surgery - Growing Older Everyday

Retirement Plan Gone Awry

Posted on July 7, 2021April 28, 2023 by Kimberly Anne

When a retirement plan goes wrong goes awry

Before I retired I was planning for my retirement. It seemed like the thing to do. It seemed the smartest thing to do.

I told my daughter on a Saturday that I planned to work another year or two and then retire from my part-time job. So that meant I would have worked for my current employer for about two years. For the most part, I really enjoyed my job. It was flexible, and the work was work I’d been doing for over 20 years, so it was not difficult or stressful. My retirement plan seemed like a good plan for both my husband and me.

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45 Years of Wedded Bliss

Posted on June 16, 2021June 16, 2021 by Kimberly Anne

Looking at the picture to the right, you will see us on our wedding day. There we were in my borrowed dress and his rented tux. We look so young. It doesn’t seem possible that we have spent 45 years together. That equals over 2/3 of our lives. But we have, and so much has happened in that period of time.

I borrowed my wedding dress from an aunt who is 2.5 years older than me. There was no money in the budget to include a dress. We married with $2,000 to our names, and that went as a down payment when we purchased a house a few months after getting married. Even though we didn’t have much money, we saved money by eating hot dogs often to help pay for the closing costs on our home purchase. We survived some tough financial times, and now we are in retirement with enough money to last us the rest of our lives, as long as we live like we have all of our married life, frugally.

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5 Things to Consider When You Need Cataract Surgery

Posted on April 28, 2021April 30, 2021 by Kimberly Anne

I encourage everyone to get an annual eye exam once they become 50. If you have never had glasses or contact lenses before that doesn’t mean you don’t need to have your eyes examined. I wore glasses most of my life. At my exams my optometrist starting mentioning I had cataracts, but I had time. Eventually, I was caught off guard when I was told I needed cataract surgery. Without the surgery, I would soon no longer able be to legally drive.

When your eyesight has deteriorated to the point you need to have cataract surgery there will be choices to be made. Most people will have their surgeries one or two weeks apart. This allows time for your first eye to heal before your second surgery. However, some people have only one eye affected.

Three million Americans a year have cataract surgery, so it is not unusual to need this surgery. Cataract surgeries are something that happens as we grow older. Of those 80 or older, the likelihood of having had cataract surgery is 90%.

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Hearing Aided by a Bone Conduction Implant

Posted on September 16, 2020September 9, 2020 by Kimberly Anne

I love to learn new things. However, I learned about Med-El’s bone conduction implant the hard way. It all started with surgery in November of 2019 for a non-cancerous brain tumor. Since then I have been waiting for some type of hearing aid to compensate for the hearing I completely lost in my left ear. I never expected this would be the answer.

Med-El’s hearing aid implant is quite new. In fact, after I had my brain tumor surgery and I saw the audiologist, I had to wait until March for the surgery because it was not yet available in my area. Of course, March came and Covid-19 stopped surgeries so mine didn’t happen until July, four months later than I had expected.

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My Journey Back to Normal Ends

Posted on August 26, 2020August 30, 2020 by Kimberly Anne

I last wrote about this journey in April. At that time I was anticipating receiving a call to schedule my BAHA surgery. I expected that call to come any day. It didn’t.

BAHA is a bone attached hearing aid. It’s a type of cochlear implant. It is my possibility of once again being able to distinguish where sounds come from. Until my BAHA is attached and I receive the exterior part, I cannot figure out where people are that are talking to me. Whether they are behind me or to the left of me, I have no idea. It could be a difficult thing if a stranger were sneaking up on me. My husband, who should know this is a problem, will walk up behind me and start talking. That is when panic takes over. I look to my right and to my left and then behind me until I find him.

