I knew that I would have some hair growth in some areas, but there's no real sure way to know exactly where or how much. So far, it's very very fine, but black. The only reason I noticed it was because that's also where there is still a lot of brown patches on the skin (something that will fade with time) and I zoomed in on the area because it looked a little greener than normal. They are too fine to really pluck, so I'm hoping I can use a hair removal cream on them eventually. However, I have never had luck with hair removal creams dissolving my hair, so that might be tricky. But, luckily, at least so far, it doesn't appear to cover a large area on the ear. I would guess it will stay that way since there wasn't much black hair behind my left ear, and that's where the majority of that skin came from...but I guess there's no way to know but to just wait and see.
All-in-all, I still love my ear though! It's getting more normal feeling...less like something attached to my head, and more like part of my body. I can tell it's healing more from the inside now as well. I can move the ear around a lot now, and a couple weeks ago, I couldn't. I don't mean that the cartilage bends - because it doesn't - but I can grab the ear as a whole and wiggle it up, down, and side to side. If I push the outside rim gently towards my head, I can feel with my fingers the lower edge of the cartilage framework stick out and push against my skin inside my head. Odd, but not painful at all.
I still have no feeling in the ear, however, my earlobe seems to be able to tell temperatures now...although I still really can't feel it when I touch it.
The color has also gotten a lot less red lately, and in general, I get less of an impression of swelling when I look at my ear. It's still really swollen (as is that side of my head in general), but there is a marked difference lately. However, I've changed up my sleeping gear again, and it swells again overnight...but I am so much more comfortable, I'm hoping it will go away with a few more weeks. Basically, I bought a kit of silicone mold putty at the local hobby store (I used a 40% off coupon so it cost under $15 for enough for many many ear molds as the swelling continues to decrease). The mold, once set (takes 20 minutes), is food-grade, so I don't have to worry about chemicals leaching into my head. The mold is flexible enough it won't damage the ear and is comfortable to lay on, but firm enough to support my ear when I lay on it. Basically, I shaped it to support the back of my ear and around the top and bottom areas as well. I sloped it gradually down in the back to reach my head, making sure to do it gradually enough that I could use my BAHA post as an anchor to help hold it in place at night. NO MORE TAPE!!!! It stays will just the light pressure from my CPAP mask strap!
I'm still a bit frustrated with my abdominal pain, but at least I know most of it is from a hematoma. I have noticed that jeans are out at the moment...I wore a pair yesterday and had a lot more pain this morning. I wore sweat pants all day, and it hurts very little now. I just have to be careful. In general, as long as I'm careful, it doesn't hurt much...but if I make it hurt...then it can throb to the point of causing me to wince. Other than that, healing is going well.
So, of course, the main point of my weekly updates for many of you...the photos!
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