Me and my gauze mustache
Me and my gauze mustache

I made it through the night all right. I got up once for more pain reliever, but was mostly okay for sleeping. I woke up at the crack of dawn. I was wide awake and actually feeling pretty good. First thing in the morning, I did the sinus rinse the doctor suggested. I used on of those Neil-Med Sinus-Rinse things where you squeeze the bottle and it shoots salty water up your nose. I’ve had one for a few years now, so I was well-aware of what it was going to be like. Except that you are never prepared for blood and goo coming out. Not ever, really. It was super gross and you should be glad that I was not coordinated enough at that point to take pictures.

Nick got the boys ready and took them to school and went on to work himself. I drank an Instant Breakfast beverage, took my meds, and sat on the couch with my bundle of helpful things:

  1. Plastic cup full of water with a helpful straw (some websites say you shouldn’t have a straw after surgery. I wouldn’t have been able to drink without it.)
  2. Big coffee cup full of tea
  3. Box of tissues
  4. Box of Q-Tips
  5. Nasal Moisturizer Spray
  6. Lip Balm
  7. Vicks Vapo-Rub

I only got up off the couch every few hours and only to a) go to the bathroom and b) get some more liquids. It was a process. Mainly I watched TV and dozed.

At lunch time, Nick came home, made me some soup, got me some more beverages, and went back to work. It was very exciting, obviously.

Some kind friends brought the kids home from school. One came in and made me some tea, one came in and let her kid play with my kids in the backyard for a while. Eventually I managed to send the spare kid home (I don’t remember him coming in, but there he was). Nick’s mom came and took boys to piano lessons. Once Nick came home, I went back on to the bedroom and retired for the day.

Once Nick came home, I went back on to the bedroom and retired for the day. Dinner was brought to me in bed. It was cut up into tiny, tiny chunks, which was good. One thing they don’t tell you about this surgery is how much your jaw will hurt afterwards. Maybe it’s just the RA giving me further problems, but I could barely open my mouth at all.