't let me take anything back with me. My phone had to stay with Travis. For 2 I'm starting to swell up, and don't look the best. I should have taken a picture this morning; it didn't look so swollen then.

My nose is straight now. My nostrils aren't the same, but that's not why I had surgery. Most importantly I can see just fine, and I don't have meningitis. The surgery took about 2 1/2 hours. I guess my septum was really crooked back there. My polyps were bad.

It was an outpatient surgery. I got there at 10:30, had surgery pretty much on time 12:35 or so, and stayed until about 8:30. They were hesitant to let me go because I couldn't go to the bathroom a lot. Did you know under anesthesia that your bladder is the last thing to wake up? I made up for it last night. I drank so much in the hospital to try and go. Ha!

My nose is more sore today than yesterday. The really good drugs have worn off. Travis went to pick up my meds: Antibiotic, Nasal Spray, and Pain Meds. He quickly found out that the pain meds needed a written script. Well the hospital didn't have it on file, and it's Saturday. So I called the doctor on call. He delivered a script to the ER for Travis to pick up. That was a pain, but I'm thankful I got it.

Three things that annoyed me in the hospital:

1. I had to get stuck a few times for the IV. I have such small veins that tend to roll. I have a pretty good bruise on my arm. 


2. They don't carry those little cups of sorbet anymore. God I love those things! I could only eat soft stuff. My top jaw hurts. JELL-O, applesauce, and ice cream was it. 


3. I couldn't wear my Edvard Munch Scream socks. Apparently compression socks win. We wouldn't want any blood clots. I thought the doctors and nurses would get a kick out of my socks if they saw them.

The saline spray helps my nose from getting dried out. It also makes me bleed constantly just a little bit.

The boys spent the night at my sisters last night. They looked at me this morning and said, "Well you don't look that bad." Then when I put the gauze under my nose Isaak said, "That's weird."

I'll be off work for 2 weeks. It's supposed to take a few months to recover.

Random Tid Bits

Since I'm having to start allergy shots on Monday I thought I'd make this post allergy funny.

1. My Mom did all the right things to prevent me from getting allergies when I was little. I played outside, she breastfed me, we had 2 big dogs that we had to get rid of because I kept getting sick, she kept a clean house, and washed bedding regularly. 

I started cracking up when I read this:




And no I don't get my allergies from my Mom's side of the family. I get them from my Dad's. Well except for the ibuprofen one - my Aunt, Mother's sister has an allergy to that. The boys have allergies, but not nearly as bad as I do.


2. This is funny:





3. It's true I'm allergic to all things furry. I even broke out in red dots after holding a cute little hedgehog. It's tummy was furry. That doesn't mean I don't like them. So many people assume allergy sufferers hate them. I'd love to have a furry, cuddly pet for my kids. When I lived in Savannah it was the best because the neighbors had an outdoor cat that loved to visit me when I was outside.
   
   
   
   
   Before you say, "Why don't you have a short haired dog, or hairless cat?" I was advised not to even have one of those. It's just not in the cards for me.


4. It seems like a lot of retired people I know love to watch Doctor Oz. I can't count how many times someone older I know says, "Well Doctor Oz says..." In reference to fixing all my nasal issues.





5. If you've been a reader for awhile, you'll know that I've tried lots of home remedy things to get better. Some have worked to relieve the symptoms at the time. BUT there is just that time where one like myself needs to go to the doctor to get medical treatment.

Nose Job! Yikes!

I had my ENT appointment yesterday. The doctor was running behind, per usual. I'm not saying usual with this particular doctor. Just usual with doctors in general. I rushed over there, was nervous about finding it, then had to wait.

It wasn't really a great day for feeling good. It's been raining for 4 days straight. Mica said, "Mom I think you get headaches from the barometric pressure. I've often wondered that. Dang that kid is so smart at times. He's a classic book smart kid, but needs step by step instructions to make his bed.

I figure I should get some selfies before I get my nose job soon. I won't really fix my nose in any way other than to make it straight, and get those polyps out. I haven't noticed in awhile how messed up my deviated septum is because the other side was swollen with polyps. Now that the polyps have gone down my nose looks really off. Day with rain my eyes are horrible!

Off to the side of my face I have a chicken pox scar. Kids always ask what that is because no one really gets chicken pox anymore with the vaccine that's available.

Nurse's First Question:

"Have you had a CT scan lately?"

Me:

"No." The last one I had was 11 1/2 years ago when I was prego with Mica. He was breech, I was low on fluid, my birth canal was tilted funny, so they wanted to see if there was room to have him if they got him turned around. There was room, but they couldn't get him to turn. Never try to have a doctor turn a baby from the outside. Opt for the C-section. There's my advice for the day. It hurt worse than the epidural, or post C-section + it puts stress on the baby. What was I thinking?

