DebbyK’s Hip Surgery_Post Op Day 4

Hi Your Fit Day Friends!

Day 4. It was a ‘regular’ day. Hurray! Well what I mean is, if you’ve ever had anesthesia, and have been pumped full of fluids and pain meds, you’re probably not!

Regular that is…if you get my drift!!

Ha! Finally…

But, still, I’m not getting much sleep and just accept this for what it is. It’s got to get better, right? Last night was better, but still pretty hard.

Instead of sleeping with the bed raised, my PT, Pondian, suggested I might try and lower it a bit. So I started with the bed at about 30 degrees angle. I’m not sure at this stage in recovery that I will truly find that optimal sleeping position since the sweating and ripping pain in my thigh poke their heads in at their convenience. It’s like someone tapping you on the shoulder every 2 hours and asking you “do you feel that?”

But I sure do hope I find it soon. I just keep imagining being me three or four weeks from now. But really, wouldn’t it nice to have a remote like Adam Sandler had in the movie ‘Click? Remember that? How cool would that be, to be able to fast forward your recovery and wake up 10 days later at the Fisherman’s Cove Resort!

Trying to forget about my body was what I needed.  Someone and/or something to take me away from it all. I remembered that I had downloaded Peggy Huddleston’s Healing tapes to my iPod, so I turned to her for some meditation and relaxation techniques. It really helped. I replayed it at least three times, following her cues which helped me to relax my entire body, while the sound of a heart beat thumped in the background.

I bought this at a suggestion from others who have been in my same situation. I highly recommend this CD set, even if it’s just to get away from the daily grind and there is no surgery pending. The heart beat alone lulls you into another world. I’ve made it really simple and attached the link where you can pick this up at a great price:

Peggy Huddleston’s Relaxation/Heali ng CD plus Instructional CD

It really relaxed me and lulled me into sleep, at least for a couple hours!

I know this discomfort can’t possibly last, no way….

But hey, I have a new hip and I know this just comes with the package.

Swimming Anyone?

At 2AM I woke up. My legs were swelling and I was sweating buckets again, and my stomach distended and in a lot of discomfort.

I was sopping, so I rang my bell and I asked the lovely kind nurses to change the sheets. BTW: The nurses were there in less than a minute. And As I waited for them to change the linen, I went from the inconvenient sleeping position of my bed, to the possible, yet very uncomfortable option of sitting in a chair. You know, the one that I was doing here, in Day 2. So I hung out as best as I could, leaning onto the good side of my tush and waited til I could hobble back into bed.

Since I was off pain meds and wanted to keep that ways so I could start getting the toxins out and stay regular (sorry if too much information), I asked for some Ibuprofen. Actually it’s what the nurses finally suggested, after first trying to pump me with more Ultracet /(Tramidol).

But I just didn’t want that sick-to-my-stomach feeling, and nausea, that has been plaguing me throughout the day; and plumbing problems to boot. And the Dr. suggested I try to get off the pain meds if I could. I wasn’t exactly in pain if I didn’t move. It was the fact that I couldn’t move, other body parts were getting numb and sore, like my heels, and if I tried to move the pain at the incision felt like it was tearing and ripping. But a good NAISD would certainly do the trick. So I held my ground, and got the Ibu.

There has also been an issue with getting enough cold packs, after asking for a few days. Finally, I think it was Dr. Biss, Dr. Bose’s assistant, said they could get me the gel packs that you can freeze, like the two I brought with me. That was during the day when he came to visit. But it seemed like hours before they actually could find them from the hospital.

So for those of you on your way to the Apollo, either bring a few that you can rotate around the clock, or ask them to bring some down from the hospital. Otherwise you get the old brick kind.

And on Day 8 I did come to find from the doctors at Apollo that there is another NSAID that relieves pain and is better than Ibuprofin. I’m not sure why the nurses couldn’t give it to me. I could be because it’s an Rx and they need the doctors signature. It’s called Etoshine 90.

So if you’re coming to India or getting surgery or in pain and already take Ibuprofin, you may want to look into this, but do your research first.

Good Morning, Sunshine

At 6AM, right on schedule, lights go on, cuff around my arm, pressure building up in my bicep and thermometer under other arm as the daily regime of tests continues. Hmmm! Just wondering…how is it really possible to get good sleep around here unless you go to bed at 8pm! Hard to do when dinner is served at 7:30pm. But it’s par for the course and of course compulsive me I has to ask for my metrics…and all was perfect, by the way!!

