11 May 2025 – A Huge Win & A Thank You Celebration
Surrounded by my dear friends, I hosted a heartfelt thank-you party—not just to celebrate life after brain surgery, but to honour the love, support, and strength that carried me through. It was my way of saying: I could not have done this without you.
This is not only a surgery story. It is my journey through:
💔 Denial ➡ Acceptance
😨 Fear ➡ Faith
🤷 Uncertainty ➡ Confidence
🤔 Doubt ➡ Belief
✋ Resistance ➡ Surrender
😵 Confusion ➡ Peace
📱 FOMO ➡ JOMO
🙅 “I can’t” ➡ 💪 “I CAN”
When Pain Began to Speak
In May 2024, headaches became my shadow for 25 relentless days. Pain had always been a teacher, but this time it spoke differently.
An MRI revealed a 6 cm occipital cyst pressing hard, two aneurysms, and a vanishing carotid artery withholding blood from my brain. Doctors debated the risks: blindness, deafness, even death. Some turned us away. Finally, one compassionate neurosurgeon listened and guided us: once the artery healed, surgery would be the only way forward.
Anchored in Gratitude
Instead of fear, I turned to trust. Gratitude became my anchor.
For two years, I had volunteered as an ambassador for a US-based brain rewiring program, helping others find joy in chronic pain. Now, that same work began healing me.
Prayer and ritual steadied me. Each day I performed Agnihotra, sang bhajans to Shiva and Durga, and meditated—visualising rays of peace dissolving illness.
My family and friends became my lifeline. Nature embraced me—trees, birdsong, and leaves absorbing my pain. Creativity released turbulence through painting, while drumming brought rhythm back to my heart. Garfield’s humour at my bedside gave me laughter in the darkest days.
I began and ended each day with thanks—to my family, my body, and the Universe. Tutoring students in maths and English kept me connected and alive with joy.
A Storm of Loss
In November 2024, just weeks before my planned surgery, my elder brother suddenly passed away. Grief shattered me, and I postponed surgery to March 2025.
At the same time, my younger brother was in rehab, and my parents in India were already broken by loss. I shielded them by hiding the new date. Even in grief, I held onto courage like a small flame refusing to go out.
Blessings Before the Battle
A week before surgery, friends created a WhatsApp group—All the Best Vineeta—sending endless good wishes and organising home-cooked meals for my family. Even a hug from an elderly aunty I once met in the park gave me strength.
3rd March 2025: The Adventure Begins
That morning, I hugged my children goodbye, then arrived at the hospital by afternoon. My neurosurgeon smiled gently when I joked that maybe the cyst had vanished. That night, I prayed, sketched, and spoke with friends in India.
The next morning, I hugged my husband tightly and whispered, Don’t worry. I’ll be back soon.
Rolling through the Neurological Department, I laughed nervously when my anaesthetist joked she was new. “Then you’ll never forget me,” I replied.
The theatre blinked with machines. I closed my eyes. Then—nothing.
Waking Into Life
At 3 p.m., I awoke in the ICU. My surgeon asked, “How are you?”
“I’m fine,” I said, smiling. “How are you?”
The operation was successful. When my husband arrived, his eyes overflowed with relief. “You did it,” he said.
Pain was sharp and unrelenting, but gratitude persisted. I prayed for other patients crying nearby, even as I endured my own ache. The next day, I stood. I walked. A stubborn triumph.
Home Again
On 6 March, just two days after surgery, I returned home. By Day 5, I gave up heavy painkillers, holding instead to faith and homeopathy.
On Day 6, I walked again in the park. By Day 8, I was tutoring once more, my mind alive with joy.
Two weeks later, my 21 staples were removed from a 15 cm scar. To me, each was not a mark of pain, but of survival.
I still carry uninvited guests in my brain, but they are no longer enemies. I live with them peacefully, faithfully, and with gratitude.
Sculpted by the Journey
This journey did not break me—it sculpted me.
I flow now with scars of survival and a heart full of thanks.
💖 To my family and relatives for their blessings
🤗 To my friends for their love and support
🌍 To my community worldwide for sending prayers
🏥 To surgeons, doctors, and nurses for their compassion
🌿 To the Universe and Mother Nature for strength
💖 To the Gratitude App for daily doses of gratitude
💪 And to my body—my loyal companion that never gave up
Gratitude was my medicine, and it remains my song.
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