Downs and Ups

I'm a little concerned with how inflexible my knee has seemed recently.  Yesterday, it was probably reacting to therapy the day before, and yesterday I made several trips up and down the stairs (to and from my real bedroom). This morning it just seems really uncooperative.

OH, how I want to soak in the hot tub!  I just know that would help so much!  Come on Thursday!! I will be taking my gym bag with me to the doctor appointment, in hopes of going straight to the gym from there.  Would it be overly optimistic to actually wear my suit under my clothes?

The scar is looking amazingly good, thanks to the Vit E massages.  I wish I could get a good picture of it.  The red parts of the scar are interspersed with fully healed places, and the bumpiness is less pronounced.  It is still kind of uncomfortable to touch, but it gets better as the massage continues.  I have discovered that I can't wear my yoga pants very long at a time because, even though they are very stretchy, they touch me all the time.  Sweatpants, etc., don't touch my skin all the time.  The constant touch just becomes irritating, though maybe the slight compression is good for it?  I don't know.

Bye Bye Leg Bendy!

Therapy was strange today.
Instead of my regular guy, I had a girl who didn't stretch me nearly as hard, and as a result, my measurement was 94, down 3 from last time.  I am honestly not a bit worried about it because it feels so much better and I know if I had had my regular guy I would have done better.  Next time!

I got a phone call from the leg bendy machine guy, who wanted to pick up the machine.  My three weeks are up (+ two days).  He backdated the pickup date, in case BC/BS has an issue with the two extra days.  I'd be more worried that the leg bendy machine company would try to bill BC/BS for the days.

On Tuesday, I will be done with the regular aspirin and back to the lo-dose that I normally take.  So, gradually, things are going back to normal!

Three Weeks

Yesterday's therapy report:
Bend is 97, a big improvement over 90 the last two times.  I had lost about 4 of my steri-strips, but he pulled the rest of them off!  After some stretching (holy crap!!) and the measurements (my straightness was 5, down from 17 before surgery), we went to the parallel bars.  I had to two minutes of rocking back and forth on a half cylinder (foam roller cut in half), then two minutes of "marching" - touching alternate feet  to the tops of soccer cones, trying to step straight up with the bad leg, not swinging it out to the side to get it up there.  No real problems with either of those.  Then we worked on stairs of various heights.  Then he had me walk across the room and back twice. He says from the back, he would not be able to tell which leg had surgery - a huge compliment!!  From the front, of course, in my workout shorts, the long pink scar tipped him off.  :)  I left there feeling really good!  Other people who haven't seen me in a bit have said that I am walking well, too - better than before my surgery.  For some reason that surprised me.  I guess I never thought that I limped or showed pain, but I apparently did.  But now that I have thought about it......yeah, I remember that bent-over heavy limping that I used to call walking.  I realize that I am standing straighter, too.

The back of my knee suddenly feels normal.  The front of my knee is still tight.  The incision looks surprisingly clean and healed.  It's still a little lumpy and puckered, and he told me to use my Vitamin E oil to do a 2-thumb massage across the scar to help flatten it out. He told me it's still going to be swollen at the end of the day for awhile, just expect it.  He also suggested putting heat on it, then stretches and exercises, then ice.  I can not wait to get back in the pool!  I will wait for my doctor appointment on Oct 4, though.

Oh yeah, most of the thigh pain is gone.  There is still a "numb but not numb" area on the outside of the incision and some pain on the inside.  Massaging the scar is a little creepy.  The oil loosens all of the little staple scabs, so it feels gritty, and touching it makes it tingle.  I'm not sure if I am putting too much pressure on it or not enough.

One milestone - my first standing shower!  Up to now, I have been using a shower stool.  I probably could have done away with it sooner, but I was scared of slipping.  It's time to let it go!

Itching to Get Out

Yesterday, Austin and I went out for a little geocaching!  We ended up with one DNF and five smileys in about 90 minutes, but I was pooped.  Going to spend today doing nothing physical, but oh I want to swim so badly!!  Only one tape strip has come off so far, though, and until they are gone I cannot go back to the pool. My surgeon visit is still a week away, too, and I need his blessing.  I will content myself with some paperwork and coursework for the upcoming tax season instead.

Back to Basics

Therapy report - bending 90 degrees
When I complained that I felt like I wasn't making much progress, my therapist said I need to remember that just over two weeks ago, I basically had my leg cut in half, and that ortho surgeries aren't like other surgeries, where you feel better right away except for your incision.  OK, I get it - I'll shut up now.

Last night I slept great after a Norco and two Vistaril.  Maybe part of my problem is trying to skimp on the meds? At least at night, I will take what I'm told.  I really do feel good taday, so I hav eto be careful to not do too much.

Sleepless in Bloomington

Exhausted today.  Had a terrible night last night.  I actually tried to sleep just before midnight (early for me, lately). I thought I was comfortable, but couldn't settle on window open/closed or fan on/off.  Then my leg hurt.  Tossed and turned, slept in brief stretches.  Woke up at about 3:00 a.m. soaked with sweat.  Woke again at 6:00, to hear Kym in the shower.  My leg was killing me, so I took a Norco and went back to sleep till 8:30, then 9:00.  I finally got up about 9:15.  It's 11:30 now, and I'm desperate to sleep again.  Feel incredibly useless and lazy.

Ended up napping for about an hour around noon, then made an actual effort to do nothing for the rest of the day (isn't that what I did in the morning, too?).

Two Weeks

I have now been in New Kneeland for two weeks.  In most ways, it's been a much easier journey than I thought it would be.  I would never have guessed that I would be walking without a cane at this point.  In fact, I never got around to buying one, and now I don't think I will.

Pain - I guess understandably - is still an issue.  I really wish I could back off the Norco a bit more, but I guess that will come. Stamina is another thing.  I had a three hour meeting today, then picked up lunch, ate, then got on the machine.  I was so tired that I just shut it off and slept till Kym got home.  Now I'm waiting for Survivor to start, but I'm not sure I will make it through it.  And all I did was sit in a chair for three hours.

Tired.