Yesterday I woke up with renewed energy and found myself eager to finish whatever I started, tidy up after myself, and try to look decent--after not caring one iota about those things since Monday. Part of my "crazy clean" personality had resurfaced. Of course, it didn't last, but it made an impression on me as a major change of pace. I am indeed on the mend.
Our Colorado-based daughter cum nurse, cook, laundress, receptionist, maid, shopper, pastry chef, and love came to spend the week with us last Sunday, just before the surgery. What a gift that was! She kept us company, kept the house running, and double-checked to be sure that we followed doctor's orders. We cannot thank her enough! But now she is on her way back home and we are on our own.
Yesterday my brother told me I sounded "quite normal" on the phone and today a friend asked me if I hear myself when I speak, and I realized that I have never questioned either of those things. It never occurred to me that I would not sound normal when I talk and it never occurred to me that I do indeed hear myself speak. Both of these were eye-opening questions to ponder. For the record, today, five days after CI surgery, I sound just like myself with a cold (to myself). I do still have a cold although it is beginning to fade away.
I am one of these people who often grabs glasses, or at least magnifiers, to read in certain light or at certain times of day. I had not done so since my surgery, though, because of the wound near my ear. I remember having read on one of the SayWhatClub e-mails that some people take one stem off their glasses to get around that issue. So yesterday my husband did a nifty job of making me a one-armed pair of glasses, which I am loving! Seeing with them is much better than squinting to see without them. Thanks, honey.
Then, last night I finally decided to do a real job of cleaning my teeth before I went to bed. Enough of this tap and rinse stuff. Well, I don't know about you, but I am a two-handed floss glider. And I tried to get my hands situated in some way so that the floss could do its thing, but except for the few teeth in the front, it was impossible. When you can barely get your mouth open wide enough to slide a plump raspberry in, getting your floss-guiding fingers into position is hopeless. So this morning we bought some one-handed gizmos that carry their own taut floss strip, which I knew I could get into my mouth--horizontally--without getting into serious pain. I just tried one. It works pretty well for the non-CI side but I don't think I'm ready to use it for the back teeth in the CI side just yet. It requires some serious resistance pull against your jaw and teeth to disengage it and I think my CI side is still too tender for that. Still, getting 3/4 flossed will be much better than what's happened since Monday.
We went out to a restaurant for dinner last night, bumping into friends who were surprised to see us there. Being out definitely made me feel like I'd survived the surgery part of this adventure and had passed on to the climb toward activation.
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