Fall 2023 9 A short time later, Beeman underwent a craniotomy under general anesthesia. After temporarily removing a small portion of her skull, Dr. Zakaria carefully removed the blood clot from the surface of her brain. The pressure on Beeman’s brain immediately began to subside. “I knew that she was going to do well, even during surgery, because of how her brain looked and how it responded to the procedure,” Dr. Zakaria says. Afterward, Dr. Zakaria replaced the skull portion and closed the scalp incision. Craniotomies are associated with minimal post-surgery pain, and patients tolerate the procedure quite well, Dr. Zakaria notes. “It just seemed like five minutes, and then they were waking me up,” Beeman says. She recalls when her family visited her in the recovery room. “They were just amazed at the care and the staff and resources,” Beeman says. “I was hooked up to all these machines post-surgery. I was a pretty scary sight!” After her brain surgery, Beeman was able to resume her favorite activities, like knitting and playing mahjong with friends, without the problem of her hand going limp. She also takes three-mile walks a few times a week. She is grateful to everyone at Riverside for working together to find and treat her serious issue—and for the personal care she received at every step. “It’s like they just took my hand and led me on the path to getting well,” Beeman says. “We have great doctors here,” she says. “They deserve all the credit.” “We have great doctors here. They deserve all the credit.” —Marlo Beeman Marlo (second from right) six months after her surgery, celebrating with her husband, son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter in San Francisco. Marlo celebrating her 75th birthday— one month after her surgery—with her brothers and sisters. Marlo and her husband, Larry, recently celebrated their 53rd wedding anniversary.
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