PROGRESS AT LAST

It is with much pleasure to report  that this week I have felt the best since my Jan 3 hip surgery.  This week has been pivotal in my therapy sessions, as my PT is seeing movement in areas that were extremely resistant before.  I am still receiving PT 3 times per week.    I am able to walk for longer periods without constant pain medication.  The mobility has really helped with my recovery.  In regard to the pain meds, if you have been reading my previous posts, you will know that I was crying at the drop of a hat. LOL   I am happy to report, it’s got to be something really really bad now, for me to cry.  Oh how the little steps in life can make one so happy.  J  But just know that if the dog runs away on a TV show now, or someone looks at me in a bad way, I’m GOOD, NO MORE TEARS!   This my friends is a call for celebration.  Go ahead, have a glass of wine on me.  Heck, I think I will tonight.
So with hope, luck, and whatever else I can throw into the equation, I will continue to improve each day, working towards getting back to my old cranky self once again.

Thank you to all of my  followers (followers---hmmm makes me feel like some King or something) who have expressed genuine concern.   I truly appreciate your concern and attention.  My recovery would not have been possible withtout the tremendous love and support from all of my family and friends.  I just can't seem to say that enough.  THANK YOU!

P.S.---My definition of real progress will be when I can put on socks without an assistive device, and tie my own shoes.  I still feel as if I'm in 1st grade, when asking Chuck, my PT, a stranger on the street, to tie my shoe for me.  SAD isn't it?   This too shall pass.  Sometime....

SIX WEEKS DOWN!

Greetings and Happy Valentine's Day to all. Today marks the 6th week since my hip surgery on January 3. It's been a very long six weeks. Some days good, most not so good.

I continue to be in moderate to severe pain in my leg and lower back. I saw my surgeon last week. He and my Physical Therapist believe much of this pain is caused from the stenosis in my lower back and issues with the sciatic nerve. So while it appears my hip is recovering as he expected, I am not out of the woods yet. The Dr. believes due to my hip precautions, my pain is aggravated even greater. So the prognosis is to continue PT and see if there are improvements in the next 2-3 weeks. If no significant improvements, we will begin a regime of pain management (cortisone injections) to attempt relief.

In summary, I continue to perform my daily exercises prescribed by my PT. I'm just not used to this thing one calls "exercise". However, I have seen small but significant improvements in my strength, etc. in the last few weeks. Things I could not do then are no longer impossible to achieve. My exercises are worse than going to a gym. I have PT 3 times a week, and take pain meds around the clock. Speaking of pain meds, most of you are probably aware that a side effect of pain medicine is depression. Well let me tell you something, I'm not depressed. However, I just can't seem to explain things like, If I'm watching a TV show and a dog runs away from home, I cry; If I drop my cane, I cry; If Chuck looks at me crossed eyed, I cry. It's MELTDOWN at it's finest. But I'm NOT depressed. LOL!!!! Fortunately, my Dr. tells me this is a side effect, that will go away once I'm off the meds.

Again, thank you to all the well wishes I have received throughout this struggling time period. Your support and friendship is of extreme value in my recovery. Very much appreciated.

WALDO! Gone But Not Forgotten....

Clearly I would never make a very good professional blogger.  If there is such a type of person.  Updating a blog daily is right up there with flossing daily.   It just doesn't happen naturally for me.  Now on to the latest news!

Where in the world is Waldo now?  Who cares?  He was officially removed during outpatient surgery on Thursday, Feb 2.  Chuck's procedure was scheduled for 12:00 pm  However, his doctor was called to assist a colleague in an emergency surgery, pushing back the procedure until about 4pm.   I would never have tolerated a delay of such magnitude.  Chuck informed me that he did very well in the waiting area of the Operating room (OR).  A nurse phoned me with an update reporting that Chuck was fine and was holding court in the OR waiting area.  This was good news, despite the bad news of a delay!

We were home taking our pain pills and watching Jeopardy by 8 that evening!  Pathetic as it may sound; there was calmness to it all, watching Jeopardy.   Jeopardy, I mean OMG, could we not have watched something that the younger people watch?  All we really needed were matching recliners with cup holders.  I'm afraid we have become the all American household, right out of the 50's/60's.  Even though I feel like a complete idiot when answering the questions asked on the show.

