Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Seventh Surgery- Success!

Either I've reached a point where my body is no longer fazed by surgery, or things are just going a whole lot better for me on the operating table these days. I had a seventh ankle surgery on Friday the 14th and have bounced back faster than I ever imagined possible. I was off pain meds the next day and just two days later I was back in the kitchen making pancakes for Father's Day (from scratch of course, I don't own any mixes). Three days post-op I started walking around the house unassisted, and today (day 4) ran my errands by myself. I hope to do some light strength practice tomorrow.

The lucky seventh surgery was for hardware removal in the left foot and scar tissue revision in the right. The revision was basically a series of injections of a diluted alcohol solution along the scar line to help break up the scar tissue and kill the neurons so I no longer have those incessant pain signals. When I first woke from surgery I could've sworn there was sharp metal poking me along that scar line but I think my body was just trying to process exactly what had happened. I got two extra pain medicine injections in my IV and two norco tablets before leaving the hospital to manage the pain. Since then, the scar tissue has been breaking up beautifully and I have more motion in the joint than I've had in a very, very long time. I'd forgotten what a little mobility felt like.

The lack of metal in my body feels amazing. My heel is stitched closed and I have to take it easy, but I have been walking a little bit. Walking means putting the ball of my foot down first and trying not to put full weight on the heel where the incision site is, so while not incredibly graceful it works for getting around the house. My body is finally healing and not in a constant fight against the foreign piece of metal lodged in my ankle. It's such a huge stress that's just gone, and I hope to never have to do anything like that again.

When the body is under prolonged stress with chronic pain and inflammation, it really does have a huge impact on the entire body, especially the brain. Throw pain meds on top of that and it's a recipe for disaster. You can never really predict how you'll respond in situations like this but just know that it's a lot harder than it looks. Be patient with those suffering, whether they welcome interaction or push you away. They are fighting a constant battle, and it's not fun. Trust me on that.

I'm looking forward to recovery and regaining full use of my body. The sky's the limit, right? Can't wait to see what's in store for later.