Journey vs. Trip

I think I will bop the next person who refers to this surgery as a journey. "Journey" always seems to carry promises of learning, appreciation for other people, life lessons, wisdom, enlightenment ... "Trip" is a little lighter. Maybe some beverages along the way. Laughter. "Trippy" stuff. So far, none of either. No journey; no trip ... yet.

The morning of preparing to spring the coop left me tired and cranky. The nurse went through a ream of paperwork, the most significant of which involved how to take each of the 7 medications I went home with. Last week, I fully expected to be weaned of major painkillers and I certainly didn't intend to have any narcotics going home with me. I adjusted that expectation fairly early on, so I did have an interest in the medication management session.

The nurse had the great idea that it would be best if the Oxycontin (2X daily) could be administered in the late evening and early morning (say 8 PM and 8 AM), rather than in the middle of the afternoon and late at night (2 PM and 2 AM), so she thought I should try to delay the Oxycontin dose (due at 2 PM) until 8 PM. At about 4 PM I went into a major meltdown, sobbing with such force that I couldn't manage the crutches, let alone the pain control strategy.

Let's just say that I now understand how people might inadvertently overdose on narcotics. Bob helped me get upstairs to our own bed ("my" bed, for a couple of days, and we worked on the medications list, trying to figure out how to take each of them. I realized this morning that it would be very easy to put each one on a calendar at its proper time, simply using the calendar features of Outlook or some other electronic calendar. I haven't done that yet, but I will do so soon. Thank you, everyone who called during the evening. I'm sorry I couldn't talk to you. You would have wondered if some brain shredder had gotten hold of me.

I watched a little of the Golden Globes and pretty much got the pain addressed. I didn't take any more medication until 6 AM. Bob brought me coffee, fruit and yogurt for breakfast. I am sitting at my desktop computer, with my right foot on the floor -- leg not quite 90 degrees but it's not too far from a right angle. I can lift my leg now and the quad feels fairly strong.

I'm walking quite well on the crutches. And the crutch is a hell of a hooker tool - I can grab anything with it and expertly guide a selected item to its destination. I am hoping to get outside a little today, but may not have the stamina yet. Tomorrow morning I have to go to my clinic for a blood test. I have to begin physical therapy ASAP, so I may try to get something going after the clinic visit -- same building. Bob just finished vacuuming and I'd better get back to bed before I get caught at the computer!

It's remarkable how self centered one can become, so quickly. Some kind of instinct for self preservation, I suppose.