Anyhow I didn't tell the nurse all of that. I'm pretty sure 11 1/2 years ago isn't a recent CT scan, nor does it have anything to do with my nose.

CT Scan: 

I was thinking, Oh God this is going to be a hassle + expensive. I'm sure that later part is still true. Hassle not so much. They had a scanner right there in the office.

See all the grey. There's suppose to be white spots in there. Yep polyps have taken over where I can't see them. :(

Check out my nose! It gets even more crooked inside!

Eye Sight Loss Scare:

All the grey by my eye is polyps. Yep if he digs in to get them out, and hits my eye I'll have seeing problems afterwards.

Meningitis Scare:

Do you see the thin line of white? That's bone. Below that is all polyps. If he hits that bone I could get Meningitis. He asked me if I knew what Meningitis is? Umm yep! Isaak had that at 2 months of age! I know how scary it can be. It can cause hearing loss, and brain damage. Not to mention high fevers, high white blood cell count, and pressure on the brain. Fun stuff! Not! Sometime ignorance is bliss.

Polyps central.

My messed up nose!

It has to be sawed, and put back together like a jigsaw puzzle.

I know they have to tell you everything. Travis wants to know everything. He wants to look it up, study it. He's already read all about Septoplasty - Deviated Septum Surgery. He's watched YouTube videos on it. Me on the other hand, I usually like to research the heck out of things. I'm not feeling it with this. It makes me more worried. I'm not saying I can't handle the information. Put it on the table. I'm not about to go look up what he's going to hack away. 

He'll do a CT Scan, while the surgery goes on. That way he can see what he's doing.

He wants my allergies to be up to par because I can't blow my nose for 3 weeks after having this done. I'll miss 2 weeks of work, but will not be recovered for months. Yay! Not!

I'm thinking mid to end of June. Then I won't miss class, I'll have recovery time, I can also be home with the kids and spring allergy season will be over. I'll have to talk to Dr. Shakir - my allergy asthma doctor. 

I was doing great with all this slammed down information. Then a muscle car almost hit me on the way home - all black with bright green wheels was driving pretty fast on the express way. 

Then I started crying after talking to my parents. I could barely get out what to say to my youngest sister mainly because I just talked to my concerned parents. I pulled it together when I talked to my older sister and aunt. They were more, "Oh Alissa you'll feel so much better after this surgery! They have to tell you everything." 

Not quite the nose job I want to have. I really don't even mind my nose. Sure it's crooked, but it's my nose. I've grown to love it through the years. If it's so crooked it's restricting me from breathing it needs to be fixed.

I'm pretty sure the boys are freaked out with all the talk of this stuff. Isaak is usually filled with empathy. He said, "Mom I wish I had a different Mom that didn't have allergies. Then maybe I wouldn't have them. I would have skin problems either." Thanks son. He is a bit right. Kids do say what's on their minds. It really didn't hurt my feelings per say. I agree with him. Allergies, asthma and all this nose stuff sucks!

I'm Still in a Fog

I scheduled my ENT appointment for later this month. That's when they could get me in.

I've already messaged my allergy/asthma doctor twice. The first time was to get a sheet that they forgot to give me at the office. I don't blame them for forgetting. I kept them there an hour past closing time.

Here's my original post if you feel like you're reading this, and you're lost.

Here's a list of foods I shouldn't have during season where their counterparts are in bloom or in seed:

First column is spring, second is summer, third is late summer and early fall, and last is fall.

I can have any one of these things. Just not when their relative is in seed, or in bloom. 

We were very successful with growing tomatoes last year. Luckily we don't have them very much during the summer. We canned most of them late fall and winter. The tomato liquid was frozen into ice cube trays, and we use them for soups, beans and rice, and dishes like that.

We can make sauerkraut with the cabbage we grow. Then we can have cabbage at any time.

Fruits that shouldn't be consumed in one season can be frozen for smoothies for another season. 

I like peanut butter, but should stay off it now. Almond butter would be ok though.

Isaak and Mica should stick to this pretty well too. They don't have the asthma I have, but did get some of my allergies. Not nearly as bad as me. Both can be around dogs. Isaak can be around cats with no problems. Mica sneezes and his eyes itch around cats. They both have seasonal allergies. Isaak's poor eyes get it bad! 

I've been waiting for a list like this my whole life. They never had this when I went to an allergist before. 

Another message was sent in to Doctor Shakir. I was to be off my meds for 5 days prior to seeing my him - my allergy, asthma doctor. I need to know if I should be off anything before seeing my ENT. Doctor Shakir was very clear that he wanted to get my polyps down in size. If I go off my meds they will get bigger. That's good because then the ENT can see what he's up against surgery wise. It's bad because he won't really know their real size. I know they've gone down. I can breathe through my nose a bit.

