Monday, February 26, 2007

Not Very Good News

My surgeon returned from vacation today and just called me at 8:15pm. He says the pain appearing in my right leg and hip after two weeks is "very disturbing." There's a chance that it will go away, that it's being caused by the manipulation in the surgery, but it seems more likely that he'll need to go in again and do a fusion. He says to give it two more weeks and call him.

He is writing a prescription for more Percocet. I started taking it Friday afternoon and it's worked well. The pain is certainly much less and quite bearable.

He also said that it was probably okay to try driving but to be careful. If I'm in an accident, there could be legal ramifications from the drug. I feel as if I'm as alert and aware as ever, although that's not saying a great deal! A friend who can drive a stick shift is coming over tomorrow. We'll try to start the car and then take it for a spin on the freeway. If I feel that I'm not functioning properly, Lynne can take over.

Needless to say, I'm despondent.

Friday, February 23, 2007

Lessons Learned

Had the most painful night of my life Wednesday. It was worst in my right leg, bad in my right hip and back. Since I didn't kill myself, I guess it was bearable, but it didn't seem that way. Finally took a Gabapentin (Neurontin) about 1:00 and fell asleep about 2:30. Woke up in a couple of hours in pain. Took the Gabapentin yesterday and last night. Did almost nothing yesterday. Pain almost as bad last night as Wednesday. Got a little sleep but woke at 4:00 in horrendous pain. Gabapentin did absolutely nothing. So I gave in and called doctors. To make a long story short, I now have some Endocet (Percocet; Oxycodone) and shall take my first one as soon as I finish writing this. (I'm afraid it will knock me out or make me too woozy to do anything.)

Lesson 1: Neurontin does absolutely nothing for acute pain. It's for long-term use for chronic pain.

Lesson 2: If one is taking pain meds and one has pain, the solution is NOT to stop taking the pain meds! I had stopped the Vicodin Sunday night because I felt it wasn't doing any good. My guess is that the pain I had the last two nights would not have been as agonizing if I had kept up the Vicodin.

Lesson 3: A three-level decompression (that's what my surgery is called) does not heal in a week or even two. Somehow I had gotten it into my head that if the surgeon did not have to do a fusion my only recovery would be from the incision and that it would last no more than two weeks. Since I have a history of impatience and of wanting what I want today if not yesterday, this has been a hard lesson.

Lesson 4: I am powerless over the rate of my healing and over the success of the surgery.

Meanwhile, any hope I had of driving or doing much of anything is down the tubes. I suppose I should get someone to come and take my car out for a spin on the freeway before the battery dies. Or maybe it's dead already. I haven't even tried to start it. Had hoped my cousin Charlie would be here by now to take care of things like that. It's probably better that he's not here since I'm definitely not good company!

Off to the land of drugs. More later.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

No More Pink Cloud

Haven't sent any news recently because I've been too depressed. On Sunday the 11th all was wonderful. I walked by myself to the Natural Foods Grocery Store a few blocks from my house. Took the walker so I could rest the groceries on the seat instead of carrying them, but felt that I could have done the walking fine without it.

On Tuesday the 13th (exactly 2 weeks from the surgery) severe pain in my hip and down my right leg appeared. It seemed similar to the pain I had before surgery, the pain that surgery was supposed to do away with. It's probably from the sciatic nerve. I tried to walk the dogs with a friend; she took Creusa and I took Achates. The dogs had returned on Monday and were still quite exhausted from their running and playing at camp. But I had to cut the walk short and stopped every few yards to try to ease the pain.

Called the surgeon's nurse. She said take more drugs. I tried Motrin; no relief. I tried, at her suggestion, alternating Motin and double-dose Vicodin; no relief. I doubled the Vicodin by itself; no relief. The pain was even worse than before surgery. Before, the pain would go away, or at least go to a manageable level, if I lay down or sat sideways on the couch with my legs up. But now no position helps. Obviously I have not been sleeping well. On Monday the 19th I had to abort another attempt at a walk after a couple of blocks. Finally gave up on both drugs and took my last Vicodin Sunday night. I don't see any difference.

