After meeting with my orthopedist today, I am officially getting rid of the big bulky leg brace that I have been wearing for the last 6 weeks. Good riddance. I am still going to use the smaller one that I had before surgery, just to act as a precaution, and only for the time being. I think that in my ordinary life and non-dangerous and/or extended standing times, I am going to be brace free, using it only when I am at work or going to a place where I might be compromised.
My appointment was for 10 this morning. So then why the fuck was I sitting in the waiting room, getting progressively more and more anxious, until 10 goddamn 30? Appointments are appointments, and a specialty doctor is pretty important. In the middle of the day, people have shit to do, so why make me wait an absurd amount of time just to get a chance to wait some more? Yeah, after getting into an exam room, I was sitting there for another 10 minutes to see the doc. After all of that, I was able to get checked out, and see what I can and cannot do, and all of that took about 15 minutes. So I was there for about an hour, and 3/4 of that time was spent waiting. That's crap.
But in the end, I did find out a lot. I can get back into the gym, riding the stationary and doing lower body workouts to strengthen my leg. So that is a positive. I still can't run, not allowed to do that for another 6 weeks or so. Being without the brace and having my knee doing stuff on its own is going to be a challenge, and I will learn more and more as I do more and more stuff.
Now I am getting back into work, and generally returning to a normal life. I can set a schedule for myself now, and force myself to do things. I need that kind of structure, at least 5 days a week, so I can keep my sanity and not waste my life away doing nothing. Being able to do things on the side is nice, writing here and for The Scope has been fun, and now that I have less and less time on my hands, I think that I will be more willing to set aside time for those things, as well as my beer work, and pay more attention to them.
I guess all of this will sift itself out over the next few weeks. Looking forward to getting back into a routine.
SD
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Dumptruck
A quick update: Everything is right on track. I can move around well enough, and my physical therapist tells me that my leg is good and stable. Not ready to be on its own yet, I still have the brace and have to get a newer, smaller one, probably next week, from my orthopedist. But other than that, I seem to be doing well. Bully for me.
Because I can drive around, I am independent again. I went grocery shopping today, and it sucked pretty good, as grocery shopping normally does. I get confused in those stores and eventually forget to get something important. It was laundry detergent today. I make up for my lack of setting related abilities by getting something useless. It was fancy mustard today. The first place I went was the new co-op in Noank, where Universal Store was. I know the people who run it, and I knew that they would have something that I actually needed. I went there specifically for Vitamin E oil, which is used for dulling the starkness of my Frankenscar. After that, I went to the supermarket near my apartment. I generally don't care for Shop Rite. I think it is dirty, but I suffer through because it is a supermarket and it is close to my apartment.
On my way from Noank to New London, I got stuck behind a dumptruck. This may not seem to be a big deal, but to me, it was. I was stuck behind this monster for about a mile. Apparently we were going to the same place. Once I was on the actual highway, not just the streets in Groton leading up to it, I was able to pass the truck. Finally, I was free of the loud bulky monstrosity. There was free highway as far as I could see. Or so I hoped. Instead of being able to drive in peace towards the grocery store, I was stuck behind another goddamn dump truck. What the hell construction dudes! Why are there so many friggin' dump trucks on the road? In the ten or so minutes of interstate that I drove down, there must have been a dozen of these things plowing to some unknown worksite with their dumpers full of who knows what, or relieved of their load by a grateful landfill, heading back for another round.
Either way, I got to Shop Rite. Bad idea. I forgot that it is Tuesday, and Tuesday is old person day at Shop Rite. Never. Again. I drove into the lot and realized that there was a flood of old people unseen since the early bird special at (insert diner name here). I did not stop my car at all, just circled around and left. I went to the next closest supermarket, the Stop and Shop in Waterford, and got my food without much turmoil. No more dump trucks, no more flocks of old people clogging everything, just a cart with a fucked up wheel, like normal.
Once I get cleared to have a full day's work, I guess everything will be back to normal.
SD
Oh, yeah, this is what I have been doing: www.thescopemagazine.com Read what happens!
Because I can drive around, I am independent again. I went grocery shopping today, and it sucked pretty good, as grocery shopping normally does. I get confused in those stores and eventually forget to get something important. It was laundry detergent today. I make up for my lack of setting related abilities by getting something useless. It was fancy mustard today. The first place I went was the new co-op in Noank, where Universal Store was. I know the people who run it, and I knew that they would have something that I actually needed. I went there specifically for Vitamin E oil, which is used for dulling the starkness of my Frankenscar. After that, I went to the supermarket near my apartment. I generally don't care for Shop Rite. I think it is dirty, but I suffer through because it is a supermarket and it is close to my apartment.
On my way from Noank to New London, I got stuck behind a dumptruck. This may not seem to be a big deal, but to me, it was. I was stuck behind this monster for about a mile. Apparently we were going to the same place. Once I was on the actual highway, not just the streets in Groton leading up to it, I was able to pass the truck. Finally, I was free of the loud bulky monstrosity. There was free highway as far as I could see. Or so I hoped. Instead of being able to drive in peace towards the grocery store, I was stuck behind another goddamn dump truck. What the hell construction dudes! Why are there so many friggin' dump trucks on the road? In the ten or so minutes of interstate that I drove down, there must have been a dozen of these things plowing to some unknown worksite with their dumpers full of who knows what, or relieved of their load by a grateful landfill, heading back for another round.
