Wednesday, January 24, 2018

#Recovery!!..Day 3 into 4...

#day 3. 2337 

Lying down def best - lots of moving around this evening and ankle now really thudding away...looking forward to last of the days pain killers!!

#day 4 0600

First all night sleep for a long time - (pre break as well), but def since last Tues. 

Downside, woke up on my back, but lying to my left, which meant my foot was lying to the left rather than straight up - and it immediately let me know....#complaining in its own hurty way!!

Next part of the adventure is to take pain killers, wait a while, then loo - which is an issue all of its own in my life!!  #oldgit. 

0650

Well #pain. 

Just been to loo, which entails dropping left leg first out of bed, then poorly right one...waiting a few seconds for the blood surge, which is when first tranche of payback for sleeping on my side. Pain here is sharp, cutting. 

My limited anatomy knowledge suspects it’s the blood vessels swelling up against caste... 

Next move is to pull myself upright and hop towards door. Yesterday I could grasp radiator- can’t today ‘cos I pulled it off the wall last night!!  

Then, bent the way I have been moaning at my Mother for doing over the past few months (at least her excuse is she’s 90!) I bumble along by grabbing the end of the bed, and hopping and bouncing of wardrobe door - ending the bedroom part of the adventure by flinging myself to the safe hands of the Mr Zimmer!! ( never thought I would be saying that at 61 and a half). 

Part 2 of the early morning loo leads me into the bathroom and a Naked Gun style standing relief...we can’t shut door at the moment because we now have a ‘support’ loo ( kindly lent and kindly meant) for the more robust business that will hopefully happen later!  I say later, because that well known side effect of codeine is truly working!!  

By now the pain is a long constant ‘look at me’ call from the ankle joint area- and I am trying to hold poorly foot off floor, balance in a very wobbly way and keep my aim..not good at multitasking at the best of times!  

Finished, flushed, now to return...turning around is a right royal palaver by itself!! Grab hold of Zimmer, do a rain dance on the one foot hopping around to face bedroom again and repeat part 1 to throw myself back into the bed and put ankle back up ( straight up ⬆️) and pretty much instant release from the sharp, cutting pain...leaving the now deeper, background thud. Definitely not a dull thud yet, but it’s good to like back and realise that’s what it will become when drugs properly kicked in   😀


Of course, it’s only a temporary relief, it’s going to happen again when nature calls. 


  Preparation for a long day in bed...with feet UP!!!














#day 4 11.24am
This time last week I was lying back in a lane looking at the sky and feeling numb!!


Clean!!  And knackered, sat here breathing as if I have just climbed Cairngorm again!!  Even with a perch chair, everything at hand, it’s the effect of not being able to stand/balance or bend naturally- shaving a weeks grey whiskers off felt good though!  

 




I feel I have rush at it all, start shaking quickly- in fact I am shaking as I write this, #recovery!!






6pm

Frustrating - it’s hard to accept that you really CAN'T just POP into the kitchen, or the loo, or help with the washing or even just answer the door in less than 5 minutes...if it’s not the broken ankle, it’s the other foot/leg, in fact the whole of remnants of the body that appear to have to work 10times harder than before!! 


Upside is that it feels really good when I do flop back onto the bed with foot propped up high!! 
Killing the pillows though!!

Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Ankle Recovery etc...a blog

Okay, I fell, cracked me ankle in 3 places, was looked after exceptionally well by the staff at Stoke Mandeville...
pre op...

She loves me..

I needed to show I love her...

Post op...

Wash...pah, whats one of them...

Still loves me...(even though she cant see out of her gummy eyes!!)

Home...

Look...outside world!!

my new bestest friend...


...now I'm home and for the first time in my life, a proper invalid.  Not someone who is coughing and spluttering with pig flu or man flu or some other idle complaint..

So, lets keep a blog of my recovery ( my..our because I won't recover without the help of Suzie and friends,,,)..

Op #day 1 Sunday 21st January 2018

My first operation, didn't really know what to expect...all very professional, anaesthetist calm and clear...went 'down' at 1240, into anaesthetist room at just about 1 pm, chatting to me...then I woke up!!

