One week plus a day

I have decided that I am going to start to focus on what I am thankful that I can do instead of what i cant do... like walk. I am going to try to do at least one thing for my morale everyday.  Today, it was a big one and it has improved my morale by about 100%!!  I was 99% independent in taking a kinda sorta shower! 

I am still thankful for my family and all our wonderful friends who have been so kind and loving.  I am thankful for my dogs.  I am thankful I have a job that I like with health insurance.  I am thankful for summer vacation.  I am thankful for my clean house.  I am thankful for Marco Polo...if you dont know what it is, download the app and you can video chat with your friends.  Lastly today, I am thankful that I was able to dress like a person and not a convalescent today!  Tomorrow, I may be back to my tank top PJ's but today, I was able to put on real clothes, and take a ride in the car with my mom to get lunch at Chick-Fil-A.  

Today, has been a good day. 

Bored

I have been so bored.  I am thankful for my dear friend Lynn who I Marco Polo with many times daily.  She is in the same boat as me but slightly different...left foot, 4 screws and a plate.  She had her surgery a week before I did. 

I think I have officially gone stir crazy!  All I wanted to do less than a month ago when I was teaching is come home, sit on the couch and sleep...and this is what I am actually doing right now!  I sit on the couch or recliner with nowhere I have to be and no schedule.  This blows!    I have learned that sitting around all day gets you sore. 

Heaven and Hell

Heaven = being able to kinda sorta take a shower and half-way move around the house
Hell =  not being able to do anything on my own or without assistance

Being able to kinda sorta take a real shower was absolutely wonderful and heavenly.  I'm sure its wasn't the prettiest of scenes, but I did it with Mom's help.  I am having to shower/bathe in the spare bathroom as I am having to use a lovely shower chair.  Because I am paranoid about getting my splint thingie wet, I am using "Press and Seal" wrap on my top portion of my splint, wrapping a garbage bag around my entire lower leg, then taping the garbage bag to my leg as I need it water tight!  You really don't know how much you use both your legs in everyday life until one is taken away!

  

To help my own personal sanity I am wanting to try to stay as independent as I can.  Things I can do independently now are:

*Get off the couch

*Get somewhat dressed

*Take a kinda sorta shower and wash my hair

*Take a "Circus Bath" with baby wipes...probably TMI, sorry!

*Dry and "fix" my hair

*Roll on my knee roller

I am also trying to keep all my essentials in a shoe box within reach or in the basket of my knee roller.  My essentials include, dry shampoo cause I cannot stand greasy hair, hair pic, hair scrunchies, meds, crackers, bottle of water, chapstick, pen, notebook, cell phone, extra charger, iPad, and my Chromebook sits on the table.  

I am already tired of being stuck in the house.  My follow up appointment with Dr. Vineyard is not until July 3.  I am looking forward to being able to do things on my own again and actually be helpful with things around the house.  As for now, I pretty much am useless.  I sit or lay on the couch or recliner.  Overall, recovery has been what I thought it would have been except I have had far less pain than I expected.

Days 2 & 3

Challenge -  this is my key word.

Everything I do is going to be a challenge.

I came home on a nifty little ambIT Pump, which is pumping whatever is in the lovely iv bag attached to the pump by one little hose and also attached to my leg by a little hose.  At G.W. Carver, we have two fantastic nurses...Nurse Nancy and Nurse Sheri, who are BOTH dear friends.  I was lucky to have BOTH nurses offer to pull my pain pump on Sunday.  Nurse Sheri, who brought us a yummmmy dinner, got the honor of pulling my pump out of my leg.  I feel so much better since this has been done.  I did have to start taking my pain meds though.

Here is my sweet little Izzy...she has been a good companion along with Griffy, Boozy, and Monk Monk.    Thankful for Troy, Mom, Dad, being able to "KINDA" take a shower on day 3, and all our sweet friends who have checked in on us and brought us dinner these first three days.

I'm back!

Life is officially having to slow down for me, I had Haguland's Deformity surgery on June 15, so I am pretty much confined to my couch/recliner and non-weight bearing on my right foot until July 3.  What a better time for me to start blogging again.

Update on pups...Thomas is doing great!  Last year, Troy and I raised a wonderful Fox Red Labrador Retriever named Amos.  Amos is doing great and HOPEFULLY set to graduate with his forever person within a few months!  I will update when this occurs.  Our pup that we are raising this time around is a Black Labrador Retriever named Griffy.  We love him dearly and he is wonderful!

So, I guess this blog is going to be a bit about this "journey" I will be on for the next year...yes, one year from start to finish and be fully recovered.  At this moment in time, Troy is taking over training for Griffy until I can get "back on both of my feet".

Haglund's Deformity is basically a calcium build up on the back of your heel.  This calcium build up is often referred to as a bone spur.  You can see my before x-ray below.  My bone spur decided to break off at the top and lodge the broken part in my Achilles Tendon, which was already weakened from a previous injury two years ago, of which, the insurance would not fix.  The said it was "cosmetic".

I had my surgery on June 15 as soon as I could get out of school.  They took the bone spur out of my foot and cleaned up my heel bone,  & repaired my Achilles Tendon, THANKFULLY without having to take a tendon from my big toe.  Here is my new x-ray.  My heel looks great and I have a lovely $6000 "anchor" in my foot that is holding my Achilles Tendon to the bone and allowing it to heal properly.  This is why I'm non-weight bearing until July 3.

This is my view now!  I have to be honest, I am turning some of my journals into blog posts, so this is not the only post that will come up tonight.