I still have a cloudy WTH feeling going on in my head. That's from the powerful steriods I'm on. They're stronger than a typical inhaler used for asthma. 

Of course it's hard to focus on school things. It's midterm week. I couldn't even read papers one day last week. I did get through them the next day. If I can just finish writing the tests, I should be good. They are already there from last year. There's a computer program that grades them for me - YAY! 

Have you ever been on a med that made it hard to concentrate? 

#Allergy, #Asthma, and #Polyps Oh My

I mentioned I had my big allergy asthma appointment on Monday. I scheduled the appointment at the end of the day, so I wouldn't miss work. I kept them way past their work day, and feel bad for it. They closed at 6:30, but I was there with me from 5:30 to 7:30. Saying the boys and Travis were hungry by the end of my appointment is an understatement. We never eat that late!

History

I haven't been to an Allergist Asthma Specialist, since about 2003 or so. I got shots for about a year. Then their office moved way far away.

My Dad talked about his allergies acclimating themselves - meaning that he got shots for certain things, became less allergic to those certain things, and more allergic to other things.

Before that I got allergy shots when I was a kid from about the age of 4 to about the age of 10. My Mom used to give them to me. She was an RN for years. I was annoyed as an adult because all the sudden I couldn't have my Mom give me my shots. They made me go in the clinic to get them, then wait 20 minutes afterwards to see if I had a reaction. I get it. They didn't want a law suit if someone died from a reaction. At the same time diabetics give themselves shots. They too could have a reaction.

Feeling annoyed about my Dad's allergies acclimating themselves, spending money on shots, gas money on driving, my Mom not able to give me my shots I quit.

Fast Forward to Two Months Ago

I got sick with an upper respiratory infection something. I went to my primary doctor. He gave me some antibiotics, and an inhaler for my asthma. I've been hoarding inhalers in case I need them.

I kept get an asthma attack each and every night. It wouldn't stop. The inhaler gave me relief, but I was puffing one every night. I was so done with it. That lead me to make the appointment to go to the clinic.

Allergist Asthma Specialist

I have a new doctor: Ebrahim Shakir. I love him. Travis said, "Am I going to have to watch you with him?" Ha! No. He is informative, supportive, concerned, and handsome. My husband is handsome as well. :)

He looked in my nose and said, "Has anyone ever told you you have polyps in your nose." I'm like, "No. I thought that was snot." He said, "They are the biggest polyps I've ever seen. I'm going to send you to an ENT. One that I'd only send my own family to. I'm going to treat you with ibuprofen, and allergy meds." I said, "I can't take ibuprofen. I'm allergic to it." He said, "What? What does it do?" I said, "Well I start sneezing, then my lungs close up." He said, "WOW! Well that changes things. You're at high risk for getting polyps because you can't take ibuprofen to reduce swelling for you asthma and allergies." I said, "Well this would explain why I haven't been able to smell anything for a few years."

Medicine:

I'm on 2 inhalers, Zyrtec in the morning, Singular (off brand) at night, a nasal wash at night followed up with Flonase. That is only until I can visit the ENT doctor to discuss surgery to remove the polyps and more than likely fix my deviated septum I've had since birth.

Testing:

I failed the first breathing test. They gave me a breathing treatment, while they testing me for my allergies. I'm 70% down in my breathing for the little branches in the picture. I'm 20% down in the bigger branches. Basically I'm not able to breathe properly. I don't smoke, I'm not around smoke, I don't own any pets, I don't have carpet, and I wash our bedding regularly.

10 minutes of this...

Dr. Shakir questioned if I should do the back prick test at all. He didn't want to throw me into an asthma attack. They decided to do it anyhow. One good thing...I'm not allergic to milk like I thought I was all these years.

...while this was going on.

28, 29 30, and 31 are all grasses.

Luckily it doesn't really hurt to get the back prick test done. It just tickled. My back is really ticklish. It didn't even itch that bad. Maybe I'm just used to itching. Ha! I had my breathing treatment going on, and my kids in the room to take my mind off the itching. 

This is after the test is done, my back is wiped down, and calamine lotion is put on it:

Dr. Shakir says I'm a special case. As if I didn't know that all ready. ;) After I meet with the ENT doctor, I meet again with Dr. Shakir. He has 2 plans of action I could do: 1. I can't remember exactly. 2. Allergy shots. I explained my frustrations with them. He said he could send them to a clinic close to me. 

Right now I'm tired, even when I'm sitting up. I would think steroids would get me moving! I kept falling asleep at 8 last night. Maybe I'm catching up for lost sleep. I also feel like I have small bees buzzing in my head. 

Later in March I see my ENT doctor. I was hoping it was earlier, but nope that's when they could get me in.