THR Up, up & away!'

[gertie]

@doopy Look at you going grocery shopping! An hour up and about is a big deal and not surprising there were some sore muscles afterwards--but as you say, that's nothing compared to the pain pre-op. (And I love the Waitrose near my sister's house--such a pleasant place to shop.)

I'm still in a day of activity, day of rest pattern at 5 1/2 weeks out--Friday out to lunch, yesterday on the couch with the laptop, today out to breakfast and then later some errands, etc.

 

[doopy]

Hi @gertie , yes, I think that will be the pattern for me. So quiet day today, but also quiet tomorrow as we are braving a gig on Tues evening! I guess I won't be rocking & dancing in the aisle, & the band would probably be horrified to think their audience included an ancient old thing with a THR, but who cares??!
And is your sister in the U.K., or does Waitrose exist beyond these shores?? It is indeed pleasant, if more expensive!

 

[gertie]

@doopy Yes, she's in the UK, has been for most of her adult life. A gig! Very brave.

 

[doopy]

I know, @gertie, I certainly am an old hippie!!!

 

[Tiffany57]

Hi @doopy, I've just enjoyed catching up with your post op thread
You might be surprised to hear we also have Escape to the Country and Pointless on TV here...I have been watching both shows recently, although I suspect the epidodes we get are way behind.
I had my bandage removed today by my OP.....and promptly raced home to apply a scar therapy patch over it. I can't bear the thought of having it uncovered! I felt just the same about the first one, too. The patches are meant to be worn for 2 months after initial healing, but I kept them up for 3 months! I also liked the feel of compression on the incision and wore bike pants often. This year has been a bit hotter than last, and I'm favouring rayon dresses at the moment.
I can't get over the thrill of being able to walk barefoot again! Some of my TEDs had the rubber bumps on the sole....I didn't like them at all as I felt they made me stumble more.

 

[gertie]

@doopy I saw on another thread that you were feeling the blues--I'm afraid this seems to be par for the course at 3 to 4 weeks out--you're starting to feel better but not quite there yet and energy is still lagging and...soon you'll be out and about more and the blues will lift but it's not fun in the middle of it all. And it doesn't help living in a northern climate. I've been grumpy today about the snowfall last night making it slippery under foot. My saving grace is that I can drive now and so I got out a couple of times today to do errands, including picking up a small Christmas tree.

 

[Cas]

Love your posts they made me giggle. I dissolved in tears too the first night home when I got stuck on the bed and couldn't get in or out. I think we all find it hard to adjust back home in the first few days. You sound to be having a brill recovery it took me much longer to get where you are and that's brill it just goes to show how different we all are Keep your lovely posts coming they cheer me up no end and I'm sure they will help others too.

 

[doopy]

@Tiffany57 , Hi there,
Well, glad we share some of the same TV - though in my mind I'd have thought you'd have an Escape to the Country which meant looking for houses in far more (to me!) exotic places that we see on the holiday ads for Aus!
Interested in this scar therapy patch - what is it? Would my local pharmacy sell it? My bandage came off last week, leaving me with a long line of steri-strips. I was told these would just drop off in the shower but they haven't, & im wondering what I'm meant to do. I'm a bit nervous of having the scar left uncovered (oh boy! nervous just covers everything about me at the moment - I wish I was a bit more gung-ho about it all!).

 

[doopy]

Hello @Cas , thanks for your lovely message & the encouragement - you are so right: this is such a wonderful & helpful forum but I guess it's so important to realise everyone is so different, in terms of physical & mental recovery. Sometimes I read posts & feel down because others seem to be zooming ahead, but then someone always seems to chip in to tell you that you're doing ok & that they totally empathise & had a similar experience. So much can vary with the type of op, the surgeon's own personal recovery plan, & just daily changes. Also stupid stuff like the weather - it looks you're in Yorkshire so you'll understand what it's like when it's grey & damp here, just not conducive to venturing out on the street alone. If it was summertime, with everyone out on the streets & in their gardens, I'd feel different, but I'm scared to walk on our uneven pavements on my own.
Glad I'm not the only one who got stranded on the bed when first home - I was so furious I didn't have my lovely hospital bed to raise me up & down!!
Love your profile pic of all the dogs - are they yours?

 

[doopy]

Hi @gertie, thanks for reminding me & explaining that this 3-4 week stage is a difficult point: I'm waiting on so many deadlines which are almost here - crutches off next week, blood thinners the week after, then visit to surgeon & TEDs off (yay!) in week 6, & I guess it all seems like I'm becalmed on a still ocean going nowhere at the moment.
But you reminded me - I need my Christmas tree!! Am being taken to a garden centre this week by a friend, so something to look forward to!! Think I envy you the look of snow, if not the actual slidiness of it - please take extra care!!

 

[Cas]

Hi Doopy yes it's cold here in Yorkshire. I live on the edge of the wolds and its bitter with lots of frost. Scared I'm going to slip so do my walking round and round the house for ages but get out at the weekend with my daughter. Hopefully will get back in my car at the 6 week mark and will be free again!! You are doing so well - keep it up but don't rush things. I'm having to learn patience with myself and its difficult. Yes the dogs are some of mine I so want to get back to long walks and training but that's for the new year after icy days - Thankfully I have a very large garden and a paddock for dogs to run loose in.

