First Post-Op Week...

Quote for the Day:

"I was going to have cosmetic surgery until I noticed

 that the doctor's office was full of portraits by Picasso."

~Rita Rudner

Trinity stayed on here for a week after our vacation so she could help me out post-op.  With her here, that meant that Alex and Andrew were here, too!!  So here's some pictures from that week.

Cuddling with Alex...

Cuddling with Andrew...

Andrew got ahold of Grandpa's glasses...

We took the kids to the local park...(This park was built by community members and Andy actually helped build it!!!)

That concludes the cutesy part of the presentation.

Now...I'm going to warn you...the next pictures are not for the faint-of-heart.  But this is what my arm looked like on post-op day 6...

It's looking a little better now, but it's going to take a while for all the bruising to resolve.  :(   The incision is sore when touched or if I forget and rest it on something.  As for the numbness...I've not noticed any improvement in the numbness but at least the numbness doesn't get worse when I bend my elbow now.  I guess that is some consolation.  :(   And I don't get the pain in my wrist anymore from bending my elbow that I used to get.  

I just want the numbness to go away more than anyone could ever know who hasn't actually experienced this.  

Loretta

Ooooops...

After I published the last blog post I realized that I had title it "Vacation and Surgery Update" and then proceeded to not give a surgery update!  My bad...

We arrived home from our vacation on Wednesday evening and then on Friday I had a cubital tunnel release surgery on my right elbow.  

The surgery went well, but I guess it was a lot worse once the surgeon got in there than he had thought it was going to be.  I had the surgery at the hospital and surgical department that I work at, so I was amongst friends and co-workers the entire time.  :)

I awoke from anesthesia with severe pain and nausea.  My nurses took care of that and by the time I left recovery room, I was pain-free.  I had another episode of nausea in Outpatient Surgery when they started giving me juice and crackers, but once again, they treated that right away.   We finally left the hospital about 3 PM and arrived home soon thereafter.  

I have been blessed in that, unless I bumped or touched my right arm/elbow area or tried to bend it too much, I've had no pain since I left the hospital!!  I actually had MORE pain when I had my carpal tunnel surgeries than I have had with this one, and this one is a more invasive/complicated surgery!!

My daughter-in-law, Trinity, and the two boys stayed on after the vacation and she has been a great help to me during the last several days.  She has cooked and taken care of things for me and has even been pulled into the role of nurse when I needed help changing dressings, etc.  Of course, I also have to say that Andy, as always, has been a big help, too!

As soon as the first post-op day, I was getting very bored because I wasn't able to do anything due to my arm being bandaged.  I have spent most of my days snuggling my grandchildren and helping to feed and rock the baby, Alex!  

(It looks like my hair is standing up in these pictures, but that is actually fringe from the throw covering the rocking chair!  LOL)

As of now, the ACE bandage is off and the incision is only covered by a gauze dressing.  My arm is very purple and looks like hamburger meat!  LOL  I still have a lot of the numbness in my right hand, but I think some of the feeling is ever-so-slowly starting to return to my right ring finger.  The throbbing pain in my wrist and forearm are gone!!  Because my issues were caused by nerve damage and nerves take a LONG time to heal, it may be up to a year before we know for sure how much nerve recovery I will end up having.

But for now, I'm healing well from surgery and will drive myself to an appointment tomorrow for the first time since surgery.

Thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers during this time!  They have truly been appreciated!

Loretta

AND...We Have a DATE!!!

Quote for the Day:

"I'm older, I'm matured... I'm looking forward to the years to come. Good years."

~Whitney Houston

This week I found out that we DO have an orthopedic surgeon that does Cubital Tunnel Release surgery at our hospital!  I called his office yesterday and, lo and behold, they were able to get me in for a consultation visit this morning!

Surgery is set for March 21!!!  

I'm so glad we are getting this show on the road because I am losing function and strength in my right hand daily!!!

This week I noticed that I now struggle to put a glove on my right hand because my last two fingers don't do what my brain tells them to do.  I also have lost so much strength since even just last week, that I can no longer use a nail-clipper with my right hand, open jars, etc,....things I could still do just last week.  I feel like I can't grasp a knife tight enough to be able to use it effectively, it keeps feeling like it's going to slip out of my hand.

Today the doctor showed me, by comparing my two hands side-by-side, how much muscle atrophy I've had in my right hand because of this nerve entrapment.  

I am frantically trying to finish up the customer quilt that I have in the frame right now, but I'm finding it awkward to hold and pull the needle through the fabric.  I'm so close to being done with this quilt and I want it done and to the customer before the surgery.

I'm also having a LOT of trouble typing, so please excuse me if I'm not able to do many more posts till after the surgery.  My arm goes so terribly numb and begins to throb from the pain when I try to use the computer for too long.  I have to keep dropping my right arm to my side to let the pain release from it.

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO ready for this to be over with and get back on track with my life!  

Loretta

A Diagnosis...Now for the Treatment...

Quote for the Day:

"I was going to have cosmetic surgery until I noticed that the doctor's office was full of portraits by Picasso."

~Rita Rudner

Since about Thanksgiving I've had progressive numbness of the last two fingers on my right hand as well as the outer 1.5" of my right palm.  

No, this is not my hand...but it shows the area that is numb ALL DAY, EVERY DAY...

As the symptoms got worse, I was pretty sure what it was, but had to have a visit to a neurologist and have a nerve conduction test, or EMG, done to make the final diagnosis and get treatment ordered.

Yesterday was that day, and I do, in fact, have Cubital Tunnel syndrome...just as I and my primary care provider thought.  The neurologist has ordered a custom splint for my elbow and has referred me to an orthopedic surgeon so that I can get the surgery to correct the problem.  

Unfortunately, there is no surgeon at the hospital I work at that does this type of surgery, so I will be having it at West Virginia University Hospital.  It is more nerve-wracking for me to have the surgery amongst strangers than if I were having it among my friends and co-workers.  :(

In the meantime, while I am waiting to have my consultation interview with the surgeon, I am frantically trying to finish up the quilt that is in my frame so it will be done before I have to have surgery.  I am on the final stretch...

I have already made sure that I finished the other quilt that needed to get done in a timely manner...the baby quilt for our new grandson due in June!  That quilt is completed, but I can't post about it yet, because it is a gift.  Once it has been gifted to my daughter, I will post pictures!  :)

Loretta