Surgery Minus 1 Week

Ack. Time is getting away from me again. This always happens before surgery. I think I have all kinds of time, and then it's here.

I guess I am ready. The surgeon finally refilled my good pain meds to get me through this final week. I won't be able to take aspirin or much of anything except Tylenol and narcotics. Better living through Vicodin.

~Thanks for the ugly legs.~

The Groom took a picture of my knees the other day so I can have a record of before and after. I was puffy from running around all day and half the night. (Ignore the awfully poofy shorts. This was the first thing I grabbed that would show my knees. I am not really shaped like that.) Right now, my legs look like an inverted Y. After surgery on one knee, I guess they will look like a K - one straight, one still crooked.

I remember that I used to wear my shoes out on the sides something awful. They make shoes much better now, so I doubt I'll have to replace any. If they were worn, I'd have to get new ones because my gait and stance will be different.

I measured m'self at the doctor's office today. I am 5'10, exactly. I should be 5'11" when this is all over with. That's pretty darned tall!

Surgery Minus Two Weeks

I went to the pre-op knee and hip surgery class this past Monday. I met some women who will be on the same unit with me recovering: Barb, Margaret, and Phyllis. Barb and Margaret (knees) are having surgery the 31st, Phyllis (hip) and I on the 1st... the same surgeon. Her surgery is first, so I told her not to wear out the surgeon.

I asked about pre-op exercises. The nurse nixed that, saying we use our leg muscles enough doing our activities of daily living. Um .. hello? I don't do much daily living right now. I think (from a fellow nurse's perspective) that she was just answering off the fly. If you don't know the answer, make one up.

I've stopped exercising my legs. Not because of the nurse, but because I was in so much pain last week. I don't know if working my legs to exhaustion caused the flares or if it just made the pain worse, but I couldn't stand it. I don't have enough pain meds to get me through to the end of the month, so I'm taking it easy.

All rooms on the unit are private, thank you very much. They will be getting our happy asses out of bed the same day as surgery. We start rehab the next morning, bright and early. Plan A: ask for lots of drugs. Plan B: ask for more drugs.

Our nurses will have telephones. We will call them instead of "hitting the buzzer." I've been in other hospitals that used this method. I can't see that it is any better than the old call button method. Certainly, it isn't any quicker.

We can also order our meals whenever we want off of a menu. That works well for the patients. I'm not so sure about the nursing staff.

I got to hold a knee replacement and a hip replacement dohickey. They are heavy. The knee weighs 2 ounces more than the hip. Go figure. I like the feel of how smoothly the joints move. No more snap, crackle, pop, and creak.

Home health and home occupational therapy will visit for up to 4 weeks. I hope I get the same crew as I've had before. We are becoming quite familiar with each other -- enough so that the visiting nurse can tell if I've lost weight, if I'm feeling poorly, etc.

We are finally doing taxes. I was the holdup, getting all of the medical deductions together. I have most everything added up for last year - a bit over $12,000. No wonder we are always broke. That is a big chunk of our income to be flying out the door. More than our mortgage.

I've been cooking and freezing things. I have fried catfish, vegetable beef stew, chili, corned beef, and a casserole I made up consisting of chopped broccoli, cream cheese, cream of mushroom soup, crab meat, crumbled Ritz crackers with butter, and lots of pepper. I also have some favorite frozen dinners. That should cover me for awhile after I get home.

My plans for next week include packing for the hospital and making sure the house is walker-friendly. And paying bills. There is no internet access at the hospital, so I'll need to make sure everything is taken care of before I go in. I'll miss the world while I am cut off from my computer. I have books on CD. I'll probably take a player so I can at least relax with some reading/listening.

Surgery Minus 4 Weeks - Exercises

I have been doing leg exercises every day. Ouch. I knew my legs were weak from having bad knees for years and years, but doing these leg exercises really bring home just how weak I am.

There is no way I can do squats, so I've sort of made up some of my own exercises. My physical therapist (for my arm) gave me some printouts of a few things I can do, so I've been faithfully doing those. I do them all in the bath. I do love my hot baths!

-Quadriceps Set
-Heel Slide
-Clam Shell 45 degrees
-Straight Leg Raise
-Bent Leg Raise
-Wall squats (my version)

I should be scheduling a pre-op class soon. I'll ask what other exercises I can be doing to help after surgery.

A lady at church is having knee replacement the same day as I am. It will be nice to have someone with whom to compare notes. Hubby said a guy who had the surgery a few weeks ago (3? 4?) stopped by the office today and bounded up the steps without any assistance. That's what I like to hear!

Then hubby said, "You never hear anyone say they regret having that surgery." Good point. I suppose it is because by the time we agree to have knee replacement, things are really bad and the surgery gives quite a bit of relief and returns mobility.