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2020 Goals May Update

Posted on June 1, 2020June 1, 2020 by Kimberly Anne

PROGRESS: This is subject to the Coronavirus. I have visited AAA, of which I am a member, to pick up maps to assist me in making my plans. At this time the states I hope to be visiting are Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri. In May I started my list of cities to visit and places where we will eat, tour, and sleep. I haven’t finalized that yet or made any reservations. Visit 3 states I haven’t been to before. I desire to visit every state in the United States in my lifetime.
PROGRESS: I have completed 25 books toward the 30 I plan to read this year.
COMPLETED: I am continuing physical therapy. However, my physical therapist had given me permission to attempt driving. So on February 19 my husband road along as I drove. We went on the freeway very briefly, mainly driving in town. Since then I have driven several times by myself This was probably my most important goal since it has given me the freedom that has really brightened up my days. Drive by myself.
Due to the Coronavirus, this is on hold: To have the hearing in my left ear improved to 30% or all options pursued. Another result of my brain tumor surgery. I have contacted my surgeon and he doesn’t have approval yet to start scheduling the 115 surgeries he is behind on. So this may take a de months to happen.
PROGRESS: We have planned out the front yard and the old lawn has been removed. The sidewalks were removed and forms put in. We will get the cement poured on May 5. In the backyard, the garden is almost done. Grapevines have been purchased but need to be planted. The radishes are up. We have hung sunshades on the patio. The sprinklers have been started in the front. Our garden is complete and we have already had 7 zucchini, 1 crookneck squash, and lots of radishes. Have our front and back yard landscaping completed so we can enjoy them.
PROGRESS: My husband had made a little progress on this. None since then. Clean up/organize our garage so I can park in the garage.
PROGRESS: I have lost four pounds. This would be exciting, but I haven’t been feeling 100%, eating less, so I hope that I can maintain it. Lose 10 lbs.
COMPLETED: It feels great to no longer have any house or car payments. Pay off all debt. This was on my list for last year and I came close, but not quite.
No PROGRESS: Begin and finish three baby quilts.
PROGRESS: I have been in contact with a second cousin. This is really one of my last things on my mind, hence it is not going quickly. I have started typing up my history on one side. Ancestry: Tie at least 10 more people that are my second or third cousins to my family tree.

May was not as productive as I had hoped. I need to get going on the baby quilts since they are not something I can make in a day, especially since I send the quilts out for the actual quilting. I’m not giving up yet. If you have goals set, don’t give up on yourself either. We have the time to do it if we put in the effort.

My Journey Back to Normal – Falls Behind

Posted on April 29, 2020May 2, 2020 by Kimberly Anne

Back to where I left off

It has been about three and 1/2 months since I saw my audiologist to see if any hearing remained in my left ear. I had suspected I would have none and I didn’t. The following week I went to my primary neurosurgeon for my two-month follow-up appointment. I came with a list of questions. Right after the surgery, my mouth tasted like salt when I had a glass of water. It had now changed to a metal taste. My doctor assured me that it should go away within a year.

At the time of my appointment, I was still having a lot of balance issues. Pulling a sweatshirt over my head, closing my eyes to wash my face or hair, and turning my head too quickly to the right or left would cause the feeling of potentially falling. My doctor would have physical therapy contact me. He said that I would probably need 8 to 12 weeks of therapy. I was frustrated about not driving yet, but the physical therapy would get me to the point of driving if all went as planned.

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My Journey Back to Normal

Posted on January 6, 2020January 6, 2020 by Kimberly Anne

When I woke up after five hours of surgery, my life had changed completely. I had known it would, but I hadn’t realized it would be so difficult. I felt worse than I had expected. This wasn’t just any old surgery. I had had a craniotomy. A portion of my skull had been removed and replaced, allowing my brain tumor to be removed in the process. I now have a plate on my skull as extra protection. For more of my story follow this link: https://growingoldereveryday.com/protect-your-hearing-before-its-too-late/

In reality, my life hadn’t changed completely, only small parts of it. I remained married with two children and four grandchildren. The rest of my family remained intact. We still lived in our same home, with our same neighbors. Only a small part of my life had changed, but it has felt huge, as I am living through it. Now, at eight weeks post-surgery, I wonder if I will ever go back to what I knew as normal a few months ago.

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Brain Tumor Surgery Results

Posted on October 22, 2019May 2, 2020 by Kimberly Anne

Surgery results could be vs surgery results will be

God will remain in control of my life and everything will go as He has planned. And I will continue to trust Him.

In a few weeks, when I have my surgery, I’m planning on what is certain, not what could be.

Kimberly

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