U2 Vertigo

As we were taking our Uber from the hotel to the hospital this morning, U2’s Vertigo came on. God has a great sense of humor and I’m here for it! I’m so reassured by the signs that we are in the right place with the right people!

Ian’s in a great space and looking forward to this part of his journey to be in the rear view mirror. We had many reassuring conversations with the team yesterday. Before the day’s appointments, Ian had a hearing test done so the team has a clear pre-op baseline to compare against post-op results.

We talked with Ben, the physical therapist, about what recovery will look like. Ian will work with the team here in the hospital, then see Ben again on post-op appointment day. PT starts about 1-2 weeks after we’re home and continues for 1-2 months, alongside daily walks. Ben said to expect Ian to feel worse before he feels better in the first day or two, with some dizziness, nausea, and jaw soreness that should improve steadily. He’ll likely be discharged from the hospital around day 4-5, and we’ll be watching for headache, energy levels, and any facial changes as key signs of how recovery is going.

We also met with Dr. Friedman, who will be doing part of the surgery alongside his surgical partner. He’s the construction guy, who paves the way for Dr. Schwartz to do his thing, then puts Ian back together again. He said the tumor is small, in a favorable spot, and hasn’t grown since November. He’s optimistic about hearing preservation (around 70% chance) and says facial nerve risk is very low (under 1% for paralysis). According to him, surgery is expected to take about 3 hours, and once the affected nerve is addressed, the vertigo attacks should stop for good. 🎉🎉 He’s done this surgery roughly 800 times with zero cases of brain injury in his career and over 3000 surgeries with Dr. Schwartz. We feel really good about this team- they really are the BEST of the best! 

Finally, we met with Dr. Schwartz, who will be doing the tumor removal itself. He confirmed the tumor size has been stable for the last 6 months and is very likely benign. Given how much the vertigo has impacted daily life (Ian hasn’t been able to drive in about two years), surgery made the most sense compared to watching and waiting or radiation. He reported hearing loss risk is roughly 30-40%, facial nerve risks are small and mostly temporary if they happen at all, and the risk of a fluid leak is low. He said surgery is expected to take 3-4 hours, followed by an overnight stay in the ICU.

After our appointments yesterday, we put our feet in the Pacific- wow! What a beautiful ocean, with beautiful beaches! The sand is even softer than Squamie, which doesn’t seem possible. We hope to walk the boardwalk area when Ian’s back on his feet. 

For now, we wait… I’ll update when I have more info- see you all on the other side! 🩶