Tom's Foot II
Friday October 20
It has been two weeks and two days since Tom’s ankle replacement surgery and all is going well. According to the doctor, the surgery went as expected, no problems, and I arrived in Tom’s room to find him sitting up in bed eating ice cream. Of course with all of the pain relievers and a nerve blog to the leg he was not in pain at all. The leg was encased in a huge, at least 40" around, bandage. The purpose of the wrap was to keep the ankle immobile while allowing the wounds to heal. We had a pleasant afternoon and evening in the hospital while various doctors, nurses, and aides came in and out of his room. After dinner, I headed home to Gracie.
Day two. We planned to leave the hospital about 2:00 when our neighbor, Vince, would be home to help get Tom in the house. I arrived about ten after taking Gracie for a walk and was followed quickly into the room by the physical therapist. They had already had Tom up on a walker for a trip around the room, but now we were going figure out how to get him into our house. (3 steps up to the ground floor) We decided that with two spotters and the walker, hoping up backwards was the best method. Back to the room for lunch and to wait for his release, then home.
I will not say that the next two weeks were smooth sailing, Tom was in a great deal of pain even with the painkillers he was taking, but he worked very hard, kept himself moving from his recliner to the kitchen to the bathroom and I heard minimal complains. We had several visits from various home health care nurses and therapists and our good friends, Mike and Sue B, brought lunch (chicken from Pizza Oven) one afternoon. It was good for Tom to have visitors and me too.
Wednesday, October 18, we returned to the doctor. When they removed the wrap, we were pleased to see how good his leg looked. There are three incisions, and all had healed well. The doctor also was happy. The original plan at this point was to encase his leg in a hard cast for the next two weeks, but due to the neuropathy in his foot from the original accident, the doctor decided to put him in a boot. The boot will create less pressure on the damaged nerves, and he can loosen it when resting. Still no weight on the leg for two more weeks but we are making progress. Without the cast and by scooting up the stair on his rear, Tom was able get up stairs for a real shower. So with new baggy shorts from Target, he was feeling much improved.
Today we are going to try a trip to the apple orchard. Located on the edge of Amish country, it is about a 40-minute drive. Planning it around a dose of his pain relievers, it should be a pleasant change from the four walls of our living room.
For those concerning about Gracie while we were at the hospital, she enjoyed many visits from our neighbor, Vince, and our son, Steven, for trips outside. Also, I tried hemp-based doggie calming treats to relieve her stress. They worked very well. I could have used a few myself.
October 20th, 2017