I knew when I went to bed at 4:30pm Wednesday I was following orders from my body telling me to. I had a lot of steps vacuuming and doing laundry. The first two days home I was close to 900 steps per day and when the dust settled Wednesday at midnight I had 2,286 for the day. I was glad that my plan was to cut back a little, rest and sleep more. I had pushed myself a little but that is okay in this process. Pushing yourself is getting up and out of bed when you think it might hurt. Mother Nature and the Hounds are a huge motivating factor pushing the limits.
I sleep very good between the periods I get up. Mostly for me and toward the end of the morning, for the hounds. It is more stiffness than soreness than anything else. I have not had any kind of severe pain since my wreck on Saturday morning.
Stella woke me up at 4am with the nose nudge to my hand. Heidi was 'lights out' and probably didn't hear us the whole time we were up. She did her job I did mine but when she came back inside she had that smile that dogs get ... she thought she was back to normal routine of eating breakfast as soon as she woke up.
You can see by 7am she figured out that was not going to happen. She waited outside on the patio all morning before MJ would show up to feed them. She is very busy but very conscientious. She washes the dog dishes after each meal. She talks to them although her stay is short now that I am home and gives them a treat before she leaves. So it's good to know the hounds are taken care of from this point forward if something were to happen.
Heidi decided to sleep until the food was served .. her new bed does not arrive until September 16th ... Chewy had to go all the way to their warehouse in Indiana to find one.
Stella followed our routine as much as possible but boy has that changed. First she could not walk for two weeks, now I can't take her for a walk for who knows how long. MJ will take her for the walk if I add a few bucks to my discounted rate she is giving me.
Even though I could get up out of bed the first time they asked me to on Monday morning and all the times I have had to get up at all hours of the night here ... there is always a slight hesitation making that first move. Luckily my arms and my left (non surgical) leg are stronger. I can lift my butt up off the bed a little higher to make swing the bad leg to the left or edge of the bed a little easier. I have to keep it straight at all times and rotate slowly not to put any added stress on the hip joint as I turn.
I then sit on the side of the bed and slowly raise my lower leg to the level of my knee ... both legs. I've been doing the "ankle push" as they suggested for PT to not only strengthen the calf and hamstring but also for circulation to prevent blood clots.
When I stand if I can feel my left heel dig into the carpet that lets me know that I have all my weight on my good leg as I position myself within the walker in front of me. Then away we go, one foot in front of another slowly gliding down the hallway. I keep telling myself how good it will feel five days from now, each time I am walking. I sit in hard straight back chairs slowly and can't wait until I can sit on the couch again ... but I sink back into that so much I would never be able to get back on my feet at this point in time.
I have three different places with gauze covering holes where they either took blood or put my two different IVs. I would like to take them off but I remember how fast and hard they bled with the nurse took them off. I have gauze but I don't have that brown wrap they use but almost bought a few weeks ago with my cut finger. Believe me, although I think and others do to, that I am doing great so far, there is still hesitation at times to make that first step or move ... there is fear at times.
As far as those past insertion points, they have classified me as a bleeder now. I'm not in the mood to be chasing blood all over the bathroom because I wanted to take off the 4 day old gauze pad. So they will stay until I find out what to do. all three bandages came off without blood shooting all over the monitor ... that's good. LOL
I try not to dwell on much. It is what it is. Life is constantly in motion and this is what we are riding right now, only to get better. I was pissed off Saturday morning in the ER but got rid of that feeling soon after and thought about nothing but a plan to feel better and what I had to do. As much as I want to I am NOT going to rush this healing/rehab process. I am going to do what the doctors tell me and when to do them.
Different friends of mine and even the surgeon know of other bicyclists that have had a "total" hip replacement and are back in Spinning Class or riding on the road competitively. My friend that is a bicyclist and PT tells me I will have no problem getting back on the bike feeling good enough to ride.
But there's a big elephant sitting in the room with me and the hounds.
My Electrocardiogram Saturday showed that I have a heart murmur. From what friends have told me the past few days, everyone seems to have one or knows someone that does. But ....... In my case ...
My heart murmur is caused by a genetic deficiency and something called Aortic Valve Stenosis. The aorta valve that opens and closes for blood to leave the heart is not working smoothly and is partially blocked. The valve will not open and close all the way. With a family history of heart disease I always thought I'd have by-pass surgery first not this.
From what the doctor told me again on Monday before I left, my physical condition is a big factor in my fast recovery from the hip surgery and also makes the treatment options for the valve much less severe. Of course I will not know the recommendation until I talk to a cardiologist and I can't see one until a General Practitioner recommends one. In the meantime the doctor says I need to see one fairly soon but with my active life and diet that I eat ... things should be fine until then.
Those last few paragraphs should be a sign that this blog is going to get more truthful or giving out more information than I want to give. I wasn't going to say anything about the heart situation but after a few emails and a comment or two here, I agreed with them. The more honest I am with what is going on with my health might help someone else or others that have the same situations.
Al at BayfieldBunch.com said from the first of his health issues he was going to lay it out for all to see in case it helped someone else. I agree now that I am sitting in a similar lobby that he is. That is hard for someone that has lived alone for decades by choice ... I like it. I like the freedom. I like being single. So now instead of "me me me" my life is heading towards spilling my guts with hopes of not only improving my own health but maybe helping someone else that has similar issues.
Or cannot seem to get a straight answer from a doctor.
So stay tuned I guess.
The hounds have slept most of the morning and I can hear the small voice in my head telling me it's time for a siesta ... so that's what I'll do.
Never fear ... it's great living in the Wild West.