After that doozy of a night I slept in ’til 9:30AM

For this morning PT I was walking much better, felt better than Day 3, and walked up stairs. On Day 3!! Look at me now…:)!

And that afternoon I was walking at a much faster snails pace. And then after PT was over I didn’t feel like getting back into bed so I started doing stuff around my room.

First I went to the bathroom. Then, since I was just a few steps from the kitchen, I ‘crutched’ myself over there. And after walking around in the little kitchen area I felt pretty capable so I just started doing stuff…

Next I made Tea. And it’s easy to do with these cool ninja tea makers that everyone has. You just add a bottle of water, click a switch and in 1 minute your water is done. They need these in the US!

Then I brought stuff over to my bed. For instance, my  coffee mug that has a seal-able lid, that I brought with me from the US. It’s great. You can basically dump it upside down and nothing will spill. Like a sippy cup for grown ups! Not a plug, but you can get it at Smart and Final store!

After that I did more band exercises, pushups against the table, and dips on my walker. I was on a  little roll…

Oh, and check this out: I can lift myself out of bed using my triceps. You know, like how gymnasts lift themselves up a few inches when they are doing floor exercises, with with their feet out. But of course I can’t keep my leg straight and lift both my leg and my body off the bed. What I can do is get to the side of the bed easier by using my triceps muscles and maneuver myself to the side of the bed and then lift myself up when my feet are hanging off the side of the bed. Good for the core too.

Aaaaand! Almost forgot: I put on my pants by myself tonight after graduating to real clothes this afternoon. I’m out of the hospital gowns and can wear my own cotton tank that I sleep in at home. I brought my JPL tank top, the one I got from my little brother when he worked at JPL in Pasadena. It keeps me close to him. I know his spirit is close by and his energy is helping me  heal

And check out my PM PT session:

Day 4 of hip surgery is generally your first shower day. For some reason I waited til the afternoon. Mmmm! It felt so good to be fresh and clean. Feeling fresh after 3 days of not showering and sweating a tsunami can make anyone’s attitude change for the positive. I’m much cheerier and people are noticing.

Dinner was fish again with classic Indian spices, made to order, with my veggies, but I was too full to finish it all. Going from being extremely active and burning thousands of calories during a day to hardly moving my body doesn’t know how to digest all of this food. I sure do hope my body is using it to rebuild me and make me strong.

And after dinner I turned on the TV which I thought I’d never do. But I needed some diversion and I don’t watch it back in the States. So this was a treat to get to watch the European and Asian news channels, which were in English.

A Matter of Time

I do have to say that the fist three nights post op were not tear free. It is an emotional ride and pain can bring anyone down, no matter how brave and strong. So I just let the tears come when they do and know it will get better and consider it as a natural detox for my mind and body, knowing it too will pass and I will become myself again.

Same said for my body . It has morphed into something and someone I don’t recognize. But I look in the mirror and there I am, DebbyK. Strong, dedicated, motivated, and someone who never gives up. I can train my body back into it’s fit lean self.

I am still visualizing walking at Fisherman’s Cove resort, where I will be going next; and doing things myself. From what I accomplished on my own today I believe I will be able to do most everything soon, except maybe driving and laundry and grocery shopping.

And when doing my exercises I visualize my shiny  new BHR doing it’s job. I can’t wait to see what I can do 1 week from now.

I know and believe I will come back stronger, and slowly my body will morph back. I consider this just another challenge; and what an exciting challenge. I mean, hey, I can build my body into anything I want again. It’s all up to me. I have thirty years of knowledge in the fitness and wellness industry behind me, so there’s  no stopping me now!

And over the past several months all of the new systems I’ve been using,  like TRX, Kangoo Boots, Ultimate Sandbag,  have been new ways to train my body. And I’m really excited to create some great new workouts using my own body weight and these new innovative systems to get back into shape and prove that you don’t necessarily need a gym to get the body you want. For the first 6-12 weeks it will be mainly my body weight, TRX, bands and maybe the Sandbag with minimal weight for Core only.

But no worries! These are workout you will be able to do too. And I promise that they will get you into shape. Just follow my progress after surgery, you’ll see…!

All you need is YOU! OK! And me and my blog to help you through!!

So stay tuned and follow my blog and follow my workouts. Because if I can do it after a hip surgery, then anyone can. And I’ promise I’ll have some great workouts for you soon.

Now, back to resting my bod…

Your Trainer and Friend,

DebbyK!

Make it Your Fit Day with DebbyK!