 

[SwimGirl]

@doopy Love how you describe accomplishing very little.....I'm becalmed on a still ocean going nowhere at the moment. Why that is so true! Yes, by 4 weeks you are ready to roll but body is not quite there yet so it is a struggle for all. Looking forward to cooler weather for Christmas! Been 80 degrees. Bummer,

 

[Tiffany57]

I honestly have no idea why there are so many of those 'Escape to....' type shows on TV here! We have more American ones than English, tho'....Tiny Houses, Flip That House, Trillion Dollar Island, House Hunters.....the list goes on and on! So many Lifestyle shows, it's like an obsession! We also have a 24 hour Food Channel! It reminds me of the Bruce Springsteen track '57Channels (and Nothin' On)
The scar therapy patch is called Embrace. I think it's only available in the States, but you can buy online through a freight forwarder. PM me if you'd like more details....I don't want people to think I'm advocating buying them!
If you look at my recent posting on the Hippies Scars page, you'll see photos of my latest incision and of my old one after treatment.....I'm pretty pleased with the outcome
Sometime ago, I met a double Hippie who'd had had her second incision anteriorly, but in the bikini line. She said that apart from being completely hidden under normal swimwear, it healed quicker and with less scarring because it was in a natural skin- fold.

 

[gertie]

@doopy How was the gig? Did you dance in the aisles?

 

[doopy]

Hi @gertie and All,
Well, I made a break for freedom and finally went out - only the 3rd time in nearly 3 weeks!! It was great - we parked within 50 yards of the front door of the venue, with just 5 easy steps up from the car park to the pavement, & as it is a relatively new venue it was very access-friendly. Had a snack & a disgracefully large amount of white wine before the show, then took our seats - husband had had them changed to the disabled area, & all the staff were v helpful. The only problem was the seats themselves - dreadful! They were the standard sort of flip-down seat, but the angle was bad & sloped down to the floor & there wasn't enough room for knees in front of the balustrade. But uncomfortable as it was, I survived for 2 solid hours & had no pain at all & wasn't even really stiff when I finally stood up. Honestly, it really was such an improvement on how I was before!!
The downside was that I was so hyped up by the excitement ( & wine?? Oops!) that I didn't sleep until 3am, then woke at 6am - my sleep patterns are all over the place, probably because I'm sick of sleeping on my back. Last night was the first time I found myself instinctively trying to turn on my side - something must be improving! But I ache a bit today, so it's the recliner for me! That'll teach me to behave like I'm 25years old!!
But hey! There's life outside!!

 

[doopy]

Hi @Tiffany57 , hey - neat scar! Just checked it out (really, is this weird or what??!).
Still too scared to look at mine!! But I know it is healing.

 

[Tiffany57]

Sounds like you had a really great night! Who was playing?


Sent from my SM-G925I using Tapatalk

 

[doopy]

Hi @Tiffany57 , a band called Kula Shaker, an Indie/psych/Indian-inspired band - the singer is the son of English actress (from the 60s) Hayley Mills, & his grandfather was the great film actor Sir John Mills. Terrific - I've got my joie de vivre back for music!

And woo-hoo!! Today I managed a 3 hour visit to a garden centre (complete with some very annoying Christmas crowds :gbh: who were not going to give way to a slowcoach on crutches), and I survived!! We did stop for tea, & I had 2 friends pushing the trolley & putting my purchases into it etc, but I did a whole load of walking!!
Honestly - truly amazing - Day 24 post-op, still obeying surgeon's rule to stay on 2crutches till next week, but NO PAIN!! Yes, aching arms & sore palms, but zero pain in the legs, other than the very slight stiffness & wound tenderness. Pre-op I would have got to a stage halfway round where I was in tears of desperation wondering how I would make it back to my car - & we're talking v small distances here, just a little place as big as one of our medium (Uk) supermarkets. Then I'd have crawled home to the sofa, stayed there for hours not knowing how to get up because of the agony, & I'd have been aching all over for a couple of days. I'd have lain in hot baths trying to soak away the pain, & gone to bed with hot water bottles against my lower back.I expect I'll have slightly sore muscles by tomorrow (but these haven't been working for so long now that it's hardly surprising), but not that draining nagging pain I would get in the backs of my ankles, knees, & even feet, as my legs struggled to find a way to walk with reduced pain & were obviously always contorting into a dreadful mess.
I'm still not quite believing this, especially as it still feels a bit temporary because of the compulsory reliance /use of crutches, and I can't really imagine getting into the floor etc, but maybe???! Feeling so hopeful!!
My friend was convinced she should put me in one of the free wheelchairs & that I would have to return to wait in the car, but not a bit of it!! Oh my goodness, dare I believe this is going to work??!

 

[Miss Muffet]

Gosh you've progressed so much this week! A couple more outings than you could possibly have envisaged. Your gig experience and those blessed seats must have been a real nuisance. Can't think why they would have labelled them disabled when you couldn't stretch your legs out. The ones at the theatre we went to on our Grand Outing were at the front so there was no squashing. I'm glad it didn't spoil your fun though - and Hayley Mills' son eh? I had no idea. No wonder you were wired afterwards. After very little activity the stimulation is almost too much isn't it?! You're clearly relishing the changes this Op is bestowing already. Imagine just how much better things are going to be as the weeks progress.

I'm still a bit frustrated on your behalf about the crutches thing. Did you double-check that you really aren't allowed to weight bear at all, or even gravitate to one crutch or a stick? I think I'd have gone barmy by now having to cope with the blithering things!

We're all there with you with memories of our "before life" - it was a sorry tale of missed outings, reduced opportunities, pain and being a wistful onlooker. There is SO much to look forward to.

 

[doopy]

Well, only another 3 days with the crutches, so I can hold out till Monday!
Yesterday on my garden centre marathon I found myself naturally doing what the PT told me to try - opposing walking - i.e. Using one crutch with the opposite leg, & it was a breakthrough! Although you need a clear run at it - not so easy in a crowded shop. Sometimes I thought I'd end up in a great tangle of confused legs and crutches, like when you see those ski-jumpers take a somersault tumble!

And yes - I think one gets totally wired from any excitement at the moment - the sudden over-stimulation combined with the euphoria of having succeeded in getting a bit of life back!