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May 12, 2006
Appointment with Dr. Park
We drove to Charlottesville this morning for a checkup with Dr. Park. The visit went well. He was happy with the trach hole, and said that we could take off the the cumbersome dressing and just use some vaseline and a bandaid. That made Courtney very happy.
He didn't say much about the eye or eyelid. He said that her eyeball movement is much better and was pleased that the double vision is mostly improved. He muttered a few things about something being off by a millimeter, and that the eyeball level seemed to be correct. I mentioned the opthomologist's statement about the eyelid being pulled down by the incision beneath the right eye, and I'm pretty sure that he dismissed this with mention of a structural issue caused by the amount of damage to the socket. He's definitely a perfectionist and the future of her face is most certainly in capable hands. I intentionally didn't ask any questions about the eyelid because he's been very forthcoming with details when he's ready. Courtney and I are both comfortable waiting and don't really need to be placated with doctor speak. All in all, he seemed to be pleased with her progress and that she's started to put some weight back on (about 4 lbs). He did express a desire to see her take less narcotic as soon as possible. We'll see how that goes.
He said that he would see us back in 2 weeks with the possibility of removing the "arch bars" and unwiring her jaw. The arch bars are wired through the gum and cinched down tight over the teeth near the gumline. In order to remove them, they'll give her a local injection and then pull the string/wire (whatever it is they use to tie them into place), out. He said it might be uncomfortable and a little painful, but I'm betting that the reward will be worth it.
I contacted a local dentist yesterday to start the process of getting him ready to see Courtney when the jaw is unwired. I haven't heard back from him yet, but I'm sure I will early next week. I want to make sure that Courtney will get priority attention as soon as she's ready.
Courtney is moving around a lot better, and seems to be holding up really well. It will be interesting to see how the reduction of narcotics helps her mobility and energy levels. We've both known that weaning off of pain-killers is a good idea, but the jaw pain has been pretty unbearable. I think it's probably gotten a little better over the last few days. When I ask her to describe the pain she says muscle tension in the left and right jaw and major irritation from the arch bars, and not nervey pain. We've applied liberal amounts of dental wax and will be adding in OTC advil and tylenol, so that should help. Please pray that if she experiences any discomfort that it won't be too much for her to handle. I think I've mentioned in previous posts that pain has been an emotional trigger for Courtney. Psychologically speaking this is probably healthy and necessary, but I don't want overwhelming emotions to affect her desire for increased mobility, etc.
We don't have any doctor's appointments for a couple weeks, so my updates might be less frequent, but I'll try to post something at least 2-3 times per week.
Thanks again for praying, sending cards, helping out with the kids, making meals, mowing the grass, etc. The knowledge that there are so many friends out there has kept Courtney sane, and really helps to put this whole crazy ordeal into a wonderful perspective.
Posted by mark at May 12, 2006 3:49 PM Subscribe (FeedBurner)
Comments
Love ya Courtney! I'm glad to hear that things are getting better slowly but surely! :) I think of you often and keep you in my prayers. Amy
Posted by: Amy at May 12, 2006 8:02 PM
I saw the news piece tonight on a business trip to the Roanoke area. Ten years ago I had a 10 1/2 pound piece of brake drum crash through my windshield on the Capital Beltway outside of Washington DC. I ducked and ended up with a 6" scar after a trip to the local emergency room and immediate surgery. It felt like being hit full force in the face with a cast iron skillet or baseball bat by Barry Bonds. Unfortuneately, This thing happens ALL the time all over the country with brake drums breaking apart. While I was recovering someone brought me a newspaper clipping of a woman who was decapitated by a 22 pound brake drum fragment as she sat in the middle of two people in a pick up. They sued Ryder and were awarded $950,000. Because I didn't loose my life I was awarded $35,000. and I split a 1/3 of that with my ignorant attorney. You lucked out with this one. Give thanks that you lived to talk about it!
Posted by: Rus at May 15, 2006 9:36 PM