College with Chiari

[Sara_Jane19]

Hey all!

I had surgery 3.5 weeks ago and I have been feeling pretty well. My first post op went well and I started school yesterday. I am a junior in college and I have always loved school so I was not worried about it. Unfortunately, I am already EXTREMELY overwhelmed. I am so fatigued and dizzy that it is difficult to make it through such a long day. So much activity makes my headaches worse and I have been having problems with my heart rate and blood pressure that make it difficult to focus. I am looking at dropping down to part time and getting accommodations made by the disability resource center on campus. Are/have any of you been students in a similar situation to this? I am very overwhelmed and upset by this as school is the one thing I have always excelled in. Does any one have any advice.

Thanks for listening to my rant and answering my questions :)
Sara

Oh and I did schedule an appointment with an EP-Cardiologist to get testing for dysautinomia done.

[selmaS]

  Thanks for the update.

Very happy u r able to go part time and that it is working for u.

Wishing u all the best <3

[Sara_Jane19]

I just wanted to let everyone know that I am now 3 weeks into the semester and doing great!!! I am so glad I went down to part time it is so much easier on me physically and mentally. Recovery is slow, but i expected it to be. still holding out hope for a successful recovery. thank you all again and I hope everyone is doing well.

Sara

[selmaS]

   Good Luck !

[Sara_Jane19]

Thank you all for the input! I was way too optimistic about my recovery and how I was feeling before starting this semester that  I did not take a realistic outlook on what i was capable of. I am way too stubborn to drop school completely, however :P I went down from 5 to 3 classes. This eliminated my early morning classes (which are hard for me) as well as 3 classes that were all back to back on different parts of campus. I also got accommodations for testing, attendance, and due dates.

I will keep everyone updated as to my progress and again thank you all for the input!

[soccero]

i have to agree with them. take the semester off. u need it to heal. i should be a sophomore in college but had to not go last year so i just finished my first semester. it was a good decision. it was a hard decision but a good one. when u go back it will mean that much more!!
molly

[czpdx]

I have to agree with Selma here -- if you can take the term off and allow yourself to heal, I don't think you'll regret it. I had two of my surgeries while I was in grad school and I did them in the summer so I'd have an extended time to heal. When I did go back to school, registering with Disability Services was super helpful -- I think you're on the right track with that. I had a really comfortable chair with armrests in each classroom, extra time for papers as needed, and the ability to register early for classes each term. For my my my most recent surgery I took five months off to heal and then slowly build my strength back up before going back to work this week. I may have been able to pull it off earlier, but I would have been miserable and risked setbacks.

If there's anyway you can rest, go for it. If not, part-time is better than nothing, I suppose...

Good luck!

[selmaS]

  In my Honest Opinion...go home and wait til u have healed...this is far too soon to try this....

It takes up to 2 yrs for the nerves to heal and around 3 months post op some symptoms return as part of the healing process...by pushing urself u can develop set backs....

I would take a semester off....and rest up and wait to see how u do....most of us r just getting of pain meds by 3 or 4 weeks post op...far too soon.