My fear, of course, is that the surgery failed. Called the nurse yesterday and asked to speak to the surgeon. He's out of town for the week, and she said he had no time to talk to me when he got back. [This is the same nurse who has refused to give me a follow-up appointment. I'm supposed to see the surgeon in 6 weeks from surgery. She said she had no openings until April (9-10 weeks) and that the books for April weren't open. I argued in vain on more than one occasion.] Finally after much arguing (her solution: more and/or different drugs) she gave me an appointment to see the Physician's Assistant who had done the rounds at the hospital and had signed my discharge paper. I've just returned from seeing her. I feel a little better in my mind. She said that the pain "could be" from the surgery itself, that it takes a long time for the nerves to settle down. Even more importantly, she said she'd ask the surgeon to call me next week and also to see what he could do about getting me an appointment in a timely fashion.

The nurse and the PA have very different ideas about what I should do. Nurse says do nothing and take drugs. PA says do whatever I want. She says if I want to try different drugs I should go to my regular doctor because she can monitor them better. The main drug the PA says they would recommend is Gabapentin (Neurtontin). I actually have almost 300 of them that my regular doctor prescribed last June when the pain was so bad. Unfortunately, they made me dizzy and nauseous and didn't seem to help the pain at all so I only took 3 of them. I really don't want to take them again. So I may try to tough it out until I hear from the surgeon. Or I may try to talk to my regular doctor, which is not all that easy.

The best thing about not taking the drugs is that I can drive as long as the pain doesn't interfere. Tomorrow I may at least try to start the car for the first time in over three weeks. I don't think I'm ready to take the dogs to the park yet since walking is so hard. They'll just have to get fat and lazy. If I still can't walk next week I may ask Jon to take the hounds back to camp for another stint.

In the meantime my television gave out last Thursday night and the battery on the handset of my cordless phone died today. What else will go wrong?

Ah, the next thing to go wrong is that I just took 10 minutes out to call my regular doctor. It's a challenge with a rotary phone. She's not in the clinic all week. Guess I'm destined to be drug-free. I've been very weepy the last couple of days. Don't know if that's a result of stopping the Vicodin or the result of the pain and worry or just my normal reaction to total frustration. The pain does seem to diminish, although not disappear, if I do nothing for many hours. There's no hope for any relief tonight but maybe if I take it very easy tomorrow the pain will be less awful by the afternoon.

Wow, I did go on, didn't I? Sorry. I'm using this as a sort of diary. Thanks to all of you who are continuing to email and call and help. (If anyone calls tonight, I probably won't answer. Too hard to get from couch to rotary phone in study. The new battery for the cordless phone has to charge for ten hours.)

Much love from Janet, Achates and Creusa


P.S. Forgot one piece of good news. Went to Richmond Kaiser last Thursday (courtesy of one of my many wonderful chauffeurs) and had the stitiches taken out. The itching the first two weeks was horrible. I'm allergic to almost anything on my skin. The Tegaderm and the Steri-strips just about did me in. PA checked the incision today and said it looks good. I can go back to water aerobics if I can tolerate the movement. Probably shall wait until I hear from the surgeon. I hope he'll call early in the week but am sure he'll be terribly backlogged.

Thursday, February 08, 2007

an update from Janet

Dear Friends,

I don't know how many of you are still looking at the site, but thought I'd try to give an update. Won't do another until the 15th or 16th.

I'm recovering rapidly. Have been assured by the surgeon's nurse that the numbness in my legs, particularly the left, and the non-incision pain in my back are normal and will go away at some point. Even though he didn't do the fusion, there's lots of inflammation and trauma. I suspect that I may have pushed things too far the first few days with too much bending, too much walking, too much whatever. I felt so much better than I expected that it was easy to overdo. So I've really taken it easy the last two days.

