In addition to being careful of my trachea, voice box, and other things inside my neck, the surgeon is going to have to be careful of my parathyroid.
Most people have four pea-sized glands, called parathyroid glands, on the thyroid gland in the neck. The parathyroid glands make parathyroid hormone (PTH), which helps your body keep the right balance of calcium and phosphorous.
My doctor said that people REALLY only need one, but they need to preserve as many of them as possible during the surgery. If anything happens to them, I'll have calcium problems. My mom works with someone who's mom had calcium issues, and it lead to many other issues inclucing stroke problems.
There's a lot to pay attention to!
