Back on Track

Hi Everyone,

Well yesterday was a very eventful day. I saw the surgeon for my 6 week check up and she was amazed at how well I am able to bend and stretch my knees. I guess all those excersizes really paid off. She measured zero degrees when I stretch my knees straight which is perfect and she measured 122 degrees on the left leg and 130 degrees on the right leg which she says is close to the maximum expected and after only 6 weeks she was quite amazed.

After discussing my typical work responsibilities she determined that I was ready to go back to work for 4 hours daily for the next 6 weeks and build it up if I feel well enough. She said that she wants me off those nasty pain meds so I should gradually wean off them until I am able to use only tylenol arthritis and hopefully eventually nothing. After talking to the pharmacist, who gave me a more specific way of getting off the pain meds, I feel more confident that this is possible.

Ice is my best friend so she said to continue excersizing and use ice often to help with pain management. No lifting anything over 20 lbs., walk carefully and slowly as during the next year I am more prone to falls, and take antibiotics for the next two years whenever I have dental work and lastly come back in 6 weeks to see how I am doing.

I am hoping that in 6 weeks I will be able to go down stairs with one leg after the other. Right now, my left leg does not like going down, so I am depending on my right leg. Going up is no problem, one leg after the other.

I think that is pretty good after only 6 weeks post surgery. She thinks I will get over the pain more quickly if I get back to my typical schedule.

So here I am writing in my blog at 7:20 in the morning. I haven't had my morphine since 7:00 last night and am feeling it. My knees are very tight but not too painful, but of course I haven't attempted walking, stairs, or excersize yet. I have been sleeping in until 9:00 so getting up early is another side affect of not being on the morphine and I am feeling a little shakey, hot and cold and slightly nauseated.

The pharmacist suggested that instead of taking the hyrdormorphone every six hours start reducing it to moring and night for one week and then only morning for the next week and then eliminate it and start elminating the tramacet from two pills every six yours to one pill every six hours and then one pill moring and night and then one pill mornings and then stop it or replace it with tylenol arthritis. I am determined to make this work.

So we now feel more confident to go off on a trip to New York and New Jersey. My cousin's son is getting married on Sunday in New Jersey and our good friends from Buffalo, Judy and Ted, invited us to their annual 4th of July bash at their Manhatten Apt. on Friday so we finalized our plans and off we go on Friday for a busy weekend. We will drive to Buffalo on Friday morning, hop a plane to JFK International Airport at 11:50 and be in Manhatten just after 1:00 p.m. Friday night should be lots of fun as their apt. overlooks Central Park so we will see all of the fireworks from their window. Thanks so much to Judy and Ted for the offer to stay with them and for bearing with us as we procrastinated on this decision. Saturday we will spend some time testing my walking abilities checking out the city and hopefully seeing a last minute broadway play and Sunday morning we will rent a car and drive to Somerset N.J. to the wedding which begins at 4:00 p.m. On Monday morning we will head off to JFK and back home. Hopefully I will manage this fine.

I am looking forward to getting back to normal and actually being able to walk without pain and put the past year behind me. I actually didn't realize how stressful living with constant pain really is. I didn't realize how handicapped I actually was. Everyone I see cannot believe how much better I am walking now and how much straighter I am standing. I actually feel like I am taller. Back to normal sounds really good.

I don't know how much longer this blog will continue. I think it is time to wind down so be prepared for a farewell blog coming up soon. I will keep you posted until I am weaned off the drugs and back on track.

Until then,

Marilyn