Day 15

Happy Monday Evening-

I'm watching baseball because DWTS is over and Phillip Rivers makes me want to yak.

Not much to report since my last post.  My last couple of days consist of sleeping, PT, having a snack...lather, rinse and repeat.  

There has been one unusual thing and that is with my elbow.  Yup, my left elbow.  It was grown a big old bulbous knob on the end.  It's not bone.  It feels kind of like a nose.  It doesn't hurt but I can't quit squeezing it which sort of creeps out Chuck. Any ideas out there?  Our camera is malfunctioning so I took a pic using my iTouch:

Weird, huh?  I see the doctor tomorrow so I'll ask him about it.

Oh, another new addition to my repertoire of exercises. I can ride the stationary bike now!  It starts off hard because my left knee/leg is so tight.  The longer I go the looser it gets.  It's a good thing.

That's it for now. I'm hoping for an excellent report tomorrow, removal of steri-strips and the approval to hit the pool and hot tub!  I'd like to be able to stop wearing the Victoria Secret Compression Stockings but I don't think that's going to be happening for another few weeks.  That'll make Chuck happy...

Have a good Tuesday-
debie@TbedB

Day 13

Today is another milestone day!  I gave myself the last shot of Lovanox!  Yipee!  My belly has got 10 little bruises where it's been stabbed every day for the last 10 days.  Now I move to one enteric coasted aspirin every day for the next 30 days.  All of this is being done to prevent blood clots.

Do you know what enteric aspirin is?  One definition of enteric aspirin is "Aspirin that is treated to pass through the stomach unaltered and to dissolve in the intestines".  The theory is is that aspirin is a good pain reliever but it tears up your belly.  Enter coated aspirin.  However, there are studies that indicate coated aspirin is no better than non-coated aspirin for heart related issues.  Interestingly enough, all of the studies use a much lower dose than I'll be taking.  My dosage is 325MG.  Since I'm only taking it for 30 days only I'm going to quit "reserching" it and move on.  I really only wanted to know what enteric meant...

I tried a something a little different today.  I got up around 6:30 a.m.  I had a cup of coffee some water and then did one full round of PT.  

Physical Therapy hurts.  It really does.  I'm surprised at how much it hurts.  I make weird noises while I'm performing physical therapy.  It's not so much noise as loud breathing. I breath for the counts.  That means if I need to hold a stretch for 5 seconds I'm exhaling 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 then 2, 2, 3, 4, 5...etc.  It sounds like I'm a pregnant Vador.  I squish my eyes closed and try not to yell.  I have to say this makes it hard to get excited about PT.  I knew this going in but perhaps I didn't quite estimate the pain level correctly.  Chuck tells me to keep powering through.  He assures me it's all for the best and I know it is.  However, let me refer you to the first sentence in this paragraph.

I took a shower and laid down and woke up around 2 p.m.  This was good because UT slept through the OU game, too.  I'm sorry that UT got their asses whooped but OU still sucks.

For round two of PT I chose walking.  We added another block to the route so I'm up to 3 blocks!!  At least I count them as blocks.  I went out wearing black shorts, white compression stockings, a grey t-shirt and tennis shoes.  Pretty.  There were a couple of folks who slowed down when they drove by.  I waved at them.  I may have known them but since I couldn't see that far I assumed they were checking me out.    That's right, I was rocking the compression stockings!

For dinner tonight we decided to do take out.  The take out I picked was the "Savage" deep dish pizza from Conan's.  When was the last time any of you Austinites hit up Conans?  I forgot just how yummy and filling their deep dish pizza is.  We have enough pizza for breakfast and lunch tomorrow!  Long ago Conan's turned me on to black olives.  It was the first time I had them on a pizza and in a salad.  I still love olives.  Green and black!

To recap:  No more shots, 1 enteric aspirin a day, OU still sucks and PT hurts.

Have a good weekend-
debie@TbedB

Day 11

Howdy-

It's 10/11/12 today!!

Non knee stuff.  I watched the Giants vs Reds baseball game.  First there were a lot of people at this Thursday noon game.  I suppose that could be because it was a playoff game, huh?  I noticed that in the seats behind home plate there was a lady that kept her back to the game and was talking to the people in the first and second rows.  I thought maybe she was a waitress or perhaps a translater?  Did anyone else watch the game and see her?  I know the Reds were making a comeback in the 9th but I don't think they were successful.  I believe the Giants won and I was watching baseball because there's really nothing else on and on pain meds baseball is interesting!

ACL is this weekend.  Have fun to everyone who's going.  I talked to my buddy Kathy and we both rather happy to not be attending with the high humidity.  However, to anyone who is reading this and going to ACL please go see The Roots.  They're the reason I bought tickets.  I enjoy them on Late Night with Jimmy Fallen and their last CD was pretty good.  ?uestlove is awesome and I wonder what he's like live.  If you get close enough tell them I said hey!  I'll be looking for a feed on the internet.

Speaking of ACL they said they'll have a solar charging station so you could charge your phone and keep taking pictures and tweeting.  I remember having my camera battery run down at the end of the night but I also remember having issues getting connections on my phone.  I'll be interested to hear how that works out.

