Recovery Calendar

 

Recovery Calendar: 

I’ve put together a recovery calendar to track my healing journey after surgery. It includes a color-coded legend to highlight key milestones, symptoms, and patterns over time. You’ll also see my daily step count, which offers insight into my energy levels and what I was physically able to do each day.

Just a note: “POD” stands for Post-Op Day.

POD 0-3 Hospital Stay: 

This week was tough.

Waking up from surgery, I remember feeling extremely thirsty and having some throat irritation from the breathing tube. I asked for water right away but couldn’t actually drink it because of some lingering nausea. My very first request? My playlist. I needed the calming music to ground me mentally—it brought me a sense of comfort when everything felt overwhelming.

My husband stayed with me that first night in the ICU, which was such a comfort. The ICU nurses woke me up nearly every hour to run neurological checks—asking questions like, “What’s your name? What’s your birthdate? What year is it?” They do this routinely during the first few days to make sure you're staying alert. The ICU experience is honestly a blur. I don’t remember being in intense pain, mostly because the nurses stayed on top of my medication and kept me comfortable around the clock.

I was moved to the neuro wing on Day 2, but I still felt totally out of it. I wasn’t able to call, text, or even look at my phone for the entire hospital stay. Talking was difficult—so much effort that I mostly stayed silent and tried to rest between doses of pain meds.

The hospital stay was hard, but not unbearable. Thankfully, I didn’t experience much nausea, although I came prepared just in case. I didn’t eat anything from Monday through Wednesday. On Thursday, I finally had some Greek yogurt so I could take my medication with something in my stomach.

POD 4 - 11: my first week at home 

It was such a relief to finally be home, in my own bed, surrounded by the comfort of my family. My sister stepped in to help with meals, my mom made sure I felt cared for and comfortable, and my husband—who had stayed by my side at the hospital all week—was finally able to catch up on some much-needed sleep. I felt deeply supported and incredibly grateful for their help during that first week of recovery.

My days were slow and centered around managing my medication schedule, with alarms set every four hours to stay ahead of the pain. I read a little, watched some TV, and mostly just rested. If you look at my recovery calendar, you’ll see I wasn’t getting many steps in—and that’s totally normal during this early phase.

The hardest part for me was sleeping. Resting my head on a pillow was painful due to the incision site at the back of my head, and lying at the recommended 45-degree angle wasn’t exactly comfortable—but it was necessary. I eventually found that sleeping upright on the couch, with my feet on the ground, helped reduce the pounding headaches and made rest a bit more tolerable.

Hydration was absolutely key. I focused on drinking plenty of water and electrolytes to keep my body supported. Brothy soups were the easiest to eat, especially since chewing and even talking triggered head pain. Despite the discomfort, my appetite came back in full force, which I took as a positive sign that my body was ready to heal.

POD 12 - 17: 

Around this time, I started to gradually increase my steps, sleep became a bit easier, and I could feel myself getting stronger with each passing day. That said, I was still dealing with head pain and waking up in the middle of the night to stay on top of my medication schedule.

On Day 15, I had my first post-op appointment with my surgeon and got my stitches removed. Everyone had told me that getting the stitches out would bring relief, but to be honest, I still felt tightness and stiffness at the back of my head. It almost felt like the stitches were still there. Still, it marked progress, and I was grateful to hit that milestone.

My surgeon said the operation went really well—about as well as it possibly could have. He mentioned they could have cauterized my cerebellar tonsils a bit more, but there was a large blood vessel in the way, so they made the safest call. No imaging was done at this visit, but he was pleased with how the incision was healing.

At this point, he gave me the green light to lower my sleeping angle from 45 degrees to 20–30 degrees, which was a huge relief. He scheduled my next check-in for the three-month mark, when we’ll do follow-up MRI imaging and assess progress from there.

Pictured below: I created gratitude cards and sent them out to friends and family.

POD 18: 

This was a big milestone: my first night sleeping all the way through without waking up at 4 a.m. to take medication. It was also my first “green day,” and I hit over 5,000 steps — a huge accomplishment in my recovery.

