Black Belt with a Brain Tumor

It's been a while since I have posted and now it's time to change the focus of this blog. For a few years now I have suffered from chronic vertigo. During Black Belt Bootcamps I would have to grab onto a wall sometimes to keep my balance, I completed and passed my 9 hour Black Belt test in February of 2018 and am so proud to be a "ChoDan".  All this time my vertigo was holding me back.  In November of 2018 I decided enough was enough and I was determined to get to the root of the problem.  I went to my doctor who referred me to an ENT.  The ENT ordered an MRI and on Dec 31 I had my first ever MRI.  January 4th I received my results.  I have a brain tumor known by 2 different names Vestibular Schwannoma or Acoustic Neuroma.  This is a benign tumor that grows on you balance nerve.  The nerve structure in the brain places the balance nerve, acoustic nerve and facial nerve all in a bunch.  Most people who are diagnosed have a loss of hearing on one side as their first symptom, I am blessed to still have my hearing now.  My vertigo is still ever present and I walk like I'm drunk...I'm not.  This will all be dealt with in a few weeks - July 22 I will be undergoing a 8hourish brain surgery to remove the tumor.  There is a possibilty of losing hearing on the one side due to surgery and well as risk of injury to the facial nerve which can cause facial weakness on one side.  I intend to blog my recovery every step of the way.  There might be times when this blog is TMI but I feel like I want to put it out there for others who are considering their options.  I plan to be back at work the first week of September and I hope to be back in karate class as soon as I can and plan on getting back on my bike (on the trainer) in the winter.  My goal is to be ready to re-cert my black belt in February.

Right now I'm in countdown phase, trying to get everything lined up at home for me to be completely useless for a few weeks.

Comments

  1. UnknownJuly 6, 2019 at 1:49 PM

    Thank you for this update, Randi. I've got an appointment next week for some extensive testing for the same symptoms you've had. I'm certainly hoping it's NOT a brain tumor - benign or not - but I'm looking forward to seeing what can be done to make me walk 'not drunk'...! You'll be in my prayers. I'll keep up with you via your blog and your mom's posts.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Denise PetersonJuly 7, 2019 at 9:33 PM

    Thanks for sharing Randi. I’m sure that you are so ready to have the surgery and get it behind you, and get on with feeling better and doing all the things you enjoy without the vertigo. You have been, and will continue to be in my prayers.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

So I am 2 days out of surgery,  I had a bit of a wig out coming out of anesthesia, some hallucinations. Surgery lasted from 9:30- 6:45.  I spent the first night and most of yesterday in ICU due to lack of step down beds.  My hearing was preserved, I have a little facial weakness but it should clear in a week or two.ive been up walking with PT and they say they are clearing me today! I’m still waiting to be cleared from the docs but all is going better than expected,
Read more
I believe I will be heading home in a few hours.  I just had breakfast and have been up to the restroom all on my own.  I am disconnected from my lovely IV pole. I really want to wash hair, so when I get home that will be Jim’s challenge, can’t get staples wet until next week.  I will be going home with some steroids and tapering those off, so I may not do quite as much as I can feel I can right now. Gotta be on watch for fever, but so far so good.  Still a bit dizzy when I rotate my head but working on my PT is definitely helping.  I’m getting ready to got for a walk around the nurses station.  I put my Apple watch back on today as doc says he’s scared I might push myself too much.  He only wants me doing 5% more each day.  I am so excited to be recovering better than I thought.  My PT was thankful for all my pre-balance work and said it definitely made a difference.  My main exercises were balancing on the bosu ball.  I highly recommend it. I will video the PT that I am doing, which
Read more