As you can see, I had a right modified neck dissection when they did my partial glossectomy and tumor removal. I went home the next day. I had the same JP drain in place that it sounds like everyone gets! It was sore and puffy for sure, but it wasn't really all that painful. It was stressed to me to massage and stretch the neck starting as soon as tolerable to break up scar tissue and increase flexibility. I could only do a bit at the beginning, but by adding a heating pad to the equation early on, I found that once heated, the area was able to move about more freely with less discomfort. The lower right side of my face and my right ear felt numb for probably 6-8 weeks but now it's pretty much back to regular. My right arm was weak and "floppy" for about a month then started improving. I pride myself on my ability to defend myself, so I found this issue quite distressing, and had me feeling somewhat vulnerable where I never really felt that way before. Now, it's all good. Full range of motion, and doing weights as always, no problem. So, that's my story. Good luck to you. Denise