Hi Maria. She might not have to be on them forever. A lot of times the doctors wean you off of them slowly. It has to be done under a doctors care or you can cause more problems. Make sure your daughter limits alcohol intake. Alcohol lowers the body’s resistance to seizure activity. Most of those drugs make you tired initially. Not to mention her body has been through a huge ordeal. It will get better with time.
Hi Ninibeth, yes, the headaches were bad, but what I didn't know is how long they should last after this type of surgery, because in the hospital they've kinda downplayed the pain issue and did not tell me anything about how long the pain should last or there will be dizziness, they've just let her go home after 4 days and wanted to give her only Tylenol. I've insisted on something stronger, because she complained that it hurt her head pretty bad, so they gave her Tylenol with codeine, the lowest dose. But, now I know that many of you had the same issue with the headaches so I know its a process. Thanks for the input. :)
Thanks, Julie :)
hi maria how is sandy doing? i truly hope she is doing better and that the positioning while sleeping has been helping. I also was weaned off from the stronger pain pill - norco before i was discharged. We sorta have the same story. Post-op day 2, they wanted to switch me to tylenol yet i refused it coz i didn't want to expend my energy on dealing with the pain, thus i insisted to be on the 'industrial' kind of pain medication - dilaudid which was given intravenously. eventually tho i gave in to being switched to norco as well bec I knew I had to do so anyway coz I was bound to be discharged and dilaudid is something i couldn't really be on long term. So I was dc'd to home with the norco prescription - and once I was home, I only took tylenol for pain management. Norco is pretty notorious in causing constipation and I didn't really wanna strain when I had to go (could be hard on the head incision)- hence, norco was only taken when I really needed it. so that's another thing to consider maybe. am sure it was part of the discharge instructions as well? am glad that Andi had called u back and that your concerns were addressed appropriately. i know it can be frustrating not to get answers back right away...am sorry u had to go thru that..good luck on the 6th. tell sandy, the staples coming out aren't that bad and that Andi is real gentle in doing it, as opposed to the Batjer's residents doing it (they took some of mine out while i was still in the hospital).. Also, pls tell her to feel better soon and pls hug her for me. *hugs* to you too. take care!
Hi,Val. Yes, she got the Norco as well. And yes constipation was a big issue for sure. Today the staples came out, and yes it was not that bad.They've refilled her pain meds. Tylenol with codeine 500 and told us that the headaches are pretty normal at this stage still. ( 2 weeks post op. today) that she looks goods etc. otherwise. So I felt much better. The dizziness is also part of it.Sandy said the headaches are so bad sometimes, that she just wants to punch her head or punch something. Then other days are not so bad. Also Sandy has a little blurry vision on one eye, that should clear up too, I hope. So many new things to deal with, but I am so happy to see her up and about 2 weeks after such a horrific surgery.Surgery in the brain is a lot more difficult than other surgeries, I think. I do feel and respect all of you who went through this awful thing of AVM and still dealing with it. You guys are awesome ! It is a lot to deal with, and all of you, including my daughter carrying on the best way you can. You guys rock ! I hope, Val, you are feeling much better by now. xoxoxo, take care!