Post Op #1

It’s been almost three weeks since my accident, and I had my first post-op appointment on Monday.  The doctor unwrapped all of my bandages, threw away the splint, and removed a full zipper of stitches on the outside of my leg.  It was my first time seeing my leg since I broke it - first impressions were “wow, it’s so skinny”, “wow, my foot is so swollen”, and “wow, there are so many incisions.”  I could feel what I guessed were the incisions under the splint (they hurt and itched), but I had no idea that they were so long.  The doctor wrapped my leg up in an ace bandage and that was it - people barely believe that my leg’s been broken.  I guess when you have metal plates sandwiching your bones together, it makes a cast kind of redundant.  Without the hard splint, it’s a lot easier to sleep at night, but the nights are still uncomfortable as I have bouts of pain that periodically wake me up.

Yep, those are permanent. You can still see the fractures, which should eventually heal

It’s amazing that your skin can heal so quickly within a two week period.  Unfortunately, bones heal at a much slower rate.  The doctor said that typical bone growth takes anywhere from 8 - 12 weeks.  From the beginning of this week, that’s 6 - 10 more weeks of non-weight bearing activity, which means crutches for that length of time.  Pro tip: I ordered these washable pads for my crutches, which make it a little bit easier on my arms and hands.

My next follow up appointment is in another two weeks, where they’ll take another set of x-rays and see if my two bones are starting to fuse back where the fractures were.  I’ve started to drink milk, which was never part of our diet even as children.  Bryan bought chocolate syrup to add to it because I’m a child and wouldn’t stop whining about how gross milk tastes.

Having mobility issues has changed quite a bit of my day-to-day activity.  There are so many things I took for granted that are a challenge now.  We have two steps leading up to our house that I now have to navigate, as well as one step inside our house leading down into the addition.  I shower sitting on the floor with one leg hanging out of the shower stall.  Last week, I installed smart plugs around the house so now I can speak to my Alexa in order to turn lights on and off instead of having to hobble around the house.  Even typing this blog post meant lugging my laptop, sandwiched between my hand and my crutch grip, to the living room so I could type with my leg propped up.

Luckily, I broke my left leg so I have been driving to work (even though it was NOT recommended by the surgeon) and dropping Bowie off at doggy daycare when Bryan is gone for work.  Everyone has been very kind and helpful with the animal part of our family.  The people at Bowie’s daycare have helped me bring the dog inside and outside, so I don’t have to worry about handling the leash while using crutches.  Mae is being well taken care of because my trainer is handling all of her training AND exercise rides.  I’ve been to see her once and traumatized her with my crutches.

The silver lining to the broken leg is that essentially I’m on self-quarantine - the only places I go are work and back home again.  I don’t have the energy level to go anywhere else, especially after a long work day.  There are confirmed COVID 19 cases around the DFW area and we’re all being prudent and thoughtful around our health and safety. 

Lest you think this is all negative, there are a lot of positives that have come out of this experience.  In fact, I keep a list in my phone of all the things that I am lucky / grateful to have and remind myself of those things when I’m having a tough day or feeling fatigued.  I hope you all are well and staying healthy.