I am going to have a selective bilateral neck dissection (levels 1-4) in about two weeks. The doctor said I will be in the hospital for 3-5 days afterward. I am wondering how long I need to arrange to have help to care for my baby once I'm home from the hospital. She is 15 weeks old and weighs about 14 pounds. My husband will be able to take off one week from work after I'm home from the hospital. Do you think this is enough time for me to recover sufficiently to care for her by myself during the day?

I would say 3 weeks - maybe one more - it makes neck mobility and arm movements difficult and stiff - I only had one side done - and it took me 3 weeks or so - it messes with your strength and range of motion - bilaterally is interesting - I had my neck radiated bilaterally - wish they would gave done a bilateral ND from the outset.

Good luck - I'm surprised they didn't do both surgeries at the same side!

Thank you for sharing your experience. My surgeon kind of makes it sound like no big deal, but I would rather get the scoop from people who've actually gone through it.

We waited on the ND because my tumor was so small, but the pathology results after the tongue resection showed that the tumor was .45 mm in depth, moderately differentiated, and had invaded a nerve, so doc said I should for sure do it.

Maybe my sister can come stay with us for a couple of weeks.

msmac,

Does your husband qualify for an unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act? I don't think one week is gonna cut it.

http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs28.htm

I don''t think you are allowed to lift anything heavy for several weeks after the ND. My recollection is 10lbs but that is fairly heavy. I know I carried a 1 lb peach home two blocks from farm stand and paid for it for weeks. How bad it will be will depend on what muscles, if any he cuts. My first one left me weak for months on that side, unable to lift my arm up over my head. My second was no big deal. Both required weeks of PT following surgery to improve strength and keep range of motion. I think you are going to need help way beyond a week.

Take care,
Eileen

Thank you for your inputs. I will ask my sister to come stay for a little longer and maybe my mom can come after she leaves. It's really helpful to have an idea of what to expect. Thanks again!

Tracy

After my neck dissection, my surgeon wrote me a prescription for physical therapy for both my neck and shoulders. It really made a difference in expediting my recovery as well as giving me very effective but safe exercises to recover range of motion in my neck and strength in my shoulders. My recommendation would be to ask your surgeon to give you a PT script, and call now before the ND to schedule the PT for after your discharge. I had to wait for an appointment. I'm not going to go into any of my usual discussions on neck dissection except to stress just how helpful getting PT after a ND is for a faster and better recovery.
Best wishes
Charm

Couldn't agree with Charm more (on this one anyways :-)!! PT was so beneficial in my recovery - I coulndn't lift my left arm away from my side or turn my head because of nerve and muscle trauma- couldn't even get my mocha from the starbucks drive thru without reaching over with my right arm! I started using other muscles to move my arm and that compensation resulted in pain and new bad movement habits. It took about 3 months but I was able to get full use of arm back! You have an even better reason to make sure your neck and arm are fully functional - you've gotta take care of that baby!
Take good care!

I had PT as well, and it really helped a lot. My therapist also gave me some exercises to do at home, which were also very helpful.

Totally agree week 3 of rads I went to physio got the exercises printed - I do them at home - starting next week I'll attend weekly - my neck still stiffens up but the exercises really help loosen it up! My arm is almost back to normal as well. Maybe some swimming this summer will help it hit normal - we'll see!! Good luck