No sense of doziness or dizziness before op at all!!  I have a fleeting recall of a short dream by then I just opened my eyes looking at ceiling in the recovery room!!!  Remember looking at clock - 2.45. They must have been waiting for me so they could finish their shift!  Zoomed back to the ward.

My leg below my knee felt like a block of cement - they had put a 'block' in for pain relief, no feeling in nerves for upto 24 hours.

Suzie had stayed at mothers Sat, (they are both unwell!!), so she arrived around 4ish...

still loves me...

Post op #day 2 Monday 22nd January 2018

Although they had mentioned, in passing really, that it would be expected that I would be discharged 24/48 hours after 'The Op', it came as a bit of a culture shock to be told I was going home yesterday ( Monday) ...Suzie had the baby car, no warm clothes for me and I became quite distressed ( and probably depressed) with it all.  But we made it!

Oh, but the pain!!  By the time we arrived at The Nest, I was a tad hurty...

The lovely John and Denice ( who is having to deal with her mum passing away on New Years Day) were here to help me get in the house, which was fun with the Zimmer, in the dark - but as ever Denice is the organised one with torches etc...I have never been so glad to sit down on a sofa with me legs up!!

Emotionally I had gone from shocked, depressed, distressed ( I cried my eyes out at one stage in the afternoons proceedings) to now into organiser mode - all selfish, all aimed at MY comfort..lets put this here, lets do this, put that there...need shopping...SIGH...

End result?

Pizza delivery for tea, J & D are being our shopping buddies and bed is the BEST place in the world..

Post op #day 3 Tuesday 23rd January 2018

Hectic start -
Made a tick list !!  But it worked!

Suzie wasn't TOO late leaving for work, I'm sat here lying, as per the only real instruction from surgery team, with my foot 6 inches high than my heart and i have all my needs for most of the day!! 

Pain...was feeling okay at first this morning, then I went to the loo, as soon as I dropped my ankle towards the floor, WHAM!  Blood shot down there and it complained in the LOUDEST possible fashion. I am determined ( being a wimp and all) to keep the pain level well down below my threshold for as much as I can for these first few days, so bed it will be...

Welcome to the office...at least I have a window with a breeze and birdie noises outside!!

Friday, January 19, 2018

There's always a first in life...me, my Ankle!!

So, there I was, happily wandering off on my Wednesday walk, this time at Watlington Hill
I had just said hello to this guy...
and taken in this view... 
and walked through the little side gate along The Oxfordshire Way...

when i slipped!!  I felt my left foot go sideways, shoved down my walking pole and then my right foot went woooshh under my left foot.  I heard THE CRACK!!  
Found myself on my back, looking at a beautiful clear blue sky and, in all honestity, a tad numb of mind.  Then I looked down and ...
Yep...hurty!!  SO, and here is where modern life has its real upside, took out my lovely, gorgeous iPhone and dialled 999.  
(Without the mobile, i would have had to drag myself up the pathway, through 2 gates and across a field to get back to the roadway...)
Wonderful people there organised things exceptionally quickly..'cos I was alone and in a remote location on a cold day, initially they were going to dispatch the air ambulance from RAF BEnson, but as i was so close, sent the medics in a land rover instead...i was churlish enough to feel disappointed at that - sorry!!
My View...

As i was lying here waiting a couple of Red Kites kept swooping down across this gap...never when i had my phone in hand ready!!!
They couldn't find me!!  I saw the blues go past the upper field twice...lots of shouty stuff from me, a couple more phone calls and they arrived, just like in a rescue movie (well from my angle anyway!!)
And here I am, Stoke Mandeville Hospital..
and please donate to..

https://www.tvairambulance.org.uk/

few more pics...
Ambulance driver told me he walks his dogs up around there, and none ever goes down that path!!

Queueing...not overly long and everybody was very polite to each other.."after you sir..no you first" etc...

then siri got in the act!!

naked broken ankle, now know its 3 places!

post manipulation and temp cast..

Operate? nope...still swollen...

Wifie sorted out decent clothes :)

Sunny room...