Right now the plan is for the dogs to come home on Monday. The wonderful guys at G-BARK (Greyhound Boarding and Retirement Kamp) will deliver them. According to Jon, both Achates and Creusa are having a great time. I'm hesitant to bring them home when I won't be able to provide them with all the fun activities of camp (such as romping with 12 or more other greyhounds) or even much exercise, but I miss them terribly!

I'm asking Sarah to take the schedule off the site. I am so indebted to all of you who signed up and those who were waiting to sign. I've cancelled all morning visits since the first day home and some of the afternoon ones. If you think you're still on, please check before you come. I think I've contacted everyone, but I've been known to goof! (And I'll keep all of you in mind for the future when I have the knee replacement!)

If any of you are strong and have experience with a prey-driven 40 mile-per-hour runner, I can use help walking the dogs. I think I can manage Achates, but Creusa is more intense.

I'm hoping to shower tomorrow without the bandage. Took the Tegaderm off last night because it was giving me a horrid rash and welts. Have enough itching with the healing stitches. Have an appointment to have the stitches removed on Thursday the 15th, but it is possible they may want to wait a little longer. I had been told all along that 2 weeks was it (Thursday will be 16 days), but the nurse informed me that diabetics should wait 3 weeks.

Don't know when I'll be able to drive. Have to be mostly pain-free and totally drug free. Was taking 4 Vicodin a day, cut down, and now have gone back to the 4. "Everyone" says it's important to get rid of the pain. I'm hoping I can start driving by the end of next week, but am preparing myself for a longer wait.

I do feel well enough to enjoy, and feel guilty about, reading lots of mysteries and watching junk I taped from tv. May try to graduate to better literature and viewing materials soon. Blog-site Sarah saved "Rome" on her Tivo and then made DVDs, so that's at the top of my list. (I don't get HBO.) I slept a lot at the beginning, but now am down to "only" 10 hours or so a day.

I've been trying to keep up with emails and love to get them. Feel free to call, but please understand that I may be asleep, or I may have forgotten to take the phone to wherever I am, or I may just feel overwhelmed.

Oodles of love and thanks to all of you.
Janet

Sunday, February 04, 2007

getting around and getting better

i spoke with janet this morning and she happily reports that she was able to take a shower today: "a real shower, standing up and everything." a friend is coming by to help her with bandage change, a little later today.

she is having some numbness in one leg, but anticipates that this will go away as she continues to heal. she plans to try taking a few-block walk this afternoon!

Friday, February 02, 2007

a note from janet

I'm home! Incision hurts lots, partly because I'm two hours late taking my pill and partly because I've been doing too much and partly just because it's a very deep six inch cut to the bone! But I'm walking and able to do pretty much whatever I can tolerate. (I'm allowed to bend over. The surgeon said, "It may hurt but it won't damage." It does indeed hurt, but at least I'm not totally restricted.) The only thing forbidden is driving, and I couldn't manage that anyway! I was soooooooo lucky he didn't have to do the fusion. Now all the the tapes and DVD's I had planned to watch and all the books I was going to read may have to give way to chores. Can't really justify lying around for the six weeks I had counted on!

My love and gratitude to all of you kind and wonderful friends. I'm sooooooo lucky to have met you!

Janet

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Wednesday report from Pat

She looks great! Good color, sitting up in bed and alert. Her voice sounded
normal today. Even with the pain meds, she's more coherent than I am before
my first coffee of the day. She is in a lot of pain when she moves, though.
But she's in great spirits and seems optimistic.

Her surgeon called her today and they seem to have agreed on her going home
Friday (I'm sure she told you alreasdy). She's allowed to eat again, thank
goodness. It's the food I brought in for her, not hospital food. Maybe a
tiny step up?

Janet's worried about her roommate (she's always so compassionate about
people's problems) and mentioned her concern to the nursing student who is
on her team.