Filed under: Me, My Business

I’m walking!!!!!

I started last week Tuesday, after my appointment. The doctor said my x-rays looked good and to begin full weight bearing. So as soon as he said that, I did! I went into a cleaning frenzy the next couple of days and did a LOT of work, then ended up having to rest because my leg didn’t like it. I graduated to a cane, so I look and sometimes feel like a much older person. Crutches at least give off the idea that something was recently broken.

My Achilles is tightly wound. Well it feels like it is anyway.The mobility in my entire ankle is bad, so I have a pronounced limp. I do exercises for it about 3 days a week like the doctor told me. I hope I can get mobility back on my own because I know physical therapy will cost more money we don’t have.

There is still pain at times and the swelling comes and goes, but I’m getting better!

Because things are improving I have to start thinking about the business again. I had a nice little break for a while but it’s time to get serious again. Plans are to reschedule my Open House in October and leave Brown Bag then. I have the vinyl for my car. Now I just need to draw up a waiver (found out I can do it without needing a lawyer), get a business license and find out about liability insurance. And, I need to get back to dancing!

For now I will end this entry with: Five things that made having a broken leg, not so bad.

1) I gained a wonderful amount of upper body strength from using the crutches and hauling myself around.
2) People are a lot nicer to you and you get waited on.
3) The realization that my break and my life isn’t that bad. I have all of my limbs and eventually my leg will work right. Having limited mobility opened my eyes about the disabled. I saw things from their perspective and realized how awful it was not being able to do things for myself.
4) Very cool x-rays that I get to keep forever.
5) Watched lots of cool movies through Netflix and On Demand. Alone. What’s better than that?

Filed under: General

I learned that a friend’s husband died in Iraq on Tuesday. She is part of my downline and is such a sweet girl. They have a daughter who is about a year now I believe. Her husband was supposed to be coming home TODAY. It is just awful. I feel so badly for her and wish there were something I could do, even though I know there isn’t. Life is just a big fat mess sometimes.

Filed under: Me

Time has flown by and next week is my second post-op appointment. I’m relieved but I’m also feeling kind of scared because I know the recovery won’t be pain free. These last 7 weeks have been hell with the first 3 being the worst. I don’t have as much pain now, but everything frustrates me and my leg is a burden.

It’s not all bad. Today Matt took me to get a haircut and my eyebrows waxed. I thought I would come away feeling giddy and beautiful, but I don’t. Having a full length mirror in front of me while I had my hair done probably didn’t help.

The weight issue has been a big thing for me during this time. I can’t exercise worth a damn. If I want to sweat and get my heart rate up I could hop around a lot, but that leads to falling. I have terrible balance. I think since the accident I have fallen 5 times. None of them were bad falls, but its proof I should be careful when I use the crutches.

Nobody seems to understand WHY I choose not to go up or down the stairs with my crutches. I’d rather slide down on my butt and go up on my knees. I’m scared to death of falling down them and re-breaking my leg. Or worse. If they had a broken leg, maybe they would get it. For now they can all suck it.

My incision seems to be healing. There was a large scab that I thought was normal, but I think it was dried blood sitting on top of a scab. It continually kept coming off in bits and pieces (yes I know its gross, but its my blog) and one morning I took the dressing off of it (I wrap it every night because I’m a paranoid freak that something will hit or scratch it like Matt’s big scary toenails – he totally needs someone to tie him down and give him a pedicure!) and the entire scab pulled away. It hurt! And it left a nice little dent in my leg but its closing up and healing like the rest.

Sleeping at night is very uncomfortable. I sleep with a body pillow so my left (broken) leg can be on top of it. I sleep sideways, usually on my right side, so underneath the body pillow is my right leg and a regular pillow making the body pillow higher (got all that?). But every couple hours I get tired of sleeping on my right side so I turn to my left and I end up doing this while half asleep. So when I wake up my broken leg may still be on the pillow, but its in pain so I have to turn over again. A few nights I’ve grabbed a Percocet because I couldn’t stand it. Last night was almost one of those nights.

I’m worried about what walking will be like. My leg is atrophied. It jiggles, which is so unlike my right leg that has beautiful muscle in it. So when I stand up, it feels like its going to give out. I wonder how in the world I’m going to build it back up to what it once was. I wonder when I’ll walk normally. But what I really want to know is when will I be able to dance again on the pole? I miss my job.