i have been away for a couple weeks, finally getting back to the forum and catching up on all the great bee stories/questions/pix and videos all have posted. wish i could say i had been on another great fishing adventure, but that has not been on the agenda and won't be for a few months, or maybe longer, so no graceful falls into the river or dinged fly reel stories.........
on monday july 20th, i had the first of two surgeries for total hip replacements, starting with the left hip first. the monday prior to my surgery, my surgeon's scheduling nurse called and asked if i was game for the first surgery, so it was scheduled. it was a hurry up week getting ready, with preop physical, etc, a class in joint surgery, getting the house ready, a 4 day regiment of the wonderful soap routine and battening down the bees the prior weekend.
i can't say enough about the excellent care i have received throughout, and it started the morning of my surgery. one of the law firms associates wives was my preop surgery nurse. she didn't know i was scheduled for this surgery, and i didn't know she worked at this particular hospital. it was a very pleasant surprise, and very comforting as well.
my surgery went well, but came with some setbacks. during surgery i lost about a quart of blood. before surgery my hemoglobin level was at a good norm of 12. 6. hemoglobin is a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout the body. on the third day after surgery it dropped to 7.4, and i was given a blood transfusion. what this translates to; other than a dent to my disposition.......
i am suffering from post surgery anemia from the blood loss, and it has been impeding any progress that i can make as far as my physical therapy and walking regiment until it returns to a higher or more normal level. also, i cannot have the 2nd surgery until the level returns to normal and is stable. this may take some time to rebuild, (up to a year) and it may not. i am hoping this time frame is much shorter. i also suffered from extensive painful swelling from the hip down to my toes which looked like fat little pickles mashed together. i am just now beginning to see what resembles my leg.
this was and has been very frustrating. the anemia causes a great deal of dizziness, weakness, fatigue, headaches, shortness of breath, low blood pressure, fever chills etc....standing up and motoring around was/is limited. normally, one might expect to be hospitalized with this surgery for about 3 to 4 days, go in monday, and out on thursday. i left the 5th day. they get you moving the second day, (day after surgery), and keep you moving, get you going on physical and occupational therapy and walking. i was behind on all of this until after the blood transfusion. with that said, i really did my best and am doing my best physically and mentally to meet the challenge and keep a sense of humor about me to change the dent in my good natured disposition.....
some ramblings~
underwear is really not a necessity and is way overrated in the hospital with hip surgery, and as well as at home. just saying.....less things one has to mess with....ie read my restrictions........
also, i was very happy to lose the hospital gown for comfortable shorts and t shirts (WWB), and a shower was heavenly.
the anemia got me an extra orange band around the wrist and a fashionable lift strap used to help lift and hang on to me in case i wavered or teetered a little. on the morning of the blood transfusion, my day nurse and aid were lifting me to take me for a tour to the bathroom. drink so much water, one has to pee every hour. anyway, i made some comment with an expletive in the middle of it about having to pee every hour, which made them laugh and the lift strap slipped up a little too far, cinched up on me and painfully pinched me pretty good in the upper part of my anatomy........
another non disney comment from me, but we all laughed.
i did not like that thing...........but it went everywhere i went.
on the 4th day, the occupational therapist was late for the 2nd time. 20 minutes passed, impatient, i hit the big red
N button and asked where he was, yep, my nurse knew he was late. she tracked him down and he was 30 minutes late. he was a floater and not my regular guy. in short, he was lazy and was trying to convince me that i didn't feel good enough to go down the hallway to the OT and PT room for a lesson in bathroom gimp gear. i did not have time for this attitude, i needed to get moving so i hit the big red
N button for my nurse, got the aid, said to my aid, find my nurse, tell her 'red siren'(i had to pee) and tell her to bring the charge nurse with her. (put a fire under this guy's butt). (they use these little voice things to communicate). within 60 seconds my nurse and the charge nurse were in my room and mr. OT took a deep breath and shut up. between the two of them (old school nurses) their sheer presence would make anyone pee their pants......the charge nurse looks at me and looks at him and asks in a commanding voice "
what seems to be the major malfunction here? "
i let him explain..............
i tell ya', nurses rule and even surgeons walk a path around them.
gimp gear; walker, crutches, canes/walking sticks, wheelchair, helper sticks, dressing sticks, sock helper, raised toilet seat, bath bench, ice packs, ugly socks to reduce swelling the list goes on and on. 48 bucks for those dang socks, and the black ones fetch 98 bucks, makes your head spin! most of this gear will be donated back to another hip surgery patient, along with a box of tennis balls with holes drilled out to pass out to patients with hospital issued walkers.
restrictions to prevent dislocation of the prosthesis (just a few): fip flops are out, no bending past a 90 degree angle, and anything that is below the waist and requires bending is off limits, ie dishwasher, washer, dryer, cupboards, drawers, etc. i get a little vacation and someone is going to be eating a lot of tv dinners and hiring a maid...........
. no leaning forward, hips are to be in line with the upper body, no reaching up high, no crossing of the legs, knee always below the hip when sitting, no driving for awhile. i have been doing pretty good with this, though at first i thought i might have to rig up some sort of belt with a buzzer on it that would go off when i passed the 90 degree plane. it's sorta frustrating in the beginning, staring at a hiking shoe and knowing i can't tie it, or worse yet, dropping your shorts on the floor in the bathroom and your helper stick is somewhere else in the house......bare-naked butt going on a field trip around the house to find it.....
.
the stick is usually tied to my getaround, but maybe should have a few of these laying around in every room like reading glasses.
nights are pretty much restless and sleepless. i am not much on narcotics, but will take one if i think i need it.
i have a physical therapist that comes in to check on my progress, and poke me with a big stick if need be....
....he doesn't have to. he is a cheerful feller, but he sure is kind of boring.
my venom injections have been temporarily suspended until i am a little further into recovery, blood count must be up and swelling gone. can't say i miss those right now.
the staples came out on friday, the incision is healing well and my blood count came up to 9.6. i am encouraged. i need to get it up past eleven, i will get there eventually. i know i will have good days and i know i will have not so good days. i am grateful that it is only temporary, but i am impatient. honey will need to come off soon and bees need to be ready for winter. am i ready for the second surgery? i can't imagine having both hips done at the same time and happy i was steered away from it. i am not so sure i am ready for another round of this too soon in the future, although my surgeon and his pa have been very encouraging. the cortisone shots i had in june have long worn off and the right hip is whooping it up and telling me so. i will get another if need be before the 2nd surgery to tide me over, or as needed. in january we have a trip to arizona for a week, i had hoped to get both surgeries completed by then. not sure if that will happen.
yesterday was a beautiful day, high 70's, sun shining, a cool breeze, no humidity and not a cloud in the sky. i melted some wax down in the solar unit and was able to sit on the deck in some shade, enjoy the warmth of the sunshine, and watch the birds and critters in the garden and yard. it was peaceful and refreshing. today ls the same great weather, and i am enjoying it.
the karma giveaway robo started here is pretty cool, i hope we can keep this going. also, if you don't have a WWB t shirt, get one or two. i wore mine in the hospital and gained a bunch of honey customers.
i wish you all well, and wish all well with your bees. enjoy what's left of summer. baker's, hope you are well on your way to being on the mend as well.
life is good.
:(llll)- ..................................
