5/19/2014 Closing Wounds, Closing Shows (Good News)

It was a busy weekend! I found the compression stockings for the Shin Divot - oh SO much better than ace bandages, and I was able to get  the vascular PA to write a prescription, so I could pay for it on my FSA card. Injury is expensive. :/

Had a great meeting to do "tablework" (Discussing the interpretation, history etc) on an epic poem my friend wrote and he, another actor friend and I are working on for  public reading. Very exciting creative process! 

I'm pretty tired - I think it's the Divot - small wounds can still require big energy to heal. I am making sure to eat well and enough, and I am TIRED! Friday and Saturday's shows were good ( a few bobbles Friday, but - hey! Live theatre, folks! ). 

Because Im so tired, I'm a bit set back in the hip department, nothing terrible, but a bit more pain - it is amazing how any period of inactivity can really put you back. All in good time, but I am ready to do this MOVING FORWARD thing!! 

Today, I had my first appointment with the Wound care specialist - 

This is a conversation I had with a friend about it: 

So I'm wondering why Dr. Norene didn't just send me there in the first pace - but obviously he had vascular concerns.

They were *great*! I had asked a coworker who is a nurse about my wound and the care from the vascular team and it seemed not the right thing to her. Somewhat archaic - zinc oxide, gauze and changing the dressing twice a day, wrapping it.

She was right. Ace bandage and zinc oxide are a very outdated treatment.

The Wound care specialist used silver nitrate to re-open the edges and surface of the wound, which I knew they might. I didn't hurt at all, but it's a little ouchy tonight - expected, no problem.

The reason for that is, the edges were prematurely healing, or "rolling", and there was a thin layer of skin prematurely forming over the healing "granular" tissue, sort of sealing it and not firing the right enzymes for healing.

I will definitely continue to go.

It turns out that changing the dressing 2x a day, as I was directed by the vascular PA was WAY to often!

It doesn't let the tissue heal! SO - silver nitrate, the a collagen patch filling the wound. Over that, this blue foam stuff that absorbs any fliud, and then a waterproof sealer. I dress it in three days, see how it's doing... then once more before I see her next Tuesday. I'm still using the pressure stocking, which i SO prefer! She was OK with that, and taylored the dressing to it, as well as making it waterproof. There are apparently a bunch of ways to do it .

I FINALLY feel like it's the right thing!!! The wound care team was great!

They iiked that I wanted to know all about it, and that I already knew some about it.

I'm feeling a little under the weather tonight, just like one does when you have a new owie - not sick, but very tired. I'm making sure to eat plenty - protein and veg and fruit. Working very hard not to eat any sugar, but I'm also supposed to be eating carbs (for wound healing) - cereal and such... it comes with a little maple syrup in it.. I don't add any, and I'm not sweetening my coffee. Sugar is everywhere. I ate a tiny piece of cheesecake last night after strike - probably shouldn't have, but I was celebrating.

Speaking of last night, the show closed spectacularly. It was an OVER-sold house - they added 10 chairs - and they were a fantastic, responsive audience. couldn't as for a better way to close - except, NOT to close!!! This one, I was absolutely NOT ready to end.

I love that group of theatre artists, and we created a beautifully-told/sung story with this beautiful musical. It's going to be hard next weekend when it would be time to go to the theatre!

Funny enough - it just dawned on me that I have a birthday in two days! Not one plan!! I have been preoccupied with the wound and the show, and of course there's my day job! 

Ah well - something will present itself!