PT?

I'll bet you thought PT stood for Physical Therapy. Officially that's correct, but now I know why I've heard it referred to as Pain and Torture or Physical Terrorist. Lynelle looks like such a sweet, gentle young woman. She has a way of getting my new knee to do things that I didn't think it could do yet. Those muscles & tendons are being WORKED! And it's working! My knee is bending and straightening better with each exercise session ... with or without Lynelle's supervision. Ice, pain pills and rest make it all worth it.

And we have been blessed with friends that have shared meals with us. It's like going to a different eatery with a delicious variety of shared food & company. I'd better not get too used to this. Chuck really appreciates not having to think about what to fix or standing to fix dinner as his hip is ready for Dr. Niles to repair.

The "snow" word was mentioned again in the weather forecast. Lynelle said we could go outside as soon as the weather gets warmer. I'm SO looking forward to warmer weather and being out in it. I hope I remember being cold when the weather gets too warm. Not much we can do about the weather. And we are looking forward to grilling weather.

Time to do another round of exercises. Those PT people know what they are doing, so I'll follow their instructions.

It's Good to be HOME!!

I'll try this again. Just as I was ready to "publish" I received an "error" message & lost what I wrote ... except for the title.

I know the Unity Joint Replacement Center did a wonderful job, but there is nothing like being at home. I am keeping up with some exercises even though they did not give me a regiment to follow. So, ankle pumps, butt squeezes and leg raises are the steady diet. Plus I am working at gently bending my leg back while at the kitchen table. I don't want to loose what I've accomplished so far.

Had Kristen, the nurse, check me out this morning with good results & tomorrow Diana the PT will be here. Kirsten said they do not expect you to do much work on the knee so the swelling goes down before the hard work begins. I thought what I did was hard work. Apparently that was a warm up. I asked Diana to be gentle and she said she would be ... the first day.

And we don't have to fix dinner for 2 days thanks to our neighbor, Michelle, and one of my "sisters", Kay.

My goal is to be well enough to sit at my sewing machine to work on a quilt or wall hanging. In the mean time I will happily do hand quilting. Of course, if I can go down to sew, I'll be able to do laundry & I don't know if Chuck is ready to give that up because he is doing a wonderful job.

I'd better get started on that hand sewing. It will also keep me warm.

82°

That's 9° more than yesterday that I could bend my leg back ... hurts, but worth every ache! The aches are now occasionally rather than constant. I'm also on less pain medicine. Every bit of advice I've gotten from former recipients of new knees is true. Work hard = good results.

The big news is that they are looking to send me home on Thurs. No more overcooked veggies! Still lots of PT at home & looks like lots of visitors from health related fields checking in.

OK. Short nap time before lunch and the next PT ... unless a doctor, phlebotomist, nurse, aide, dietician, social worker, visitor, secretary, etc, etc. need me for something very important.

Progress

... a little each day. Only 72° today, but that's 1 degree more than the last time. That's not the temperature, but the distance I can bend my leg back ... and it hurt. And I folded towels (for balance & how long you can stand) and then had to pick up dropped clothes and hang them on the hanger (more balance).

I finished "Sarah's Key" by Tatiana de Rosnay which is an excellent book. It's about WWII Jews in France. The author did a great job of weaving facts of history with an imagined story ... a very moving story.

Remember that brown roast beef I mentioned yesterday? Today it was beef tips with noodles. Great oatmeal for breakfast.

Enjoy your day!

Lifted my leg ... without support!!

Sunday is the day of rest? Not here, unless you call a little sleeping in and only 1 therapy today, rest. But even though I'm griping, I'm making progress. Holding my leg in the air without a person or strap for support, as I get out of bed has been a killer, but I did it today. Walking & stairs aren't bad. Sitting with the knee bent isn't comfortable. But each day is a visible improvement because I can do more or it's easier. Got my pants, shoes & socks on by myself.

My incentive? Nancy ... no last names of the innocent are used. She was the woman in the room next to me at the hospital that screamed all night the first night & made me sleep deprived. When we went to PT, there she was ... sound asleep & nobody could wake her up. She missed 1 entire day of work and I heard her yell several times during the day. I felt so sorry for her as she looked like she had other health problems too and would be rehabbing much longer than me.

