Thawing Out the Hametz

AKA sitting here with a bag of frozen edamame on my knee.  I learned a big lesson yesterday about how much I ought to be icing my knee: Way more than I was doing before!

Today I'm mostly taking things easy, in recovery mode from yesterday. 

I sit in my Comfy Chair, put an ice pack (of some kind) on my knee, set my watch alarm for ten minutes, and ice away.

Am experimenting with shorter, more frequent blog updates.  If you're reading this at all, let me know which way works better for you.

Steri-strips, swelling, stick-shift, soaking

The steri-strips are still attached to my knee, covering the two arthroscopic incisions, even though tomorrow it will be three weeks since my knee surgery!  This is unusual: typically they fall off within a few days.  Mine are curling up at all the corners for sure, but still firmly stuck in place.  I'm told not to peel (yank, tear, rip) them off, by the surgical assistant who put them on when removing the stitches, and also by the physical therapists I've seen four times in the past two weeks.  I'm curious to see how things look under there, and even Becky the PT was surprised today.  But okay.

Today my leg is very swollen, so badly that  Becky had me do fewer exercises and a lot more lying around with an ice pack on my knee.  The swelling has multiple probable causes:

1. carrying heavy bags (garbage, recycling) to my car this morning from the house, and then from the car to the various bins at the Lincoln Transfer Station;
2. the weather: higher humidity --> more swelling;
3. my original leg injury (Nervy) causes my leg to swell every day anyway;
4. carrying many loads of firewood into the house yesterday afternoon (temperature going down to 41 tonight and 36 on Friday night = wood-stove season is not yet over)
5. carrying heavy bag of books to car for last night's Hebrew class, and from the car back into the house after class.
6. the major DVT (blood clot) I suffered in 2004 wreaked havoc on circulation in the leg, which is not helping my knee any. 
7. not icing knee enough after challenging it with all the heavy lifting.  Icing is a habit I have yet to develop.  Going to get it out of the freezer right now!

Driving my stick-shift car has suddenly become very painful in the last two days, a result of the swelling.  It was downright scary trying to figure out how to drive for 15 minutes at speed limits varying from 5 to 55 mph without shifting gears too much; I'm lucky I didn't have an accident.

Today I asked Becky what more I could do to speed up the healing process.  She says I'm doing all the right things (exercises, staying active), which is great.  However, I should try to lay off carrying all the heavy loads (seems obvious), and I need to rest more (no kidding).   But I don't know how else to get the firewood in here, and grocery shopping leaves me no choice. 

On a positive note, I'm allowed to go in the pool.  Hooray! (Hot tub still verboten.)  Even though it's just very gentle aqua-jogging in the exercise lane, and limited to 15 minutes, it still feels great to be in the water again and have a way of ambulating that doesn't hurt.  I moved my arms a lot, too, which helps keep me vertical in 4'6"-water and also gets my heart rate up at least a tiny bit.  I've had practically no safe method of getting aerobic exercise these last couple of months and I'm going crazy for the lack of it.

Maybe a little more soaking in the pool will get those steri-strips to come off...

Surgery went fine, follow-up was yesterday

Yesterday's follow-up with the surgeon went fine.  They took out my two stitches.  The arthroscopic incisions are indeed tiny.  Aside from some swelling, some residual ink marks, and a few SteriStrips, my knee doesn't look much different from before the surgery.

I went home with pictures taken inside my knee, showing meniscal crap (the surgeon's term) before debridement, several shots of normal stuff, and one unusual problem that might have been the main source of pain: a plica, which Dr. Troy removed.

I still have pain, but every day it's a little better.  I can walk using crutches, I can walk using just one crutch, I can even walk without crutches at all.  Mostly I'm resting, elevating the leg, and getting around using one crutch.

Prescription for physical therapy in hand, I've begun the hunt for PT that's nearby and covered by my insurance.

Knee Surgery Scheduled for March 24

No news was good news.

I slipped (indoors, avoiding slipping on ice) about six weeks ago.  Tore the meniscus in my left knee.  Arthroscopic surgery is commonly minor and associated with fast recovery, so I'm trying to stay optimistic.  But nothing that happens with my left leg seems common or quick to heal.  So although this seems neither Nervy nor Gutsy, the nerves and guts are sure to be affected.

Can you help me out during my first few days after surgery?  Please email me if you're available for any of the following times:

1. Wednesday, March 23: help with last-minute pre-op errands, chores, early supper --> ??
2. March 24 ride to Mount Auburn Hospital for surgery, 6:30 AM --> Brian S. has already volunteered.
3. March 24 ride home from surgery, noon --> Brian S. again!
4. Thursday afternoon, March 24 - help me get settled comfortably at home --> ??
5. Thursday evening, March 24, help with supper between 5 and 7 PM --> ??
6. Friday, March 25 --  morning/noon time, help with errands, cleaning, meals --> ??
7. Friday evening, March 25 -- help with Shabbat dinner, 5-7 PM --> ??
8. Saturday, March 26 -- help at home with meals --> ??
9. Sunday, March 27 -- help with errands, cleaning, meals --> ??
10. Monday, March 28 -- ride to Mount Auburn hospital for follow-up with surgeon, time TBD --> ??
11. Monday, March 28 -- ride home from Mount Auburn Hospital, time TBD --> ??

