Remember the nerve block I told you about? I sure do. I'm remembering it and pining for it like nothing I've ever wanted in my life. Its job was to numb the top of the leg down to the kneecap, since that's where the incisions were made and the drill was used on the bone. It must have finally worn off last night because kabloom. Today is really really bad. So painful that I can hardly sit up. I kept up with the medication throughout the night, but I'm thinking I under-did it. Today is the first of many rehab appointments, and I have no clue what I'll be able to do. I can barely walk on crutches! I can also hardly string sentences together thanks to the combo of an early morning and a lot of pain pills. I'll check back in after the morning appointment.
Update: Physical therapy was a big win. He showed me how the brace works, and told me that I can finally take it off from time to time. I'd been really worried about over-extending or doing something to screw up the surgery, but he assured me that you really can't do too much damage. As long as the pain is tolerable, then keep up the exercises. That's all I needed to hear, away I went. He showed me a few basic stretches and leg lifts to do for now, just a few times a day to start restoring range of motion. It was like magic- the knee felt 200x better on the ride home from the session. The journey to walking on my own has already begun in earnest.
I'm becoming much less a fan of painkillers. They sure do work, but they affect your personality in weird ways. Lethargy is common, obviously, which is annoying but to be expected. However they also make you (well, me at least) REALLY irritable when put into situations with any amount of stress or conflict. They make impulse and emotion control much more difficult. I'll be glad to be done with them, the sooner the better.
Tomorrow is the first shower, another in a series of mini milestones in the first week. Really looking forward to that, haven't been able to shower since Tuesday night (!).
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