Kneecap Knews

This past Monday was my first day back to work since I fractured my kneecap.  It's a LOT of effort now to do things that were previously considered routine.  Just sitting at my desk is a chore, because it's hard to find a comfortable position.  I started out with an overturned trashcan as my leg rest, then moved on to a smaller cardboard box when the trashcan became uncomfortable, and have now settled on a small filing cabinet.  I have to switch positions every now and then, because the rest of my body gets really tired.  I'm pretty much leaning or carrying weight on the left side of my body at all times, so sometimes my left arm and hand shake.  Other times my left foot gets some shooting pain in it, because it's having to work overtime.  I think I've strained an upper abdomen muscle on my left side because I constantly have to reach across and lift my right leg to move it.  It feels like deadweight and is kinda heavy, for instance, when I have to raise it off the ground and put it on the bed or couch.  All of this is on top of the soreness I have in my hands and underarms from using crutches.  Have I mentioned how awesome this situation is?  Sigh.  This is only week one.

After work on Monday, I came home and was completely exhausted.  I went to bed early and planned on going through the same routine on Tuesday.  When I woke up that morning though, the pain was really bad in my knee. I got out of the shower and had to immediately lay down because of exhaustion and pain.  I laid on the ground for a few minutes, in tears, and decided I just couldn't go to work.  Of course I had also run out of pain medication, and my pharmacy didn't open until 9am.  It was not a great morning.  Meezy was a lifesaver and went to the pharmacy for me so I could get some relief.  He had to go to work after that, though, so I just laid in bed, waiting for the medication to kick in.  When it finally did, I was able to take a short nap.  Sleeping is my favorite now, since I don't feel pain during that time!  That afternoon, I had another appointment with the orthopedic surgeon.  Since I can't drive myself, and Meezy and my sister both had work meetings, my mom was nice enough to make the long drive up to get me and take me to the doctor.  Unfortunately we sat in the waiting room for 45 minutes before being seen, which means the entire ordeal with all driving time took about 4 hours of my mom's time.  (I feel so bad about that.  It was incredibly nice of her to take that much time out of her day for me, and I am very thankful)!  The doc said my patella is still sitting up where it should be on my knee, and the bones haven't moved at all, so he still recommends just using the rigid brace instead of having surgery.  I'm now set up to come back weekly for x-rays to verify this is still the case, and in a couple weeks they'll also start evaluating whether I can bend or not.  I'm not looking forward to that!

After my mom dropped me back off at home, my sister arrived a short while later with dinner.  Two other friends, Rebecca and Mike, also arrived to bring me a present.  My supper club, "The Bacon Gang," had all chipped in and gotten me silly gifts to use in decorating my brace and crutches.  Since I'll be very closely acquainted with those items for the next 6-8 weeks, they thought it would be funny to "bedazzle" them.  I look forward to putting on my fancy stickers over the holiday break.  LOL.  It was really cute of them to get that gift for me, and it brought a smile to my face for a change!  After they left, my sister began cleaning my house and getting it ready for the Thanksgiving lunch I'll be hosting tomorrow.  She arranged all the extra tables and chairs for me, cleaned multiple rooms, did my dishes, and pretty much got my place looking perfect and ready for company.  I was incredibly grateful for her help, because if I had attempted to perform all of those tasks on crutches, it would've taken me many, many hours.  I am so very lucky for the wonderful friends and family that I am surrounded by.  Happy Thanksgiving!