Day 3 - Ugh.

Well, I didn't expect this would be any sort of fun and I am not being disappointed.
The pain is minimal because, during the operation, there is work done on the nerves, so they turn off for a while, numbing the face to some degree. My feeling is gradually coming back, but given what I had done, one would expect a lot more pain. I am taking the lowest dose of Tylenol 3 recommended and that is mostly just to keep the bit of pain that is returning at bay so I can sleep.
The swelling, on the other hand, is plentiful and extreme. I was using ice to keep it under control for the first 30+ hours, at which time it was recommended that I change to warm compresses. This seems to be working out...the heat is reducing the swelling that is now there in short spurts, giving me brief windows of relief. However, as soon as I take the compress off either to warm it or eat or take meds or whatever, the swelling balloons right back up until, within a few minutes, my face feels like it may explode from the pressure. I have begun wondering if leaving the warm compress off in order to prevent the extreme changes in pressure may not be the better choice.
Other than that, I am doing my best to stay hydrated (drinking about 60ml of water per hour) and to eat bits here and there (had 40mls of instant breakfast at each breakfast and lunch today and am considering tomato soup for supper) and am taking all the meds they gave me on the suggested schedule (something that is hard for me, since I am not a medication-taker, as a rule).
I have been ordered to rest my jaw (so keep talking to a minimum). Verbal communication has been replaced with note-writing and the use of ASL (with which my mother and I are both minimally familiar, conveniently). I am trying to get lots of sleep - this sort of thing wipes you out, I've learned.