Unstitched

[digitaldiscipline]

First followup with the orthopaedist yesterday. His verdict: "Keep doing the exersizes, keep using the cold water pump, keep it in that immobilizer sling for another 4 weeks." The nurse/aide who removed my stitches said I was healing extremely well. I admit to some surprise that he didn't check my range of motion or anything, but I did get the most-anticipated outcome: seeing the intra-surgical shots (I got hardcopies the size of business cards, so they're not really well suited for sharing online, unfortunately). Highlights include seeing the heavy thread woven through the head of the biceps tendon, the debridement-and-suction tool, and the before/after shots where the frayed shoulder capsule and bone spurs were dremeled away. So, keep on doing the same for the next four weeks.

The doc was more surprised that I declined a refill on the perc scrip. "I still have a couple left over after weaning myself off of them after the first couple of days... went from 2 every 4 hours to 2 every 6 to 1 every 4... when it got down to 1 every 8, then just at bedtime to make sure I slept ok, I figured I was done needing them." I almost said "a new scrip for those would be for recreational use only." *snrk*

So, I'm managing the just-slightly-worse-than-when-I-came-to-see-him 1.5-2/10 baseline with occasional Tylenol and the cold water pump. I don't think I have a particularly high pain tolerance (especially when the source is external; I tried rolling with a friend to do BJJ once, and I tap out very easily in pain-inducing locks). I may simply have a high threshhold for stimuli to register *as* pain instead of something else, whereas other folks feel pain at lower levels of stimulation, but their red line of "that hurts too much" may well be significantly higher than mine.

Comments

[lizkayl.livejournal.com]

There is also the, pain in places where you've had pain before and time to anticipate it.

[lizkayl.livejournal.com]

Also, Yay on the smooth healing and manageable pain levels!

[perspicuity.livejournal.com]

i'd be tempted to take the scip, just to have "stock"; it's rare that i need such things, but when i do, i want them NOW NOW NOW, not hey, we'll call that in for you on monday, okay?"

cold water pump?

heal well!

#

[ivy]

Woohoo recovery!

[etcet.livejournal.com]

I have no real need for narcotic-level painkillers; I've got the quarted ot common OTC ones on hand - acetomenaphen, aspirin, naproxen sodium, and ibuprofen - as well as most of the tramadol I was originally prescribed when I talked to my GP about the pain earlier this year (which, I will note, didn't actually do anything for me).

the cold water pump is a 1 gallon insulated bucket with a pump, attached via insulated hose, to a pad/sleeve thing that velcros around the area where cold therapy is needed. fill it with ice water and let it run, either until the cold becomes unbearable or the water warms to tepid. I find myself refilling the ice two or three times a day. it helps with the swelling and soreness.