It is 2 weeks today since I had my surgery. My lower back still hurts and I still have a totally numb foot. But my rehab is cruising along.... to wit:
8 AM - physical therapy. I have no idea why on earth I made an 8 AM PT appointment, so I'm glad I checked my calendar last night before going to bed. I stayed up to watch the Olympic men's gymnastics with Alan, then after he left I had a hard time falling asleep. So I was very tired this morning but I still arrived early.
This is PT
1) A young woman, Lee - sets me up with the heat pack and electrodes on my back. I sit in a chair and work today's xword puzzle (Since it's a Tuesday, I actually finish it). This is my favorite part of the session, the heat and electric stimulation on my back.
2) when finished, Lee puts some lotion on my back and massages the area around my scar. She says the left side is "tight", and that is where it hurts when I walk.
3) After massage, I start my stretches. Bring knees in and swing over to right - hold for 30 sec, then swing over to left. This stretches out the sides of my thighs but good. After that I put my foot in a strap and bring one leg up straight - 30 seconds on each side, 3 times. That stretches my hamstrings. Then I put one foot on the other knee and pull my leg up to towards my other shoulder. A good stretch - also on both sides. I also hold a soft ball between my knees and tighten my butt, abs and knees.
After that I go home, and fall into a sleep coma from about 9:30 to about 1 PM. My dreams are quite bizarre. First I'm at PT but it's mostly about magazines, then I'm at a place a lot like Pine Banks, where I watch some musical groups and then try to get into the room where our clothes are, so we can make a shuttle bus back to our cars or something. There are lots of people I know in it from all over the place. It's very very detailed and I can't possibly explain it here.
I have lunch (pita and hummus from TJs) and get a call from Susan. I call Alan and wake him up. He didn't sleep well either as his mother called him every hour on the hour.
At 3 PM I decide to put on my walking shoes and go out for a walk. Walking is a very important part of post -op rehab. However, I had not put on shoes or sneakers yet and my left foot is very uncomfortable. I decide to put heat on my back first, and stretch out my calf. Then I walk around the neighborhood with my mp3 player. I stop to talk to the old man who lives across the hall from me who is sitting on his patio listening to Italian music. He doesn't know I live here. I see him in the hallway every so often but he is surprised to hear I've been here almost 4 years. His cat's name is Boris.
So now I have had PT, slept, walked, iced, cooled down, etc. etc. Lots of time for me and my numb foot to just hang out before bed.
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