Wednesday 12/11/2013

Wed 12/11
We had a good morning- the home care nurse called to change the appointment from 8:30 am to between 2-3 pm- Michael, the same nurse who helped me deal with the severe constipation for surgery #1. Glad to hear it! I liked him ( though they have all been great!)

Shawna, my Physical therapist came- i was sleepy and a little sore, and her visit went great. 
She added a new leg lift to my still- healing Left leg... Very good!  She also gave a good therapeutic massage to my right knee, which is perhaps the most painful part of the injury pain. The surgery site itself had some deep soreness, but the surface is quite numb just now, which is probably a mercy. 
She also took me onto the  porch on the walker, which entails one step up and one down, either way. It was brief ( and chilly) but perfectly successful. We set up the next appointment and she was off, all smiles. 

Toni made us lunch of egg salad sandwiches and a nice big glass of orange juice. Delicious! 
Her food is always delicious, but there seems to be a week or two post surgery when one's taste buds are very acute, and food tastes extremely good! This is nice, as it really keeps the appetite going when it otherwise tends to be weaker. 

Toni had a shower and a nap. And nurse Michael arrived. The great news is that my Coumadin/warferen levels are still stellar- they took me off the Wednesday dose, and the Thursday dose is a dead-center 4mg. Each time the next several days' dosage gets assigned, i immediately  enter it into my iPhone calendar, with two alarms 5 minutes apart, and confirm it with my nurse. No messed up doses that way. 
Michael told me that either he or nurse Mary will be taking my staples out on Tuesday. I had request Mary, but Michael promised me he's a pro at it, and I'm certain I'll be happy with either one! 
We made our next appointment for Friday the 13th, and he made a face and a few macabre jokes about luck... The 13th a lucky day in the theatre, so I'm happy! 
He also let me off the hook for the incentive sperometer (post-op breathing device) - it was the first time he's even seen one assigned for a hip patient! My breathing is fine - 
My sister has been good about reminding me to use it- but it was feeling like a waste of time and a hassle, and like I didn't need it any more. She is going by the book, which is good-but no where did i have instructions for stopping use of the sperometer. Besides the fact the I use Pilates deep breathing techniques every time I do my PT exercises, and I am a singer, so I practice good deep breathing normally. 
Also - what I am trying to get her to see is that "the book" varies from one medical care professional to another - so slight variations, or common sense choices, are up to me as the person whose body this is. She is just trying to do it all right and help me getbetter, and I do appreciate that very much.   
So, as Toni was napping when Michael was here, I asked nurse to write down in my case log book that I can discontinue use of the Spirometer, along with the surprising prescription of no Coumadin tablet for the day. She doesn't trust my Norco- influenced memory, so it was good for both of us to have it in writing. 

After he left, Toni put on a pot of chili to cook and cleaned etc. She was heading to our brother's for a night off, with my friend Mariam doing night duty and Cheantell coming in the morning. Still being the first week home, just a good idea to have someone here 24/7. or with only short intervals alone. 
I'm extremely mindful and present when walking with the walker, but Not Falling is my #1 directive, and it's just smart not to force myself to putter in the kitchen alone, for instance.

Toni left about 4:30 pm, Mariam arrive about 6:00 - so nice to see her! We had some of Toni's delicious chili with sharo cheddar grated over it- so good!! 
Then Mariam gave us the treat of baking cookies- 
amazing flourless sun nut butter chocolate chip! Sun flower seed butter, egg, vanilla, cinnamon, honey, baking soda and powder, and mini chocolate chips! What a wonderful treat! :) 
We watched an a capella group sing-off on television, and were booth pooped by ten, and off to bed!