BAHA Surgery, 1st edition (June 3rd, 2010)

I had the first of two parts of my BAHA implant surgery done on June 3rd, 2010. And because I've totally neglected this blog, I am just now getting around to updating it today, July 1st. The surgery was a success, even though I was in the surgery room for about 2.5 hours, instead of the 'under 1 hour' that was told to me. The surgery consisted of placing an anchor in my skull, behind my ear, which the post (to be installed next surgery) will attach to. And also, taking this out of my skull:

The penny wasn't actually in my head; I put it there to give you an idea of the size of equipment. It's pretty incredible how small those screws are. The incision to get this out and the anchor in, was almost as long as my surgery incision. I wasn't expecting this big of a cut again, and my head was very sore. It's been almost 4 weeks now, and my head is still extra tender on the rear right side. It wasn't even recovered fully from my surgery a year ago, it still felt sensitive at times. I'm hoping that now that these plates and screws are gone, it will be able to heal 'naturally' without any extras in the way. The surgery was on a Thursday, and I was back to work on the following Monday. If people didn't notice my scar before, they sure did then! I got my stitches out 7 days post surgery, and that felt amazing. The nurse commented on how fast it healed, and then I realized why I stuck out from there typical patients: I was the only person under 70 years old in the waiting room.
I am still going to physical therapy for my facial exercises once a month. I am using a neuro-muscular stimulator. It's basically a little computer box that has 4 electrical pads/leads coming out of it, 2 positive, 2 negative. I put one set of my top lip, and one set on my chin, and let it zap away for 30 minutes. It sends electrical signal through the skin, into the nerves that connect to my facial nerve. In theory, this will get the nerve 'used to' having signal go through it again, and help it heal. The improvements have been small and slow, but there has been noticeable improvement every month. It's a test of patience to do something for half an hour everyday, and not see results for weeks, if not months. I'd be lying if I said I have not been scolded for not using it enough. Another thing of note, my right eye still does not cry. It stays naturally moist like my left eye though, so that is awesome. It's just peculiar to me that it doesn't cry. Yes, I know this because I watched '7 Pounds' last month, and that movie got me!
I don't have a date yet when my third (and final!) head-related surgery will be. I also realize that I'm posting this exactly one year from my surgery. I'm going to sleep on it, and hopefully come up with something profound to say in the morning. Don't hold your breathe....