Either way, I got to Shop Rite. Bad idea. I forgot that it is Tuesday, and Tuesday is old person day at Shop Rite. Never. Again. I drove into the lot and realized that there was a flood of old people unseen since the early bird special at (insert diner name here). I did not stop my car at all, just circled around and left. I went to the next closest supermarket, the Stop and Shop in Waterford, and got my food without much turmoil. No more dump trucks, no more flocks of old people clogging everything, just a cart with a fucked up wheel, like normal.
Once I get cleared to have a full day's work, I guess everything will be back to normal.
SD
Oh, yeah, this is what I have been doing: www.thescopemagazine.com Read what happens!
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Benchmark Cleared
I can drive again. I haven't been able to since hurting myself almost 2 months ago. The therapist said that as long as I am comfortable doing it, because I am strong enough, that I can drive. Short distances at first, and build up towards longer journeys. Of course, I have no idea what constitutes a short versus long distance. I am going with 30 minutes at a time as a starting point. I think that if I can get around in trips that put me behind the wheel for less than 30 minutes I should be good to go. This works well for me because I don't really go anywhere that is farther away than that, so I'm pretty much good to go.
This mark has been important to me throughout this process. I want to be self sufficient, and being mobile is a way to do that. No longer do I have to rely on people to take me from point A to point B. I can go get my own groceries. If I have to go to the pharmacy for something, I can do that. If I want to go somewhere to watch a game with my friends, I can do that. If I want to drive around for 30 minutes or less, I can do that. I have a car. I get to use it again. The frustrating thing, the especially frustrating thing, is that I just got this damn car in November. I got to drive it for about 4 months before I had to get back into the passenger seat for 7 weeks. That hardly seems fair.
But there is more good news recently than bad. I shouldn't complain. Not only is driving again back in my life, but it comes at the expense of pills. What I mean is, I gained driving and ran out of Ibuprofen this morning. No more horse pills to take three times a day, no more feeling like an old person with scheduled pill taking times. No more worrying about side effects. More importantly, no more dealing with side effects.
All of this is means that my recovery is going swimmingly! I am meeting my benchmarks and right on schedule, according to the protocol set forth by my orthopedist. I seem to be doing well. I don't hurt, and even if I did, I have more than enough ammunition to ward off pain. Granted, my leg isn't as strong as it could be, but it's strong enough to drive. The remainder of my rehab will be strength, balance, and conditioning for my quad. The bone is healing around the burs at the end of the new ligament, but I still got 8-10 weeks before that is fully healed up. With that bone growing back, I can still walk around pretty well. I have a noticeable limp, and I lack the confidence to push it (which is probably a good thing), but at least I can get around my neighborhood without a chaperone.
The next thing to go is the big brace. I have it wrapped around my leg all damn day, except for when I'm asleep or in the shower. I have an appointment with the orthopedist in a couple weeks, and then I should be fitted with a smaller version of the thing that I have. Probably more comfortable and forgiving. I wonder if there is going to be any separation anxiety. I know that I am going to be stronger by that time, to the point where I wonder how long I am actually going to have to adjust my life to account for my knee. I got a stronger version of the PT band that I had before. The added resistance is going to help expedite the strengthening process, and along with general use, I think that I am in pretty good shape.
This is the time when I nod my head approvingly at my own awesomeness.
SD
This mark has been important to me throughout this process. I want to be self sufficient, and being mobile is a way to do that. No longer do I have to rely on people to take me from point A to point B. I can go get my own groceries. If I have to go to the pharmacy for something, I can do that. If I want to go somewhere to watch a game with my friends, I can do that. If I want to drive around for 30 minutes or less, I can do that. I have a car. I get to use it again. The frustrating thing, the especially frustrating thing, is that I just got this damn car in November. I got to drive it for about 4 months before I had to get back into the passenger seat for 7 weeks. That hardly seems fair.
But there is more good news recently than bad. I shouldn't complain. Not only is driving again back in my life, but it comes at the expense of pills. What I mean is, I gained driving and ran out of Ibuprofen this morning. No more horse pills to take three times a day, no more feeling like an old person with scheduled pill taking times. No more worrying about side effects. More importantly, no more dealing with side effects.
All of this is means that my recovery is going swimmingly! I am meeting my benchmarks and right on schedule, according to the protocol set forth by my orthopedist. I seem to be doing well. I don't hurt, and even if I did, I have more than enough ammunition to ward off pain. Granted, my leg isn't as strong as it could be, but it's strong enough to drive. The remainder of my rehab will be strength, balance, and conditioning for my quad. The bone is healing around the burs at the end of the new ligament, but I still got 8-10 weeks before that is fully healed up. With that bone growing back, I can still walk around pretty well. I have a noticeable limp, and I lack the confidence to push it (which is probably a good thing), but at least I can get around my neighborhood without a chaperone.
The next thing to go is the big brace. I have it wrapped around my leg all damn day, except for when I'm asleep or in the shower. I have an appointment with the orthopedist in a couple weeks, and then I should be fitted with a smaller version of the thing that I have. Probably more comfortable and forgiving. I wonder if there is going to be any separation anxiety. I know that I am going to be stronger by that time, to the point where I wonder how long I am actually going to have to adjust my life to account for my knee. I got a stronger version of the PT band that I had before. The added resistance is going to help expedite the strengthening process, and along with general use, I think that I am in pretty good shape.
This is the time when I nod my head approvingly at my own awesomeness.
SD
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