Knee Cart

On day 4. I am using my knee cart. For those of you unfamiliar with a knee cart here is a picture. It is a godsend. Much easier to use then crutches. It just doesn't like to go very fast and won't take tight turns. I'm sure I can live with that.
Elcy brought meat loaf, Steve brought Wisconsin chili and John brought cookies. Nice chat with them all.
Taking only oxicodon now as oxycontin made me feel really strange. Pain is slight, I'm fine.

There's Got To Be a Morning After

Day after my surgery and the nerve blocker has worn off. About 2 am I woke with a burning stinging pain. I took some meds and called Dr. Bob out of a deep sleep. I know this because he thought he shut off his alarm until he heard me calling his name. Bless his heart, he rose and come down to give me an ice pack and some more water.

So far no nausea. I'm wearing a patch behind my ear to help with this. So far so good. I do not like the way the pain meds make me feel groggy, but that goes with the territory.

It's a beautiful sunny day today. Makes me feel better already. We have food for three dinners. We have the best friends ever.

We arrived at the hospital yesterday around 6 am. We drove by the child care center where I worked and I noticed the two crepe myrtles we planted are still there. It made me smile. They are building a cancer center so lots of construction going on. I must say the staff was wonderful. Smiles and good explanations about everything they would do. I especially enjoyed Allan my post op nurse. He was easy to talk to and very conscientious. I was freezing when I came out of the operating room and he quickly got me some very warm blankets. As he was working he notice I was still cold and said I know you are too polite to ask, but Im going to get you another warm blanket. What a guy.

I was happy to have the blocker for the 2 hour drive home. It made traveling much easier.

When I used my crutches I lost my balance. Luckily Bob was there to catch me, AHW. I did it a couple of times in the house too and must remember to slow down and get my footing. At least my right footing!

Steph said something very interesting yesterday when we were Skyping. She said Vincent spoke my name when he woke yesterday, and then again at breakfast. He must have known I'd need his loving thoughts. Such a cutie. Sam and Bella wanted to Skype, so at 7pm we did so. Sam suggested we do it every day at four. She also said she'd made me something. They will visit next weekend and I can't wait.

So, it's two days before my surgery. As you may remember I didn't have surgery the first go round because they didn't know my heel, was broken until a month into its healing. That being said it didn't heal well. Arthur Itis decided to pay me a visit and he is staying in that joint.  I have daily pain at varying degrees depending on how much I'm on my feet and over the holidays with all the baking you can imagine.

On Friday, January 18 at 7:30 am I will go to Fair Oaks Hospital and have subtalar fashion. Basically they'll fuse my calchaneous and talas this is my heal and the bone above. Look it up if you are brave of heart. I'll have bone marrow removed from my hip to help with the fusion and two screws to hold everything in place. No screws loose jokes please. They will be secure. General anesthesia, yay!

This scares the crap out of me and I'm having good days and bad. I just want it to be over.

I have all my prescriptions filled-- seven total--and am finishing the set up in the downstairs room I'll be sleeping in for awhile. My crutches are out and my knee cart will be ready to go. I am thankful I know how to use both and hope I won't slip on my crutches this time.

A couple of extra notes. I worked to help set up the Fair Oaks Hospital Child Care Center and worked there for several years. I'm looking forward to going back and wondering if I'll know anyone.

I would also ask if you know how to say The Hail Mary you do so daily for my recovery. Our pastor asks us to do that for him and I figure if he can so can I. If you don't know The Hail Mary, just send your good vibrations. I believe in the power of prayer!

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Ok, today was the day I finally saw Dr. White in orthopedics at Fort Belvoir, in Alexandria, Va. My referral was given to me in April and it took this long to get in. Walter Reed has recently closed and they moved those people to Ft. Belvoir and Bethesda, so that and the docs being deployed has put a strain on dependents getting appointments.

Dr. White said exactly what  Dr. Ellison in LaPlata had said when I last saw him. Fusing the bones together is the next step. However, she doesn't do that kind of surgery, so I'll be going back to LaPlata to see what the Doc says and probably have surgery. Apparently the bones are ragged and rubbing against each other causing my pain. She showed me some amazing pictures from exrays today and cat scan when it happened. The recovery is quite long, (off of the foot for three months), so I want to try to schedule it in the fall/winter time. It looks like I'll have another year of recovery.

