UPDATE From the bottom of my heart....Thank you!

Again, you peas are SO awesome and I appreciate SO much you wanting to know how I am.  I really am taking time to heal and rest and taking it slow, so I am not on the board as much as before.

I had the stitches removed yesterday. I am now two weeks post op, if you can believe it! The doctor was super happy with how the incision looked. I still have to wear a bandage for one more week and then I can fully wash my head. Can’t wait for that.


The surgeon explained in more detail today about my surgery and what that means going forward. He told us that during the last part of the surgery, as he began to remove the part of the tumor closest to the cerebellum, there is part of the brain called the “dura” (one of the linings of the brain) that contains blood vessels…it literally exploded and caused bleeding. Not once but twice! He discussed how dangerous the surgery was and he told us that this is exactly what he was alluding too. So when I tell you that God was with me throughout, he sure was. My surgeon smiled and he said in his broken English...We can laugh about it now but during surgery YOU exploded and MY heart exploded!!!  I am in awe of his incredible ability.  For that reason, he did have to leave part of the tumor in as it was just too dangerous to remove that part.


In two and a half months, I will have another MRI done. Once he reviews that imaging, he plans to decided which radio-surgery will work best in my case. He feels confident that with radio-surgery, the rest of the tumor will be eradicated.


I can drive, but I must have someone with me in the car for the next few weeks, just to be sure that I don’t have any problems. I can start resuming light activity, little by little. Because I don’t have the pain associated with other types of surgeries, I really have to tell myself not to push it. That’s the hard part!

I have had headaches for so long, I don’t remember what it was like before. I just know that it feels AMAZING to feel “well”.  Gratitude…the feeling is just overwhelming. 

On a cool note, at the end of the appointment with my surgeon (which lasted an hour as he described in detail the surgery and answered all two pages of questions that I had!), he asked if I might teach him better English, since he knew I have been an ESL teacher.  His daughter is soon going to marry an American guy and he wants to be able to speak with and get to know him better.  That's the least I can do for the man that gave me a new life back!

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First and foremost, I am BEYOND overwhelmed at the Pea love and prayers.  I feel so inadequate saying thank you.  Truly.  

I am still in shock I think of the whole thing.  I don't believe I have even processed that it happened, simply because it happened so fast.  I am basically a week post-op and three weeks from finding out I had a brain tumor.  Just unbelievable.

So many "right" things happened in these last three weeks that go beyond GodWinks.  I have expressed doubt about healthcare here but while there are some things that could be better here, there are some incredible doctors and medical staff here.  I am just in love with my neurosurgeon (who loves to play the saxophone) because he is the kindest, most down to earth person with the most AMAZING ability to operate on the brain.  He diagnosed me immediately and helped us to move through the process of pre-surgery preparations quickly.  The surgery took 4.5 hours (he expected it to be more like 6 to 7 hours).  He removed a lemon size meningioma from the base of my skull.  While I did have more bleeding than expected, he did a brilliant job of containing and fixing that.  I still have a small part of the tumor that he left because of vascular involvement, but he feels confident that through Gamma Knife radiation, the rest can be eradicated.  The pathology has already come back that it was benign, Grade 1 and non-cancerous.  

I literally have no pain other than the 3 inch scar and the 15 stitches.  I take some Tylenol at night to help me sleep a bit more sound, but the pain of that is getting better each day.  The hardest part is making my self rest and not overdo it.  But I AM listening to my body and resting AND letting other people do things.

I still feel like I am complete outside of myself watching all this happen to someone else.  The emotions that I see friends and family experience are difficult for me to process because it just doesn't seem real.  It's a very odd feeling.  My children and husband are doing well...but I have watched them process this each in their own way.  Again, it's a very odd feeling.

All I can say is that the early morning sun on my face with my fluffy pup at my feet is the most precious and valuable feeling.  Without doubt, it was all of the prayer and thoughts that lifted me up in the moments that I could not.  It is all the prayer and love that keep me wrapped in warmth that help me get stronger each day.  

From the bottom of my heart...I appreciate each and every one of you!

Love, allipeas