My Pet Head-Rock

For as common as meningiomas are, some of you meningiomates reading this may be the only person you know to have a non-cancerous lesion in your head, and you’re freaked out. However, if you ask around, you may find that more people than you realize have or have had a meningioma. (I now personally know four other women who fit the category.) Too polite to pry into people’s medical histories? Then take comfort in knowing that there are some celebrities who share your condition. So far, I’ve uncovered these illustrious names: Elizabeth Taylor , Mary Tyler Moore , and Sheryl Crow . Fortunately, in most of the articles about these three women, the medical information has been sound. The type of surgery Taylor had is described in surprising detail. There are some takeaways from reading these articles: 1.      More women than men are diagnosed with meningiomas. 2.      The symptoms that prompt someone to get an MRI may have nothing to do with the meningioma, as may be the case w

Today it has been exactly six weeks since my surgery. Though fatigue from a craniotomy may last up to two months, which is probably standard for many surgeries, the 6-week mark ends the recovery period for most craniotomies. If it weren’t for the fact that it’s disruptive to switch teachers right before the end of term, I might have gone back to work this week. The physical and mental issues that have plagued me since the craniotomy have also cleared up for the most part. If I take any painkillers now, it is usually for a garden-variety migraine or other “non-skull-based” issue. My incision is still scabby in spots and my hair , which was so quick to reemerge, is still only very short stubble. Some of it is growing in the wrong direction, so I may come out of this with a new cowlick at the top of my head. I no longer fatigue from having to look at and listen to somebody/something at the same time, and multi-step processes and complex decisions are getting easier to do. (See post

Not the most stylish outfit but I could put it on by myself When you’ve just had surgery, you want to be comfortable. After a couple days of lounging around naked under loose hospital gowns, you want to look more yourself, less … patient-y. But you also need to be comfortable and not mess with complicated fasteners and fussy garments. For some people, the first word in comfort is jeans. I am not one of those people. Though denim can and ought to be comfortable, it is often heavy, stiff, or tight. At the very least you will have a zipper and a button closure. You may also have to wear a belt. All button-fly? What the heck are you thinking? You’ve just had a craniotomy! Your digits might not all be entirely under your control. When it comes to tops, we have some wiggle room. One hospital brochure recommended tops that are easy to put on without having to move your arms a lot; they suggested shirts that button down the front. Certainly, if you have a bandage on your head, yo

This time of year, we frequently hear these song lyrics: He’s making a list, checking it twice. I say, “Wait, only twice? What kind of slacker are you, Santa?” I have long been a fan of making lists. When I was younger, the lists were more of a catalog: the countries I had visited or wanted to visit, clothing items to buy that would complete my wardrobe (who was I kidding? It’s never completed!), guys I had dated. Now that I’ve reached middle age, the lists help me remember what I need and want to do. Yeah, kids, you read that right – I need a reminder sometimes of the things I want to do. That little reduction in memory capacity is waiting for you, too, when you reach middle age. (Hmm… I don’t like the term “middle age.” It sounds so much older than just saying my actual age of 45.) I rely heavily on such checklists during recovery from my craniotomy, but they look a little different now. Initially, they actually looked different without one’s having to read them because

My husband and I did not do all of the things I list here, but we realized after the fact that they would have been helpful. 1.      Cleaning. a.      Do all your laundry as close to your surgery date as possible. Make sure that your comfy, lounge-y recovery clothes are ready for you. b.      Clean your house, especially the bathrooms, and change your bedsheets the night before leaving for the hospital. c.      Take out the garbage! d.      If you live in a house, do all or as much of the seasonally appropriate yardwork as you can.   2.      Pay any outstanding bills. You probably have a stack of medical bills sitting around. If you are able, pay off everything you can before surgery because you are liable to forget such things afterward—and you don’t want to pile up overdue charges just because you’re recovering from surgery. This will also clear the slate for when you get that whopping $70,000 bill that's for only part of your surgery/hospital stay. (Thank

This was in my fortune cookie the day I had a checkup with my neurosurgeon. November 29 th marked exactly four weeks since my craniotomy and was the day I met with my neurosurgeon to discuss how things are going. Once again, I was reminded of how the doctors I’ve had at Abbott Northwestern have been excellent: Dr. Stanley M. Goldberg for my colectomy – he spoke directly to me and not just to my parents even though I was only 13 – and Dr. John Mullan for my craniotomy. They are/were both good at what they do, respectful, reassuring in their confidence, enthusiastic about the work they do, and … hmmm. I want to say something like “easy to talk to about my concerns” or “not dismissive” or something along those lines, but those terms seem inadequate. I felt heard . That’s probably one of the best things you can say about a doctor, in my opinion. So here’s where I stand, one month post-craniotomy: ·        Pain: If there’s not another body part vying for my attention (I’m