5/21 - getting settled in at mom's

after about an hour in the car we arrived home to my mom's. i was happy. time to rest. time to heal.

 

one of the first things i did was take a shower. i only was in the hospital for 29.5 hours from the time we checked in to the time i rolled out in the wheelchair. but i just wanted to wash off the hospital, for lack of a better phrase. man, that felt good. of course i didn't wash my face really. i just gently wiped it a washcloth. i couldn't feel anything around my cheeks and chin. but man when i barely touched my lower nose/upper lip area i wanted to cry a little. that was not pleasant. it's an odd feeling. you are numb and swollen but can still feel pain. there is no way to completely explain it. washing my hair was a little weird too. all the crazy pressure that was going on in my mouth and the blood that was coming out of my nose made it odd to lean my head back into the water. needless to say, it was a long shower.

 

after that it was officially the start of my very important bonding time with the couch. luckily mom's couch has a recliner on the end. i claimed it. i could rest without having to lie down.

the doctor said i needed to start icing my face. so mom and i had fun trying to figure out the best way to do that. he gave us two small gel packs that helped. but getting them to stay on my cheek area was challenging. mom rigged something up that worked. i suggest you practice and get it mastered before you have jaw surgery. it was kinda scary moving them all around and getting them settled with the wrap thingy. after all that work we left them on for only 20 minutes. it felt incredible. i wish the nurses would have iced me in the hospital. i think they missed those orders in the charts. 

we started the temperature taking fun. i don't know why that is so funny to me.

i also tried using the sippy cup. we had to poke a hole in the lip so the liquid would flow out without me having to suck on it. i think we jumped the gun a little on the cup. when you can move or feel your lips you can't really form them correctly around the cup. so keep a ton of paper towels around. it got a little messy.

I had a visitor as well today! my oldest bestie came by. she brought her sweet little girl, my "niece". that was great. glad I got to see them. :)