Please help! I need q's for the doc's..(previous attempt disappeared)

Hi Heather, I had surgery (left temporal lobe) 4 months ago,100% succesful. I know what you are going through and want to know all the right things you need to ask. I have listed below a few ideas that may be useful to you. Firstly, take someone with you,preferably, someone who has been through the whole experience of testing/operation/recovery with you, it is good to have an extra pair of ears so you can talk to someone later on. Have your eyes/eyesight been affected by the operation-ask how long before it is expected to rectify. Even though your general vision may be ok, sometimes your perphial vision is affected (side vision), a field test may be a good idea after about 6 months to test it. Do you feel unsteady/dizzy at all, walking orgetting up? how long will it last? Has your memory / tip of the tongue thoughts been affected, generally memory can come back with time. Post operation testing may be done to compare your memory skills now to how they were beforehand. How long before the doctors consider taking/reduce your medication. Is there any activity you should avoid and for how long? I returned to work 8 weeks after surgery, it is now 16 weeks and am doing everything I was beforehand except dancing, which I love, I hope to get back into this gradually, as I found fast movements were unsteadying. Most of all dont be afraid to ask anything, after all it is you who is affected by any problem. Take a note pad with you if you want to, so you can remember to ask everything. Good Luck

Hi Heather.. :) As you know my left temporal lobe surgery was over 5 months ago. & I've seen my neurosurgeon twice since then. Questions I had... about my jaw, about my sleepiness (both were better by final time I saw him).. about my memory that is affected as my brain heals. However, unlike aussi, while I'm positive minded and have been (to my knowledge, & according to my husband, perfectly controlled since surgery) I'm 'cautiously' optimistic but not about to declare any surgery success. Success of surgery is based on the length of time one is controlled after surgery; and, since it takes a year for the brain to heal after such a traumatizing event, I don't understand how anyone can be 'certain' of their success rate until after that time has passed and they are taken off meds. Here in Canada, no after surgery tests are generally done until after the year since the surgery has elapsed. I had an EEG since, which I'll hear aboutin August, but that was due to the fact that (as both my meds can be used solo.. and I don't want to spend another year nixing drugs) I asked if it might be possible that I nix one now. If the EEG is shows good signs, then we'll do that. So, while I'm sort of confused as to why you are having your after surgery tests now, know I definitely wish you the very best of luck! ~sol