A friendly reminder all my pictures are graphic. They show before and after my surgical procedures.
Everyone I know is going through something. Some of us are gong through more than one thing at a time.
It was my intention to post quite frequently. Life and pain management have gotten in the way. My surgeries may be winding down but I am still facing decisions for the truly superficial tumors on my face and the extensive tumors on my back. I just won't talk about the others scattered over my body at this point.
So on July 2, 2014, Mile 19 began with the usual "Hi! How are ya?". Then my surgeon went to work around my mouth. I think my husband thought he was headed for a quiet week. That silly man. There were 7 areas of concern around my mouth. The surgeon just biopsied the 2 small ones on the top of my upper lip. The remaining 5 got the Mohs treatment.
Multiple stages and several hours later. I once again looked like I had been accosted by a melon baller.
The one on my chin to right in picture took 1 stage and is cancer free. The two on my chin towards the center took two stages and are cancer free. The one under my nose on the right side of the picture took three stages and the lovely crater on the left took four stages. All came back cancer free.
My lips were swollen and numb inside and out. Thank goodness you can't tell I was drooling on myself.
My surgeon is awesome. He talks to me the whole time he is doing stages and closing. I need to take in a recorder as I am sure I would learn more if I could replay the conversations later. During this surgery when he was stitching everything up my husband was standing over his shoulder supervising.
He used different types of flap closures this time. For the life of me I cannot remember what he called them. Hence, the need for a recorder.
By the time my surgeon was done with closing. I truly felt my lips had to look like a baboon's butt. I sounded like Elmer Fudd. I asked for a mirror. I was not reassured at all when my nurse, surgeon and husband burst into laughter at the sound of my voice. Not funny, guys!
So I went home with my long straws and assumed I would be on liquids for days. The next morning I was able to eat yogurt in very small bites with a child size spoon. July 4, 2014, I had ribs and all the trimmings at my in laws. My ability to eat wasn't pretty and I was a sloppy mess afterwards. Also, I bit the inside of my mouth several times as the internal swelling was more of a nuisance than any of the exterior challenges. One week after surgery, on July 9,2014, I returned to have my stitches checked.
My surgeon was pleasantly surprised at how fast I healed. He said he probably could have removed the stitches a day or two sooner. My nurse was the one with the task of finding all the stitches and getting them out. This was the first time I can say I was truly uncomfortable during the removal of my stitches. Most of them had skin grown over them. The area around the mouth has proven to be more sensitive than any area of my face.
I truly thought I would complete a full marathon (26 miles) just in surgeries. Mile 21 is scheduled for July 23, 2014, and my surgeon thinks that may finish the surgical clean up at this point. We will see what he says at the end of that mile.
Take Away Nugget: A photograph is an instant in time. How many instants do you make truly memorable.
Everyone I know is going through something. Some of us are gong through more than one thing at a time.
It was my intention to post quite frequently. Life and pain management have gotten in the way. My surgeries may be winding down but I am still facing decisions for the truly superficial tumors on my face and the extensive tumors on my back. I just won't talk about the others scattered over my body at this point.
So on July 2, 2014, Mile 19 began with the usual "Hi! How are ya?". Then my surgeon went to work around my mouth. I think my husband thought he was headed for a quiet week. That silly man. There were 7 areas of concern around my mouth. The surgeon just biopsied the 2 small ones on the top of my upper lip. The remaining 5 got the Mohs treatment.
 |
| Marked for surgery and biopsy |
 |
| Ready for closing |
My lips were swollen and numb inside and out. Thank goodness you can't tell I was drooling on myself.
My surgeon is awesome. He talks to me the whole time he is doing stages and closing. I need to take in a recorder as I am sure I would learn more if I could replay the conversations later. During this surgery when he was stitching everything up my husband was standing over his shoulder supervising.
He used different types of flap closures this time. For the life of me I cannot remember what he called them. Hence, the need for a recorder.
 |
| After Closing |
So I went home with my long straws and assumed I would be on liquids for days. The next morning I was able to eat yogurt in very small bites with a child size spoon. July 4, 2014, I had ribs and all the trimmings at my in laws. My ability to eat wasn't pretty and I was a sloppy mess afterwards. Also, I bit the inside of my mouth several times as the internal swelling was more of a nuisance than any of the exterior challenges. One week after surgery, on July 9,2014, I returned to have my stitches checked.
 | ||||
| Stitches on July 9 |
My surgeon was pleasantly surprised at how fast I healed. He said he probably could have removed the stitches a day or two sooner. My nurse was the one with the task of finding all the stitches and getting them out. This was the first time I can say I was truly uncomfortable during the removal of my stitches. Most of them had skin grown over them. The area around the mouth has proven to be more sensitive than any area of my face.
 |
| July 22, 2014 three weeks post op |
I truly thought I would complete a full marathon (26 miles) just in surgeries. Mile 21 is scheduled for July 23, 2014, and my surgeon thinks that may finish the surgical clean up at this point. We will see what he says at the end of that mile.
Take Away Nugget: A photograph is an instant in time. How many instants do you make truly memorable.
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