I am home. I am tired, and I am sore, but I am home.


Surgery went well, although I really did have to fight to get to come home yesterday instead of spending the night in the hospital. My newest battle scar is located at the base of my throat. I can't tell exactly how big the incision is -- my best guess is that it's somewhere between 3 and 4 inches long. Where the purple squiggly line is, there was a drain that was removed this morning. In place of the drain tube is a nifty little hole that the doctor filled with antibiotic ointment. Notice all the blue "shadow" in the crease above the incision? That shadow is actually swelling and bruising. The whole neck is swollen and bruised.

The good news is that only the right half of the thyroid was removed because the initial lab results showed a benign form of cancer. The tissue is still undergoing additional testing, so the final results won't be in for another few days; however, the surgeon didn't see anything that made him believe removing the left side was necessary.

The always Amazing Egyptian Dude earned props -- lots of them -- when, despite being utterly exhausted, he hauled himself to the market last night to get me some Diet Dr. Pepper and Butter Pecan ice cream. A tall glass of Diet Dr. Pepper on crushed ice did wonders for my sore throat. Chewing is not easy because it involves using the muscles in my neck that have been cut, so soft and squishy foods like soup and jello are it for a couple of days. Oh, and Butter Pecan ice cream!



I gots a owie. I'm sore. I'm tired. But I'm ok, and I'm home.