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shalannaI hate to whine*, but I have several issues that need prayers and positive energy.
*No, I don't.
First, when we saw the orthopedic surgeon for what was billed as my last surgical follow-up yesterday, he wasn't happy with my progress. I can't bend my knee past the 90 degrees that I showed him, except after a strenuous therapy session, when the therapist can get it to 110 degrees. The doctor said that for normal activities, I needed 100 degrees, but that he'd like to see more than that. He said I had to really push and do these (boring, painful) exercises twice a day from now on.
Hubby asked when I would get full function back, and the doctor said he didn't expect me to get back full function and that my right knee would NEVER be like it was originally. He said that to get more movement, he could suggest surgery to remove the hardware and scar tissue--which would be a worse recovery than the nightmare I had in July/August, as the scar would be even LONGER--or I could have arthroscopic to shave away some of the scar tissue . . . but that those would not be his first choice, even though he's a surgeon.
He said I had to hurry and make the exercises work. The exercises take me a good two hours from heat-up (hot packs and heating pad for 20 mins) to cool-down (ice pack for 20 mins). I can't spend that kind of time on this for the rest of my life and get no results . . . the house is a wreck and I've got the holidays coming up and the house is crawling away!
I asked about acupuncture or reflexology, and he said those were good for pain--but I don't have that much pain. It's just that the scar tissue or the stiffened tissues do not LET my knee bend more than I can bend it. It's not that I'm not trying. However, everyone stares at me as if I'm the worst lazy fat failure they've ever seen--not just the others in the therapy room and the therapist, but also now my hubby and my mother. Everyone's blaming me for being a cripple**. Waaah!
**(Politically incorrect, but if you're the crip, you can say "crip." My rule.)
So I need prayers that I can gain those 20 degrees as soon as possible, without excruciating pain. If I could do that, then I could be normal (as normal as a fat loser needs to be, anyway.)
Second, my mother needs prayers and energy to get rid of whatever it is that's ailing her. She has an ulcer and keeps getting what she says is the "stomach flu," but the doctor just thinks she needs to exercise more. They can't find anything without doing tests that she won't go and have. Anyway, she needs to get well. She's too young to lie around complaining all day long.
Third, I can't find my wedding/engagement rings. (They're soldered together as one piece.) I slipped them off when my finger got a little swollen the other day and I was doing dishes or something. I always put the rings on the same bookcase shelf or on my nightstand. But now they're nowhere to be found. I need to find them! For sentimental reasons . . . I have the microscopic-sized rock because I didn't want us to have a debt over a silly symbol. Nobody has ever wanted to steal my silly symbol, so that worked out well. I just need to find it where the imps have hidden it now.
I'm sending stuff off to two agents. And I got word that my entry made it into the Amazon contest's opening round. But those things aren't worth praying over, as the other stuff is too important.
So, anyhow, if you feel moved . . . I'd really appreciate some prayers/thoughts going out.
*No, I don't.
First, when we saw the orthopedic surgeon for what was billed as my last surgical follow-up yesterday, he wasn't happy with my progress. I can't bend my knee past the 90 degrees that I showed him, except after a strenuous therapy session, when the therapist can get it to 110 degrees. The doctor said that for normal activities, I needed 100 degrees, but that he'd like to see more than that. He said I had to really push and do these (boring, painful) exercises twice a day from now on.
Hubby asked when I would get full function back, and the doctor said he didn't expect me to get back full function and that my right knee would NEVER be like it was originally. He said that to get more movement, he could suggest surgery to remove the hardware and scar tissue--which would be a worse recovery than the nightmare I had in July/August, as the scar would be even LONGER--or I could have arthroscopic to shave away some of the scar tissue . . . but that those would not be his first choice, even though he's a surgeon.
He said I had to hurry and make the exercises work. The exercises take me a good two hours from heat-up (hot packs and heating pad for 20 mins) to cool-down (ice pack for 20 mins). I can't spend that kind of time on this for the rest of my life and get no results . . . the house is a wreck and I've got the holidays coming up and the house is crawling away!
I asked about acupuncture or reflexology, and he said those were good for pain--but I don't have that much pain. It's just that the scar tissue or the stiffened tissues do not LET my knee bend more than I can bend it. It's not that I'm not trying. However, everyone stares at me as if I'm the worst lazy fat failure they've ever seen--not just the others in the therapy room and the therapist, but also now my hubby and my mother. Everyone's blaming me for being a cripple**. Waaah!
**(Politically incorrect, but if you're the crip, you can say "crip." My rule.)
So I need prayers that I can gain those 20 degrees as soon as possible, without excruciating pain. If I could do that, then I could be normal (as normal as a fat loser needs to be, anyway.)
Second, my mother needs prayers and energy to get rid of whatever it is that's ailing her. She has an ulcer and keeps getting what she says is the "stomach flu," but the doctor just thinks she needs to exercise more. They can't find anything without doing tests that she won't go and have. Anyway, she needs to get well. She's too young to lie around complaining all day long.
Third, I can't find my wedding/engagement rings. (They're soldered together as one piece.) I slipped them off when my finger got a little swollen the other day and I was doing dishes or something. I always put the rings on the same bookcase shelf or on my nightstand. But now they're nowhere to be found. I need to find them! For sentimental reasons . . . I have the microscopic-sized rock because I didn't want us to have a debt over a silly symbol. Nobody has ever wanted to steal my silly symbol, so that worked out well. I just need to find it where the imps have hidden it now.
I'm sending stuff off to two agents. And I got word that my entry made it into the Amazon contest's opening round. But those things aren't worth praying over, as the other stuff is too important.
So, anyhow, if you feel moved . . . I'd really appreciate some prayers/thoughts going out.
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no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 02:45 am (UTC)Prayers
Date: 2007-11-14 03:31 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 05:43 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 11:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 12:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 01:03 pm (UTC)Just wondering: do you use anything to loosen/moisturize the scar tissue, to make it more flexible and stretch? The folks I've known who underwent similar sorts of recoveries have had those recommended (or even prescribed) and they made a huge difference.
Good luck with the latest submissions (this now gives me two people to root for in the Amazon contest; I hope you both make the semis, at least).
And yes, while you're disabled, you can say "crip". Here's hoping it becomes off-limits again real soon!
no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 08:50 pm (UTC)We have a friend with pretty advanced MS who has put the stress on the second syllable in "invalid" for a long time now.
no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 09:17 pm (UTC)