Hi, I’m am due to have a Craniotomy/Orbitotomy Clipping for a left ICA Annie on June 2, I know everyone is different but can anyone who has had a clipping for an unruptured Annie give me some advice/hints, etc as to the Op, recovery time, do’s & don’ts, helpful hints, driving, work (I work in childcare, so a lot of lifting & carrying) Thanks
Hi,
I am having a clipping to be done too sometime in Junenot sure of date yet. Mine is on left side too. I feel that I have very little information about my surgery and recovery also. I was told if all goes well I should be feeling good by 4 weeks and back to work in 6-8 weeks. I have been feeling tired and disoriented this past week, not sure if that is normal before surgery.
I will wish for you positive thoughts for your surgery and recovery
Kim
Janine, I ruptured so not a great help with all your questions. Write them down and see if you can’t email them to your doctor or call their triage nurse. Have you read what the BAF has to offer? I think 6-8 weeks recovery is an early average with others taking longer or shorter. It really depends on your health. There are weight limits, and bending, etc best answered by your doctor. Don’t be surprised if you have to wait until after your surgery to get those answers as everyone reacts differently. Good Luck!
I had 2 unruptured Annies, ACOM and A1. (Right side) I’ve had my share of surgeries and survived breast cancer with chemo and radiation, but this was different. Just different.
I went in for surgery 12/10 and came home the evening of 12/11. I really don’t know why my stay was so short but my sister and husband were there to take care of me and according to my husband I wasn’t staying. I pretty much slept the first week. Because they cut from the middle of my forehead to the base of my ear to include cutting through the nerves and muscles, the worst part for me was the pain in my teeth. I was later given Gabapentin which calmed things down.
12/26 I flew to Florida at the encouragement of my surgeon. I had booked my flight months in advance. I pushed myself to try to keep the depression away but it bit me in the butt anyway. It is not uncommon after surgery. Most important is to recognize it and talk to your doctor.
Here is my list of experiences and what I helped me.
Jaw Pain - chewing gum and Gabapentin
Teeth Pain - Gabapentin
Itchy scalp - Tar Shampoo
Metal taste - Zinc lozenges
Exhaustion - Sleep, sleep and more sleep
Short term Memory issues - write it down
I went back to work after 6 weeks. It was and still is exhausting at times but getting better everyday. Now I go into the office 2-3 days/week and work from home the other days. I don’t do a lot of lifting so I would definitely discuss with your doctor. As for driving, my neurosurgeon said once I was off the pain meds.
Hope this helps.
It's funny, when I had my aneurysm clipped I didn't do any research. The only thing I remembered reading was on a nurse's blog. She said doctors really should warn patients that sometimes it's common to hear sounds in your head when the drain is removed. I'm glad I read that. Because when my drain was removed it sounded like surround sound crunching candy wrappers. A gripper used to pick things up was my best friend. I know everyone is different but remember it's common to be overwhelmed by sights, sounds, smells. Depression is common but you find ways to manage. Things like those online brain games, card games, etc do really help. I didn't know I couldn't drive until I tried it. Then I went through several weeks of therapy to get my equilibrium back until I could pass a driving test. Before surgery I listened to several meditation cds to mellow me out. Ok sorry this is so choppy!
Hi everyone,
just had my preop appointment yesterday,still no date confirmation just June sometime. I still feel that no one gives any info I had to ask if there is jaw pain and or headaches after, to be told yes, so just unsure how much more I need to know. sometimes I wish i could just get it over with . my memory is getting really bad and then I get upset and confused. I am part of management team for busy restaurant so I get easily confused now and then if I feel that customers or staff are frustrated with me i get extremely upset and then the tears start flowing and don't stop. It wasn't till I was diagnosed that I noticed how mean some people can be but have also seen how great others can be. My work is amazing and treats me like gold. I had a really bad experience yesterday with a business that I am a customer to, I was humiliated as I was forgetting things I was also worried about the pre op. ended up in tears and high blood pressure. Great! I also didn't have high blood pressure till I was diagnosed lol
My daugters and hubby starting worry about this now too. I am so thankful for my partner he takes such great care of me now so I definetley will have a great nurseman? for my recovery. thank god it wasn't my ex i would be a goner for sure! lol
Janine
I had a clipping for an unruptured aneurysm in April 2012. I have three clips, two on my left ophthalmic artery and one on my left carotid artery. In my case I was out for 3 months. That was when my neurosurgeon allowed me to go back to work (he made me promise I would take it slow and take naps LOL). I probably felt comfortable with myself about a year and a half later. That is when I finally agreed to start seeing a neurologist for long term care for the headaches. I never used to get headaches until after the craniotomy. I have balance issues so I can no longer do any effective exercise (so I walk) and because of that I gained about 15-20 pounds since the surgery. I did hear the clips in my head after surgery. My husband thought I was crazy but at my first follow-up appointment the physician's assistant asked me if I heard my clips. I almost cried knowing I was not crazy. I still have jaw numbness because they cut through all the nerves when they went in to clip my carotid. That will remain, but not an issue for me. I guess the hardest thing to deal with is the personality change. I've become more "nervous" over things, shorter temper, memory issues (I downloaded a voice recorder to my phone), taste change (nobody can explain this but things taste different to me now than they did before), I have trouble with volume in relation to numbers (unsure which is more / less or higher / lower - due to the area of my brain that was fiddled with). These are all things I deal with today, 4 years later. My neurologist confirmed that in relation to the shorter temper that is because most people who have had a TBI (which an aneurysm is) suffer from a mild form of PTSD. In my case the smartest thing I did was to get a neurologist for long term care. She is wonderful.
When I read this back it sounds bleak but it really isn't. I am alive and would make the same decision today if I had to. I think the most important thing to remember is to listen to your body. It knows what it is talking about :)
Carol