Knee news.  Another round of PT and my biggest problem is with my hammy's.  I walked like a cowboy for so long that I have a lot of work to get them stretched back to normal.  I've gotten a new stretch today whereby I stand with my heels, rear-end and shoulders touching a wall then I try to press my knees to the wall.  Yeouch!  I'm kind of wondering if  I should stick with the cowboy walk.  

I made another 2 block walk and my knee felt better after the walk. Yippee!

TGIF-
debie@TbedB

Day 10

It's hump day!

Today started out with my left leg having an assortment of painful jolts.  Jolts is the best way I can describe it. They were almost electrical like.  I took my base-line pain meds and iced up but that didn't seem to stop the pain.  This is interesting since I haven't really felt this type of pain to date.  What does this mean?  Probably that I had major surgery on my leg and it hurts, huh?  I guess I've been so fortunate in recovery that I don't expect any unknown pain to occur.  I took a break-through pain pill and then dozed off until noon.

I felt bad about sleeping the day away but Chuck is happy when I'm sleeping.  Maybe he's tired of listening to me.  That can't be it because a side affect of surgery and pain meds is that I don't talk very much. Sorry co-workers, this side affect should be worn off by the time I get back to work!
Chuck's opinion is that sleep is a good thing and it helps with the healing.  I'm going to pick he's right and just not worry about it!

Chuck let me ride to Starbucks and see all the peeps as well as grab a coffee.  We took the dogs and made an outing of it. It was nice to see the neighborhood.

Terri, the PT, came much later today but that didn't stop her from working me harder than before.  She added an additional 5 reps to everything so I'm up to 20 reps per exercise.  Whew.  So, once we finished the table dance (anyone reading this?) then we did the "kitchen" exercises.  These exercises all consist of me holding on to the counter and performing an assortment of fun stuff.  One of my favorite ones is called "I love a parade" which is true.  I totally love a parade!

For the finale, Terri had me put on my tennis shoes and we went outside!  I walked to the end of the street and back.  I think that's about 2 blocks.  I felt like I accomplished something today!  I only used a cane and I walked pretty good.  Chuck said there wasn't any waddling.

It's the end of day 10 and it's been good.  I'm finishing the day off in bed and I'm running a low grade fever.  That's a drag because I thought that was over, too.

Today's lessons.  Keep working on PT (more than once a day!!!), don't get alarmed by pain and the low grade fever may be around for awhile.

I hope everyone has a great Thursday-
debie@TbedB

Day 8

It's been 8 days since I started becoming robotic. A couple of milestones were met today.

• I took the bandage off and took a shower letting soapy warm water run down my left knee.  It felt good. I patted it dry and there you are!  For a leg that was bonked about last week it looks OK.  

• I was transferred from a walker to a CANE!!  How about that?  I've also been told to take a walk in the morning or evening.  I'm to go up to the end of the street and back.  I still need to walker for nighttime bathroom visits.  One reason is to make sure I'm stable.  The second reason is to part the dogs when I come by.  

The PT is impressed with my progress but the exercises still hurt like hell.  We discussed where the pain is and I understand why it hurts but it doesn't make it any easier when it's time to do them. I keep reminding myself no pain no gain and then I tell myself to shut up.  I'd like to put this off on someone else but this is all up to me so I can argue with myself all I want but I still get my behind up on that table.

The PT also said that my support system, AKA Chuck, is a great help with my recovery.  I agree.  Chuck has been right with me the whole time and he is happy how things are turning out.  It makes it easier to get moving when you have someone who loves you cheering you on.

That's it for today kids.  I'm fixing to go prance up and down the sidewalk in my shorts and Victoria Secret Stockings.  That should give the neighbors something to talk about!

Have a good evening-

debie@TbedB

Day 7

Two steps forward, one step back.  That was one of the last things Dr. Savage told me before I was released from the hospital.  He also said "Don't let that get you down.".

Day 6 was one step back.  I felt like I was getting sick.  Sick like the flu or a virus.  I was achy, had a headache and a low grade fever.  I pretty much stayed in bed all day with a body buddy.  I finally took oxycoden and slept through the rest of it.  Are you wondering what a body buddy is?  It's a sock filled with wood chips, pellets or something that can be microwaved and is used like a heating pad but with less chance of burning your skin off.

Chuck said that it seemed like I ran out of gas.

Today I woke up and felt much better thank you.  I took a shower and washed my hair.  Let me just say that of all the basic needs I think that being clean is right there at the top.  I felt like I had something to do and a reason to wake up.  I actually kind of fixed my hair and put a little makeup on.

Chris Jackson came by Friday, after work, and dropped off a delicious meal prepared by his family.  Amy Jackson took time out of her busy schedule to prepare us Mac and Cheese Lasagne.  She also included  a salad and Rice Krispie treats which her daughter Abby helped prepare.  It was delicious and comforting.  Very noodley, cheesey and warm and who doesn't love a Rice Krispie treat with sprinkles?  How nice is it to have full meal delivered to your home that was prepared by friends?