While Chuck and Waldo had become the best of friends, Chuck was not sad to say adios to his pal.  I'm happy to report that since Waldo has been removed, Chuck has felt very good.  Waldo was a painful memory.  He will not be forgotten!

DRAMA ON THE HOMEFRONT

While not encouraged, it seems there is always some type of drama going on at the Gulas-Smith household. But now that I think about it, most all households probably have some type of drama throughout the year. Anyway, .......

WALDO IS BACK
Chuck is blessed with a kidney stone or two about every 15 months or so. They are wicked evil when they arrive in his body. We now classify them as aliens from another planet . He experiences lots of pain when they come. So two weeks ago, he awoke at 3:00 am to report "he's bacckkkkkkkk". Our dear friends and neighbors Dan and Nancy took him to the ER about 6:30 am. So between 3 and 6:30, I tried my best to be the supporting spouse. However, deep inside, PANIC had set in. Selfishly, I started worrying about me. I know that comes of great surprise to those of you who know me well. LOL---NOT! How would I get food made? get prescriptions? etc. if he was admitted to the hospital. Yes I know it's selfish. But the reality is I needed a Plan B, which clearly I did not have. So there was good and bad news of that day. The good new is that the stone was identified. It was "very large" . The bad news was meant it would most likely not disappear on it's own. So Chuck was home by 3 that day still carrying the monster inside him. Once again, we had to depend on another friend to transport him home form the hospital, as I am still not permitted to drive because of the pain meds. Waldo the kidney stone continues to hide. Where in the world is Waldo?
For those readers who are not familiar with this Waldo character, I have provided a link below to educate you further on finding Waldo. :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Where's_Wally%3F

FRIENDS-- WHAT A BLESSING
I cannot imagine how we would have dealt with everything between my hip replacement and Chuck's kidney stone, without the help from Friends. They really are there when you need them. I only hope that I/we are able to repay them back someday, with the same kindness and support they haven given to us. So THANK YOU to all our friends and family for your ongoing support. It does not go unnoticed.

Fast forward: Waldo was identified when he went to the ER, so now he just had to be destroyed! Chuck was scheduled for this mission to take place yesterday as an outpatient procedure/surgery. It was scheduled for 12:45/1:00. Long story short, the procedure did not take place until 4pm, ending about 5. I personally, am glad I was not in the same room with the man in pain, no food since midnight the night before, and I'm sure just NOT HAPPY about the delay. I was sipping tea in the waiting room, catching up on the important things in life. You know People Magazine, Celebrity scandals, etc. LOL. The surgery was successful, and Waldo is no longer. We hope he does not come to visit for a long long time or ever again.

So we arrived home about 6:30, each popped our pain meds, got our dinner, and sat with yes (our TV trays) watching Jeopardy. SAD isn't it. LOL But alas we were both relaxed and at peace.

WEEK IN REVIEW

The week started out about the same, which can be summed up very easy, PAINFUL! Beginning on Wed of this week, I started sleeping about 7 hours a night. Prior to this, I had averaged only 3-3.5 hrs nightly since my surgery. So the additional sleep and continued therapy, began showing me small signs,of improvement each day towards the latter part of this week.

I begain outpatient Physical Therapy this week. My new PT is very knowledgeable. He handles many of my Surgeons hip replacement patients. I will continue PT for another 4-6 weeks.

Wednesday this week was a delightful day. Only my third time out of the house since January 3. :) I had morning PT, then lunch with my dear friend Gina, and finally I topped off the night by attending the Mr. Eureka High School (EHS) Pageant. Parker a senior (our friends youngest) was in the competition. This was indeed a big deal at the school and around the community. It was quite the variety/talent show, with lots of good talent, laughter, and so on. Miss Missouri was the MC for the night. While Parker did not get the crown of Mr. EHS, he was happy to be a part of the contest. We were all very proud of him. Needless to say I did way to much that day and the pain was, hmmm let's see UNBEARABLE. However, the finale being the Mr. EHS, made it all worthwhile.

Stay tuned for a new posting about yet more drama in the Gulas-Smith household! :)