So!.......where to begin??
OK, well, I saw the OS last Wednesday. He was very happy with how I was progressing. Xrays looked great. Of course, I complained about all of the restrictions and mentioned that I was a bit perplexed about still having thigh pain at 6 weeks. He said - ok then, full weight bearing is on the menu - go forth and do as much as you want...but remember the price for overdoing!!! He then took the time to explain in excruciating detail why my thigh was still a bit ouchy.
GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION ALERT.......
He advised that in order to get to the femur to do the fracture repair (with cable ties!!!) it was necessary to completely peel my quadriceps away (hence the length of the ripper zipper scar), move them over to the side to access the bone, then slap them back into place once they patched up the bone.
GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OVER...
He did warn that because the stem was super long and un-cemented that I might continue to experience thigh pain - but that it wouldn't be muscular - it would be more like the sensation where the bone wants to flex (albeit minutely) but the dirty great steel rod down the centre of the bone wont let it!! Oh joy!! Fingers crossed that's not part of the fairground ride!
Needless to say, that shut my whiney little mouth and I'm happy to accept a bit of muscle soreness and a fair amount of having the world's weakest quads for now!
I am now walking with one stick away from home - and I'm stickless most of the time at home. I'm pretty happy with that to say the very least.
The OS and I discussed returning to riding. His attitude is that there's risk to everything - know the risk, accept the risk, be as careful as necessary, but live your life. In short, when I said I thought he'd insist on no riding for around 6 months he just shrugged and said, "6 weeks, 6 months or 6 years, there's risk - when you feel ready - just go riding"
I love this man!!!!!!
I've been sitting in my dressage saddle on a stand in my living room for a couple of weeks now, and I've progressed to being able to take all of my weight onto my left (newly repaired) leg, and swing my right leg over the saddle in a very close to normal action - and I can get off the same way.
Of course - the saddle is a WHOLE lot closer to the ground on the stand than it would be on a horse!! There's a way to go before I'm able to get on top of a horse under my own steam- those pesky quads are just too week to lever my (getting progressively larger) butt up off the ground
I'm comfortable in the saddle and can stand in the stirrups and sit again in a reasonably good imitation of rising (posting) trot. This is all very positive!!!
Horse shopping is progressing and I'm off to a local dressage training day on Sunday to look at a VERY lovely horse. If he's half as good as he's described, and half as good as he looks in the video the owner sent me, he could well be the ONE!!
Here's where things get a little surreal....this morning I went to see my GP to get a refill on a couple of prescriptions. I know her reasonably well and I get along really well with her 'cos she rides too! We talked horses/riding and the fact that it is, infact, the reason we draw breath. We talked abut the horse I was looking at and that it was frustrating to not be able to ride just yet. She said, "When you're ready, the first time you sit on a horse, it is only allowed to be mine - I trust her to look after you 100%". (she has the quietest, sweetest, and most importantly,
little little mare.) I thanked her very much for her kind offer - thinking it would be a fair way off before she'd let me anywhere near her horse. She's a doctor, right? It's too soon, right???
Anyhoo, I mentioned that I was going to the training day to see this horse I mentioned to her earlier. Blow me down with a feather - but she's doing the same training day and would be there with her mare!! Jokingly, I suggested that Sunday would be a great time for me to have a sit on the mare
She AGREED!!!!!!!
I was convinced that she was joking so I thought I'd keep going with the silliness and suggested that if the ride on her mare felt ok, that I should ride the horse who could be the ONE....she said, "Sure, why not?? - I'll look at him too and if I think he's safe enough I can't see why not!!!!! We'll just make sure you get a leg-up - your left leg's not quite strong enough for you to push up on your own." Gobsmacked doesn't even come close - and the look on my face must have been priceless!!!
I'm sure that sitting on top of a horse will make me feel amazing - but I thought - no way am I strong enough to get up there in the first place! That said - I'm convinced that once on, everything would feel pretty good. Can't imagine why getting a leg-up hadn't occurred to me!!
Soooooo...this will sound crazy, I know - but I might just be very gently and carefully back in the saddle on Sunday - under doctor's direct supervision, no less!! Of course, I might just chicken out too - but watch this space!!!
United Kingdom
and a whiney baby 
! I was terrified about slipping on wet floors once I was out of the pool - I've been less afraid about jumping out of an airplane to do a tandem skydive! And getting into the shower and out of my wet swimming costume - which just clung to me and itself and tied itself into knots and frustrated me beyond endurance
- could only be described as a ordeal. I ended up sitting in the shower chair sobbing like a baby. And of course the energy drain came and smacked me over the head too. And it was all magnified by my delusion that "I'm tougher than this....just toughen up, Princess"
like Sheryl @Me2 I'm still alternating between the "Can't can try" (I hear my Mum saying it every time I write that!) and "I just can't" I know everyone's bored of hearing it, geez I'm bored myself 
but sometimes it just doesn't matter how tough we THINK we are, our frailties will out! Just got to learn to live with it (at least for the time being), and choose to expend our energy on the "win-ables" 
You've had a big slice of to-deal-with, you might just have to pace yourself and take it one bite at a time... which is easy said, I know... but allowing yourself the odd tanty is well within bounds. 
(unlike hubby who creeps in going ooh, aah, s'cold... even when it's NOT!) but now I just CAN'T bring myself to dive in from the edge; I have been going in to the second step then sort of duck diving, managed to go in only to the top step on the weekend, then did my "dive"... which was the WORST belly flop I've ever done (actually HURT.. from, like 20cm, 
) AND had the added "benefit" of splashing five seperate panels of the glass fencing that I cleaned that morning, so had to clean again. Sometimes, you just think... why don't I just ice and elevate and take Mobic - oh that's right, I was swimming "for leisure" not rehab
I've got two that have never been worn... you can even have one of those ones - actually you probably should have one of those; the used one has teeth marks in it - had to get it off SOMEHOW
... That might be easier to get off than your bathers. I bought new bathers for Christmas (my lovely "old" ones were no longer fit to be seen in public, apparently
Catch you lovely people later!