My home health care physical therapist also came by Friday and oh my, she got right to business!  She loved the PT table that Chuck built me.  Did I tell you about my cool table?  Before the surgery I was trying PT, again, and was having a hard time getting up and down off the floor so Chuck built me a therapy table.  It's nice to not have to get down on the floor and it's a very cool design.

Terri, the PT, has a husky voice and owns a Boston Terrier so she loved Minnie and Moochie.  I can imagine having a drink with her at a local pub.  She seems like good people.  She walked in, introduced herself, took a look at the PT table and before I knew it she started getting me in position and pushing my knee down.  I sounded a whole lot like a pregnant woman giving birth!  Chuck always complains that I don't breath right while exercising but not last Friday.  I think the hardest exercise was the one that had me sitting in a chair with my leg bent and foot flat on the floor. Then I move forward in my chair keeping my foot on the floor and knee bent until I can't stand it.  It's rough but I have to get these muscles, ligaments and whatnot stretched out. Terri is going to make sure I'm doing them.  When we were done, she allowed herself a few minutes to play with the dogs before she took off.

I ran through the same set of exercises and stretches this morning and it was still as tough as it was on Friday. That's ok. It'll get easier.

A word about home health care.  I'm working with a firm called Interim Health Care. This firm has done a lot of work with Dr. Savage.   The prices are under $150 per visit.  Seems expensive but if you look at what a 5-10 minute office visit with a doctor costs then the price is a bargin not to mention there are less chances to fall or get the wound infected.  Everyone is a registered PT or nurse and I've had three different people visit me.  Terri will be my PT for the next two weeks.   I asked two of the three people why they chose home health care and both of them liked the flexibility of the job.  They all seemed happy.  I am happy, too.  Win-Win.

Tomorrow is a big day.  The bandage comes off my knee and it begins the air-drying phase.  I'm hoping that I can take off the Victoria Secret stockings but Chuck is kind of digging them..?

Here' what the back of my leg looks like.  Not too bad.  You can't see the bruise on my ankle but I think for a very pale girl I have very little bruising.  There is bruising in the front.  You'll have to wait until tomorrow for that.

Have a good Monday-
debie@TbedB

Day 5

TGIF!

It's day 5 and a schedule is slowly starting to form.  The first home issue has been with the dogs.  Minnie and Moochie have been sharing our bed since they were little pups.  Now we're telling them to stay out of the bed and they're a bit confused by this.  During the day Chuck will keep the bedroom door closed and since they usually follow Chuck around like he's the pied piper everything is ok.  

At night Chuck closed the bedroom door and they are not happy about this at all.  There's lots of barking and growling and scratching on the door.  Once the barking starts Riff-Raff starts talking.  Riff-Raff is a gift from our neighbor, Tina.  He's a bobble head butler who says scary things and is sound activated.  

The first night of dog banishment I got up around 4 a.m. and went into the living room until around 7 and then went back to bed.  

At 2 a.m. this morning the alarm went off for me to take meds.  After taking the meds, I was laying there listening to dogs barking and growling and Riff-Raff talking about dirt naps when I finally had enough.  I opened the door and let the dogs in.  Once the bedroom and bathroom were properly surveyed Moochie made a move toward the bed and I made him get down.  Minnie went under the bed and stayed there.  Moochie made several more attempts to get into the bed and each time I made him get down.  Then he went to Chuck's side of the bed and started digging on my NEW pillow sham!  This is the point in time when I realized I'm going to be ok. I got up, with my walker, went to the other side of the bed and grabbed the pillow sham and hit Moochie with it.  Then I got one of the dog beds and threw it in the corner.  Moochie slunk over to it and got in and we didn't hear another sound from him.  The troll dog, Minnie, finally tried to get into the bed. Chuck got up and got her a dog bed.  She got in it and stayed there.  The bonus from knee surgery may be that the dogs learn to sleep on the floor!

I have to take a lot of medications.  Besides the pain meds the only other interesting one is the Enoxaparin.  This medication is to prevent blood clots and is given subcutaneously.  That means I give my self a shot in the belly!  Amazingly enough it's no big deal.  I suppose that's because I have a lot of belly to shoot up.  I was worried I wouldn't be able to do it but I can.  Fortunately I only have to do this once a day for 10 days. 

Chuck called Nancy and she made a surprise visit for lunch! She brought me a beautiful orchid, which I'll probably kill and she Chuck a bottle of wine.  It was a nice visit.  She thought I was doing well enough to come back next week...HA!

The PT showed up and we did some different exercises and stretches.  I just took a couple of the break through pain killers and I'm feeling much better now.  

Action Jackson is coming by with some delicious food that Amy made!  I'll have a report on that tomorrow!

I just received a wonderful bouquet of Incredible Edibles from the Unix team.  

I understand that chocolate is a natural blood thinner so maybe I can stop taking shots!  The card said "Take as much time as you need!!". 

Knee replacement is not all bad!

Later-

debie@TbedB