A friend came over to spend the day with me, and it was exactly the kind of low-key connection I needed. We kept it super casual—just relaxing on the couch, doing some coloring, and not talking much, which was perfect for where I was at physically and mentally.

POD 19 and 20: 

This day started off feeling really promising, but by dinnertime, things took a turn. I was hit with a massive headache, and my usual pain meds weren’t cutting it. For the first time since Post-Op Day 8, I decided to take an Oxy—something I had been trying to avoid.

Looking back, I think the day was simply too social for where I was in recovery. Two friends came by from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and we had a long, talkative visit. Not long after they left, another friend dropped in unexpectedly and we went for a walk. I remember realizing during the walk that we were moving too fast for me. I struggled to keep up, and by the time I climbed the five flights of stairs back to my apartment (no elevator), my head was pounding.

As the evening went on, I started to feel worse. I took an Oxy with Zofran to manage the pain and nausea, but I still ended up feeling uncomfortable and worn out. I managed to sleep through the night, but Day 20 wasn’t much better—I felt the aftereffects all day.

After that, I made the decision to take a break from visitors for a while. I also tried applying CBD oil to my temples and forehead to ease the discomfort. It was a tough lesson in learning my limits and protecting my energy as I continue to heal.

POD 21 - 25:

Check out my steps this week 😀 — there’s been a noticeable uptick in my daily movement, which feels like real progress. But recovery isn’t linear, and Post-Op Day 22 was a tough reminder of that.

I woke up anxious, dizzy, slightly nauseous, and with a lingering headache. On top of the physical symptoms, I felt completely mentally drained. I had already struggled on Days 19 and 20, so I thought the hardest part was behind me. That made this setback feel even more discouraging. It was a dark morning.

At 6 a.m., I broke down in tears and woke my husband. I felt so heavy—like a giant brick was weighing on my chest—and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was dragging everyone down with me. I kept apologizing for us having to go through this. I know, logically, that none of this is my fault, but in that moment the panic and sadness were overwhelming.

I took some medication, went back to sleep, and when I woke up a few hours later, it was like I had reset. The pain had eased, the tears had passed, and I felt ready to start the day again.

I’m sharing this because I think it’s important to acknowledge these moments. They’re real, they’re hard, and they’re part of the healing process. If you’ve felt this way too—you're not alone. My husband reminded me to take a deep breath and said, “This too shall pass.” And it did. We got up, and we moved forward with our day.

POD 26-33:

Lately, I’ve been tapering off my medications and am down to just 1–2 doses of Tylenol per day. I also started comfortably wearing regular t-shirts again, easily putting them on over my head and incision—which felt like a big milestone. You’ll notice mostly green days during this period, which was encouraging. While I’m still staying close to home, I’ve been getting out for daily walks, which has been great for both my recovery and mindset. Below is a puzzle my husband and I worked on together!

POD 34: 

This was my first day venturing out of the apartment—I went to a friend’s housewarming party and made a quick stop at the grocery store. I'm still not driving yet, but it felt really good to get out and be social again. I was definitely worn out by the time I got home and went to bed much earlier than usual. I ended up sleeping a full 9 hours and felt great the next morning.

POD 35-40:

I had quite a few visitors this week, which meant a lot of walking, talking, and very little downtime. It really put my recovery to the test — and overall, I’d say it went really well! On POD 39 and 41, I hit 10,000 steps for the first time since surgery, which felt like a huge milestone. Since walking is my main form of movement right now, reaching that number again gave me a real sense of normalcy — and that felt amazing.

That said, I may have overdone it a bit because I didn’t feel great the next day. I made it a point to slow down, rest, and let my body recover. 

POD 41-49:

I've had mainly green days and walking a lot! I'm still taking it easy and not driving yet but able to meet with friends, have dinners, cook, clean dishes, and also taking it easy. I'd say I'm taking Advil once a day for mild pain.  Sometimes I don't have to take any meds at all. 

