Back From Surgery

**Cyberra** · 01-11-2013, 03:19 PM

Had my surgery today to get the debris out of my lip. I did not sleep well last night, most likely due to nerves. I'd gone to bed early, but about two and a half hours later something woke me up, and it took me another two hours to fall asleep again. Which left me only maybe another two hours to sleep before having to get up.

It was still dark out when mom and I headed for North Sydney. Winds were high and freezing cold. The hospital was fairly quiet when we arrived. Waited about 20 minutes for the doctor to arrive, and then went into the treatment area.

I'd been expecting to be put under while my lip was opened and the doctor went fishing. Instead he used a local to freeze my lip, then went in, going in from the inside of the lip instead of the outside. The debris was buried in so deep he had to cut almost all the way through my lip to get at it. After about an hour of careful cutting and fishing he pulled out a shard of window glass completely smothered in scar tissue. He told me that there was a massive amount of scar tissue inside my lip, which would explain why I still looked like I had a fat lip even months after the accident. The incisions are now stitched up (and he used the dissolving kind, not thread like the ER doctor used after the crash), and I have prescriptions for a fairly heavy-duty painkiller and some antibiotics. My lip feels like someone has jabbed a hot needle into it. It's going to hurt for days, be swollen and bruised for at least a week. But hopefully all of the debris is now gone.

I have a follow-up appointment scheduled for two weeks from now, at the Regional Hospital in Sydney. We'll see how things are going then.

**Trillianne** · 01-11-2013, 04:13 PM

Good Luck!

And take the meds you can when you feel crappy... being miserable is not a required part of the healing process.

**Cyberra** · 01-11-2013, 07:48 PM

The antibiotics I have to take three times daily for a week. They leave a nasty taste in the mouth ><

**Shidohari** · 01-11-2013, 10:52 PM

Most medicines that are good for you usually do...Get better soon.

**Lady Hobbs** · 01-11-2013, 11:58 PM

Glad the surgery is over. Cuts in lips heal pretty fast and it will heal in no time. I know what you mean about antibiotics. Nasty tasting things.

**Rue** · 01-12-2013, 05:59 PM

I'm glad you got the glass out of your lip...that just sounds really really uncomfortable to begin with. I assume he took out the scar tissue...so you should look good as new in no time! At least lips heal up fast.

And take it easy for a couple of days...that's such a sensitive/mobile area of our face...

**Cyberra** · 01-12-2013, 07:42 PM

Originally Posted by Rue

I'm glad you got the glass out of your lip...that just sounds really really uncomfortable to begin with. I assume he took out the scar tissue...so you should look good as new in no time! At least lips heal up fast.

And take it easy for a couple of days...that's such a sensitive/mobile area of our face...

I think he took out a fair bit of it while poking around. But then there's going to be new scar tissue forming from the incisions. Lip is so swollen it doesn't move much, and I can't close my mouth all the way. It actually doesn't hurt that much

**Cyberra** · 01-13-2013, 05:47 AM

I am very glad lip wounds heal quickly, because that doctor sucks at typing knots. One of the stitches just came loose and slid out. Thankfully, the incisions remained closed.

**Rue** · 01-13-2013, 01:30 PM

You shouldn't have as much scar tissue this time around. Scar tissue forms around imbedded objects...so then there's more of it.

However, having said that...some people are just more prone to forming scar tissue than others. Even if that's you, this one likely won't be an issue - given time.

**Cyberra** · 01-15-2013, 07:49 PM

The healing isn't going fast enough for me. My lip is still swollen and stiff... I can't close my mouth, which leads to unavoidable drooling and dropping of food. I can't open my mouth wide enough to take bites, which means I have to cut everything up. My lip is leaking a pale yellowish fluid through a dozen small holes and tears on top, and there's a nasty-looking lump next to one of the remaining sutures. I've also got an absolutely vile taste in my mouth that just will not go away.

Really cannot wait for my lip to be healed and this to be over with. It aches all the way through, due to how deep the doctor had to cut. Even a light brush against it send bolts of pain through my whole lip, and in some spots the skin is so tight it feels like an over-filled water balloon.

While I know the final results (a debris-free lip) will be worth it, there are times during the healing process when it certainly doesn't feel like it.