Wrist Surgery Update

[SiouzQ.]

The surgery was yesterday afternoon, and now that the nerve block (a very weird experience itself) has pretty much worn off, it hurts about as much as you would think it would by having your arm bone sawed in half and put back together with a plate and screw. Last night was rough, didn't sleep much in spite of dosing myself accordingly with pain medication.

So I am hunkered down at home, the gallery is closed, and I am just trying to entertain myself somehow so I don't focus solely on the pain. I borrowed a little bed - lap desk from friend which I have my lap top set up on. I am getting pretty good at one-handed typing. I order a bamboo book holder from Amazon last week and that is really helpful too, though I am finding it hard to concentrate on reading. Netflix is a good past time too.

Anyway, an update on my dad - he was released from the hospital three days ago and seems to be progressing, albeit somewhat weakened. My sister is recovering from her second hand surgery from last Friday; it's just weird that all three of us are a little down for the count all together...

[Tradd]

Thanks for the update! Best wishes for healing for all 3 of you!

[rosarugosa]

Hope you have a speedy recovery, and wishing the same for your dad and sister.

[Teacher Terry]

My sister had that surgery but at 72 she is a lot older than you. Plus she has osteoporosis which probably slowed down her healing. She has found acupuncture to be as effective as physical therapy so she is doing both.

[razz]

Hope you have a speedy recovery, and wishing the same for your dad and sister.

I do, too, wish you and your a speedy recovery.

[Tybee]

Sounds like you planned very well for a good convalescence. Feel better soon!

[Yppej]

Wish I could think of something more interesting to write to help keep you entertained.

[sweetana3]

I have enjoyed watching all kinds of things on Youtube. British mysteries, craft programs, News from various countries, lectures about various topics, etc.

[Gardenarian]

Hoping you feel better soon. "Shetland"on Netflix is pretty engrossing. Recommended for healing.

[SteveinMN]

Heal fast, SQ!

[Float On]

Hope you heal quickly and have less pain soon!

[Sad Eyed Lady]

Best wishes for the speediest of recoveries!

[SiouzQ.]

Post Op, Day 2: I knew it was going to be painful, but it is REALLY painful, even while taking the pain killers. They really are not making that much of a dent with the dosage they prescribed me. I did sleep well, though, as I upped the dose a little.

I hope today is the day I start turning the corner on the pain management issue. The gallery will be closed today, but tomorrow I'll be open but I have a helper coming in to do the main stuff; I'll be around on the premises (it's not like I can drive anywhere anyway). It'll be good for me to get back to some sort of routine, like having to get washed and dressed!

I think I am slowly starting to understand the recovery time in all this...sigh...toward the end of yesterday I was starting to second-guess my decision to go through with the surgery. I have to remember that what I was losing anyway would be way worse than this short term bout of pain and debilitation...

[Teacher Terry]

My sister has had other surgeries and was surprised at the amount of pain she had with this one. But it’s not like either of you had a choice. Hope it gets better everyday.

[SiouzQ.]

Post-Op Day 7: on the whole, things are improving, little by little, each day. I am off the major pain killers except one at night so I can sleep. I can move my fingers and open them up almost all the way without too much pain, and can actually grasp very light things but not too hard. I cannot lift or turn anything at all so it was tricky to get my scrambled eggs out of the pan using the spatula without them spilling all over the place, but somehow one adapts.

I think the hardest part is the mental thing - I am so used to being a "do-er" and "maker" that it is really hard to occupy myself during the long hours in the gallery. I bounce around from reading, to reading stuff on-line, getting angry at the news and the political stuff going on, trying to write, trying to draw, but I am so restless! It's going to be a long few months...

I have today off and I have to drive into Santa Fe (my first driving trip by myself) to run some errands and get fitted for my custom splint. I hope that makes my arm more comfortable! We changed the dressing finally the other night and I was preparing to see something really nasty-looking under all the bandages but it really is very innocuous looking considering what was done - an ulnar shortening and a TCFF cartilage repair. Just a thin 6 inch long scar and some swelling.

Anyway, it is tiring to type using only one hand so I will end it here. I have to do some chores around the place; my sink is full of dishes and there are clothes lying all over the place. Everything takes twice as long to do but I feel mentally better when things are put away and cleaned up.

[Float On]

Be careful on your drive!
Sorry it's such a long process.

[nswef]

It sounds as if you are doing well...it is so frustrating.

[Gardnr]

Fantastic progress for 7 days! Congrats on turning the corner.

[CathyA]

I'm curious if PT is needed after this type of surgery? I hope you are pain-free soon!

[Teacher Terry]

My sister had PT and acupuncture.

[SiouzQ.]

My guess is that occupational therapy won't start for 6 to 8 weeks, in the meantime the splint is on 24/7. The new custom splint is more streamlined and quite a bit for comfortable. But things still hurt, quite a lot. I had to drive into Santa Fe again this morning for a PT session on my lower back/hip problem. Two days in a row of driving that far has made me exhausted and in more pain, so I am going to take it real easy the rest of the day and read (and nap) in bed. I have to rest my right hand (the dominant one) so I don't blow that out as well while the left is healing.

It'll be a cozy afternoon in my tiny house; it's cold, and grey, and snowing-sleeting off and on. I have lots of books, some new tea and a heating pad for the back. The only thing missing is a kitty to snuggle with...

[SiouzQ.]

My, how time flies! Tomorrow I am going in to get the titanium plate taken out of my left arm. The bone is completely healed, but the plate itself is a bit annoying-feeling, as she warned it might become (it makes my forearm feel weird in the position it needs to be in when I play guitar). Plus, I have already hit my out-of-pocket expenses for the year from the insurance company so I might as well get it done and get it paid for.

So, since everything is being paid for until the end of the year, I went ahead and got the MRI done for the right hand and wrist. I have the exact same congenital-degenerative problem on the right hand, which is fast becoming about as sore as the left wrist was. Surgery for that is tentatively scheduled for mid-October, after the busy season in the gallery. That recovery is going to to way harder, being that it is my dominant hand. I don't want to think that far ahead; I just need to get through this little surgery tomorrow and my procedure next week for my other pressing problem.

It's always something these days....

[Teacher Terry]

Sorry to hear about your right wrist. I learned to do a lot of things with my left hand after breaking my right wrist. It really sucked and 4 months later I am still recovering. You have had so many things go wrong this year. Time for your luck to change.