Some hand made cards I drew. 

POD 50: 

I started physical therapy today! I will be working on neck exercises to gain strength and mobility in my neck and shoulders. I am feeling pretty good most days and pushing myself with the daily steps to keep me active for now.  My next appointment with my doctor will be the end of August for imaging. 

In addition, I hosted a dinner party and my friend brought these gorgeous flowers. My sis did most of the hard work and cooking, but I still had to entertain which was fun and tiring! 

POD 51-60: 

I’ve officially started physical therapy, going twice a week and doing small exercises at home daily. I’ll be honest—starting PT was intimidating. Relearning movements after having my C1 vertebra removed has been a challenge, especially with how tight and sensitive my neck muscles are. This was also the first time anyone had worked on my neck and shoulder area, and it felt vulnerable to have someone apply pressure to such a delicate spot.

But despite the nerves, I left feeling stronger—and I’m really glad I pushed through. PT has already been such a positive step in my recovery. 

Pictured below: how my posture should look every day. 

POD 60: 

TWO MONTHS POST-OP!
This was a big milestone for me—just realizing how far I’ve come. We celebrated with friends, and I was even able to walk to a nearby dinner spot, enjoy some tacos, and spend time socializing.
Was it a little stressful? Yes. But more than anything, I was just so happy to be out of the apartment and surrounded by people I love.

POD 65 - 69:

My husband and I took our first road trip since surgery—a big milestone. It was the longest I’d been in a car post-op, and overall it went really well… until the last 40 minutes. I suddenly got a pounding headache in the back of my head along with some frontal pressure and nausea. It could’ve been from the 2.5-hour drive, the bumpy roads, or just the overall stress of being in a moving car for that long.

As soon as we got to my sister’s, I took some Advil and went straight to sleep—and thankfully, I felt totally fine the next morning. The rest of the trip was wonderful. I got to spend quality time with my family and actually participate in everything—something I hadn’t done in a while. I even went swimming! I didn’t go underwater, but I walked around in the pool, which felt amazing. We cooked meals, went grocery shopping, and even dined out once.

Was I tired? Absolutely. But I was also present—and that felt huge.
You'll notice the blue days in my tracker are when I needed meds. Interestingly, the drive home was much easier, and I didn’t need anything.

POD 70-71

I’m not exactly sure what happened on these days—maybe it was the fatigue from our recent family trip catching up with me—but I was hit with pretty intense headaches both days and had to stay on top of my meds. PT was especially tough. I pushed through, but left in tears from the pain. Some days are just harder than others, and this was one of those stretches.

POD 72:

I drove for the first time today! I went to the grocery store, drove myself to PT, and rewarded myself with a boba tea. It was a great day and I enjoyed being on my own all day and not having to depend on a driver. 

POD 73-111: 

August was such a milestone month for me — so many steps forward in my recovery! Over the past 35+ days, most of my tracker has been green, with just a few blue days (those are headache days where I still managed 8K+ steps, usually with the help of some Advil).

• Day 74: Back in the gym for the first time since surgery, lifting my surgeon-approved max of 15 lbs.

• Day 76: Woke up completely pain-free for the very first time since surgery — such an amazing surprise after weeks of that daily, lingering ache.

• Day 95: Took a short flight to San Francisco and handled it well. Not 100% easy, but no major pain.

• Day 100: Had my first post-op brain scan (that one has its own post!).

• Day 110: Played a casual volleyball game — in the heat, no less — and managed two full games. Getting back on the court has been my #1 recovery goal, so that day meant the world to me.

Overall, August was a month of growth and progress, and I’m really excited to see what September will bring.

POD 112-141:

Overall, September was such a great month. I really turned a corner — far fewer headaches and only some mild neck pain here and there. Since it was my last month on medical leave, I made it a priority to make every day count. I got back into volleyball lessons, resumed weight training (up to 15 pounds!), and even did a bit of traveling. Nothing major to report — just a genuinely fantastic month. I officially return to work on October 1st and am hopeful I can keep this healing momentum going strong!