Yesterday in rehab she was raising her knee replaced leg off the bed unassisted like she should, and I must say, she looked healthier, too. Not fair. Today she went home ... her goal ... to her 1 story house.

I've never been known to be speedy (no laughing) about anything, so I'll be happy to do my usual slow and steady.

When will I be home? When I can walk a distance and the therapists are across the room not worrying about me ... same with the stairs & when I can bend my knee back to a 90° angle. My incentive? Chuck's grilling! Veggies here are overcooked, gravy is a staple, beef is very brown ... no redness. I am eating healthy & don't have much of an appetite & there are lots of choices ... certainly not loosing weight, even with the hard work. They serve small portions with plenty of calories.

That's all for today ... nap time!

It works!

I tried to get the computer to work in the hospital and it didn't, but here at the rehabilitation center it is working like a dream!

So, I have a new knee and it works ... not well or easily yet, but every day is an improvement. Surgery was on Monday and they had me dressed Tuesday morning by 6:30 AM. Shannon was firm and kept pushing, but I hurt even with the pain pill. I wanted to punch her because I was SURE I couldn't do anything. I did. When she left me in the chair I bawled. Then I scolded myself and ate breakfast. Then Colleen called and I unloaded for 2 minutes when they picked me up for therapy. I couldn't believe how much better I felt after therapy! I called Colleen right back after that session and she was so glad to hear the difference in my attitude.

Of course it didn't help that I was sleep deprived on Tuesday because the woman in the next room was in pain and screaming all night ... then they couldn't wake her up during therapy. I also napped, but after therapy and everything has been moving S L O W L Y since then, but moving forward.

Ready to go

I'm ready ... mostly. I got my second pre-surgery haircut and Laurie said that's all I get for the right knee. Surgery is scheduled for 10:00 AM on Mon. I've got my clothes ready to be packed, phone charged & Chuck will bring the computer on Tues. for me to report progress. Now to relax.

Yesterday was a great day starting out with quilt club. Pricilla Kibbee did a wonderful garment trunk show and then I went to the RPO, the first one without Judy.

... and speaking of Judy, we (Karen Alexander, Sue Donovan and I) got her friendship quilt top pieced and ready to sign and show her. Judy loved the Laurel Burch fabrics we used.


Karen, Mary Lu, JUDY, Martha, Rosalie, me, Chryss and Sue. This picture was taken by Sue ... isn't the timer on a camera handy for getting the photographer in the picture, too? And it worked!

Cindy suggested I also make a quilt for Ozzie, because the cat is moving, too, so I did. Thanks for adding to the fabric stash, Cindy.

I think Ozzie will like it. I know Judy did when I gave it to her. And I got assurance from her family that they will take good care of her. (I know they will, but had to ask anyway.)

Ups & Downs

It's been a long time ... again, but I think I'll try to continue. It will be an easier way to keep everyone that is interested up-to-date with my knee replacement starting on March 14.

I'm ready now and hope I'll behave properly. Some of you may know that it was scheduled for Jan. 31 and I got as far as the operating table and had atrial fibrillation so they postponed surgery until they figured out why. After all kinds of tests and not finding anything ... no blockage & a strong heart they blame it on? You guessed it! Age. So I'm on meds and am ready to go ... again.



And I'm getting ready by finishing up some projects. The first is my Puzzle Quilt that I started in a class from Paula Nadelstern. It is done and on the wall. There are 16 blocks and each of 6 pieced blocks are repeated 2 or 3 times. Here is the key:
Block 2 Block 1 Block 2 Block 3
Block 5 Block 4 Block 5 Block 4
Block 1 Block 4 Block 2 Block 3
Block 6 Block 1 Block 5 Block 6
That means all the Block 1's are made with the same pattern pieces, but the different fabrics make them look entirely different. All the block 6 blocks look like the same pieces to me, but all the block 1 blocks do not, but is. Fabric placement is key.

What a lot of work and lots of fussy cutting, but so much fun and a big challenge. I'll do more like this, but table runner size.