I'm very upset today, but I keep thinking I can't go on like this. It will only get worse and I'm sure the longer I wait the harder the recovery. Older bones don't heal like younger ones.

Please pray for me. My Mom and Dad pray to Saint Servatus patron saint of foot problems. Deb and Diane have also had problems, sooo... stay tuned.

Slipping Over Gravity---Missing Logic!

Somehow this Sam Phillips lyric seems a fitting title to this blog entry.

I visited the doc today.I've not been happy with my recovery from my heel break,(Feb 28, 2011). The orthapedic doc told me it would take a year to heal. A friend said, your mind may have heard a year,but your body heals in its own time.

I live with varying degrees of pain everyday and am unable to do many things I'd like to. The pain is mostly in the outside of my left ankle and not the heel. This too is another of my concerns.

So the doc has taken X-rays and given me a referral to an orthopedic doctor and wants me to have an MRI. I will have the MRI first and we'll see.

I won't be going back to Dr. Cutie Pie, but I'm hoping it will be good to have fresh eyes on this. Apparently there are enough ortho docs back from deployment for me to see one in a military facility. I'm hoping I won't need surgery,we'll see. If they want to do surgery I'd like to try other holistic things first-- acupuncture, reiki, etc.

I manage the varying degrees of pain with an arnica cream. It really helps and I don't have to take a pill. If you have arthritis I recommend this. Just look at the ingredients in the package and make sure it says arnica.

Stay tuned there's more to come.

Nine months in, fall has arrived

It's definitely fall as the leaves continue to change color and drop. Temperatures have been warmer then normal, but you can feel the cold coming

That being said I am not troubled by my foot telling me a change is in the air---yet. I've been told it will take a couple of years for arthritis to set in. I say "Arthr" is not invited.

I've finished physical therapy, but continue to do the exercises here at home. I have good days and bad days, but feel I'm heading in the right direction. Sometimes I feel if I could just have a chiropractic adjustment everything would fall into place.

I walk mostly without a limp, but have daily pain. It just varies from 1-10, although it's usually in the low range. When it's bad seems to be when I'm on my feet all day or working in the garden too long. Mostly on the outside fibula and ankle area. I am trying to listen to the pain and quit while I'm ahead.

I am finally walking down the stairs with both of my feet pointing forward. I have to hang on to the railing and wall, but at least I don't have to take one step at a time. I must go heel first, so it's a bit strange, but I'm getting used to it. Try it out, it's very different.

My yoga practice seems to help and I can finally do tree on my left foot at least for a short period of time.

The therapist would like me to be able to balance on my foot for one minute. I keep trying. This is an uphill battle. Warrior helps too! ;}

Stay warm and cuddle!

Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer

Those days of peanuts and pretzels and beer. Bob and Rob are having some at the Nats game today. Great day for a ball game.

Foot update: Insurance for physical therapy has run out. My therapist put in for more and says I need about 4-6 weeks more. I've been going three times a week. Will resume when I return from Rhode Island.

I will be going to Rhode Island to help Steph out as she prepares for baby #3, Vincent. While there I hope to keep Sam and Bella occupied so she can rest a bit more.

I went back to the YMCA a couple of weeks ago with Bob and did some of my therapy there. I found they have props similar to my physical therapists, so I ride a bike and do stretches and other contortions. I went yesterday and did a few balances on the half ball and think I over did it a bit.

This past week I was almost walking without a limp. The therapist wants me to use my full stride on the left side and so I have to remind myself, as I've come to rely on my right side too much. Full pronation she says.

I still must take one step at a time going downstairs. My foot just doesn't want to bend that far yet. This also prevents me from squatting, as you can imagine, so if I need to get down on the floor I bend my left leg and place my right knee on the floor and then lower myself. Just reverse to get up.

It's funny how you learn to manage when you can't do things----and then the therapist says, "do it" and I really have to switch gears in my mind because it's been so long since standing on just that foot for instance.

This is my fifth month.

I am progressing and find I don't need ice every night anymore. My arnica cream is helping and I recommend it to anyone suffering from muscle pain.

All for now!