What They Don't Tell You About Vagus Nerve Stimulator (VNS) Surgery

It’s been 5 days since I’ve had my VNS implanted.  I am thankful that the procedure went well—there were no complications such as infections. 

They say that a VNS surgery is simple.  It is an outpatient surgery that takes about one or two hours at most.  Then the patient goes home the same day.  In basic terms, this is true.  However, what they don’t tell you is that there is a preoperative stage
and post-operative recovery stage.  These take as much time, if not more than the actual surgery itself.

The whole hospital experience and recovery period which I am now undergoing is quite extensive.  Although it is an outpatient surgery and less traumatic than a brain surgery, it still takes a lot of energy and changes you.

I arrived at the main hospital at University of California, Irvine in Orange at 10:00 am.  I checked in and was taken to preop.  I was hooked up to an IV and had “leg clamps” (I’m not sure what the correct terminology is for this) attached to my legs to keep the blood circulating.  They did the usual tests—blood pressure, temperature, pulse.  All normal.  Then, it was a lot of waiting around for the doctor to come.  Twice, there were doctors who came in and marked my neck with their initials.  It was very weird.  Like someone tattooing their brand on my skin.  If I ever had thought about getting a tattoo (which I had not), I’m sure this definitely would have changed my mind.

While we were waiting, we found out that I was not the only one getting a VNS implanted that day.  In fact, it was “VNS day.”  They had a string of implants going. 

Finally, after 12:30, I was taken to the operating room.  It was a comfort to know that my mother who was with me would be informed about every stage of my surgery.  The family members receive a pager which alerts them when the status of the patient changes.  As for myself, I was almost immediately put to sleep when I arrived in the OR.  I did not know a single thing had happened.  They woke me up and told me, “It went well.”  I was still groggy, under the effects of the anesthesia, and wondered how they had done it.  My epileptologist came by; it was good to see him, but all I could manage to say was, “Oh, hiiiii…”  When he asked how I was feeling, I mumbled, “Ok.”

By the time I had received my discharge papers with prescriptions for antibiotics, nausea medication, and a pain medication, I had regained full awareness, or most of it.  However, I was tired.  I let my mother take control of everything, though.  She was asking the nurses to send the prescription requests to our local pharmacy so we could pick them up on our way home.  They refused to do that because it was too late in the day.  They told us to get them at the pharmacy inside the hospital.  My mother argued with them for a few minutes.  I think it’s because I was tired that my head hurt during the fuss my mother was making.  Finally, we did pick up the meds at the hospital pharmacy.  It was about 4:00 pm when we finally left the hospital and headed home.

The recovery is continuing at home.  The first few days, I could only take soft foods such as soups, porridge, grits, and ice cream.  My voice was really weak—I could not speak loudly or for long periods of time.  This became evident when I spoke to my sister on the phone when she called to see how I was doing.  I could only say a few words to her until I felt the strain on my vocal cords.  Also, lying down was a challenge.  Since your neck is the area that was worked on, it is extremely sensitive.  I had to support my entire head with several pillows as I slid down into bed to lie down.  In fact, for the first two or three nights, I kept my head propped up when I slept.  I am somewhat better now—I can enjoy regular food and talk normally and sleep flat on my bed.  I still feel the need to be careful, however.

I had to take antibiotics 4 times a day and just finished the pills today.  Also, nausea has been a problem on and off, so I have been taking the nausea medication.  I’m not sure how effective it really is, though. 

The worst part about the recovery is having these two huge “dressings” attached to your neck and chest, where the scars from the surgery are healing.  You go through two stages—first the pain, and second the itchiness.  Fortunately, the pain didn’t seem to last too long.  However, the itchiness is still there.  I will be glad when it’s all healed and the device is activated—in two weeks.