I'm still driving a manual-shift car; not sure when I'll be able to drive it again post-surgery.  This means I might need more help with rides and/or a short-term swap with someone who has an automatic.

On a positive note (b'li 'ayin ha-ra'), my diet has slowly been expanding to include things that would have landed me in the ER just a few months ago.  I still have to be careful to avoid a lot of fiber, and spicy things are completely out of the question (including onions and garlic), but at least there a few vegetables I can eat now, which should make helping me quite a bit easier.

As ever, I'd be happy to do my best to entertain you with discussions about articles in the New Yorker, silly jokes, and Hebrew tutoring at any level.  Musicians: I've been learning to play blues harmonica; maybe we can do a little jamming?

Meanwhile trying to remember at all times to Be Happy: It's Adar.

Natasha
Nataniela bat Zippora

P.S. For those who have yet to visit me at my digs in Lincoln, or who have only been here at night, let me remind you that the view of the woods from my house is gorgeous in any weather, through the sliding-glass doors and my rectangular, triangular, and circular windows.  Also through the ceiling full of skylights.  Springtime here is unbelievably beautiful, with the flora and fauna of acres and acres of protected wetlands right outside my door.

ERCP Accomplished

If I'd taken two seconds to check the calendar, I might not have chosen to schedule this full-anaesthesia test on the first day of Hanukkah!  But now it's all done, and I was very happy to learn that the pancreatitis the doctors had feared seems not to be my problem.  We still don't know why I continue to suffer intermittent attacks of pain in my gut, but at least some of the bigger and scarier possible causes have been ruled out.  And they're still saying I may not need to have my gallbladder removed.  So, despite the mystery and not knowing when another attack might happen in the future, I'm enjoying the Hanukkah present.

Thank you to Larry U. for the ride to Beth Israel this morning, and to David G. for the ride home this afternoon.  I get by with a lot of help from my friends.

Giving Thanks for Surviving Thanksgiving + RIDE REQUEST for Thursday Dec. 2

I was exceedingly careful at Thanksgiving dinner.  I barely ate any of my own contributions to the holiday meal -- Blue Hubbard squash stuffed with roasted Brussels sprouts and chestnuts, plus my Very Seedy Hallah -- but the hosts and 15 guests all loved them, so I felt satisfied.  I barely ate anything else that was served, either, just a few bites of sweet potato, pumpkin muffin, and, with great trepidation, a stalk of well steamed broccoli.  Basically I ate very little, went home hungry.  Who goes home hungry from Thanksgiving dinner?  Oh, well, it matters not.  The main thing is that my strategy proved successful: nothing untoward happened, not even serious gut pain, so I felt -- and continue to feel -- extremely grateful.  And I keep drinking gallons of water.

Next medical test -- ERCP -- scheduled for this Thursday, December 2. Thanks in advance to David G. for the post-anaesthesia ride home from Beth Israel. 

Anybody out there available to drive me to the hospital this Thursday morning?  I have to be there at 11.  We could sing together in the car...

Good news re pain + ER plan + rides needed on Dec. 2

1. Good news on the pain front: It seems that if I keep the water-to-food ratio extremely high, especially while eating, the gut pain stays at a faint distance and sometimes even disappears.  It's a challenge to keep filling my water glasses/bottles so many times during the day, but the potential avoidance of pain is quite motivating.  I try to start drinking water immediately upon waking up in the morning, all day long, and all evening, too.   Resultant frequent trips to the bathroom to pee are a bit inconvenient, but again, more than worth it to avoid pain.

2. My landlord-the-doctor, who specializes in emergency medicine, has offered to take me to the Beth Israel ER for my next gut attack, if she is at home when it happens.  In her professional opinion I should go there instead of the closer Emerson Hospital because at BIDMC they already have all my medical info and images in their computer system.  These would be particularly important to have in case of emergency surgery.  She said I should call on her even if it's 3:00 AM!  Meanwhile, her take on my situation is that it probably is gallbadder attacks that I'm suffering, and that my experiment in super-hydration is probably diluting dietary fat into distant particles separated by water molecules, which is less challenging to my gallbladder.  An interesting theory, which I will pass by Dr. Sheth next time we talk.

3. My next test ordered by Dr. Sheth is called ERCP, scheduled for Thursday December 2.  It's an ultrasound of my digestive system, requiring full anaesthetization.  IF YOU CAN DRIVE ME TO THE HOSPITAL AT 11:00am OR TAKE ME HOME AROUND 5:00pm, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.

And: Thank you!

Gotta go refill my water glasses now.