Week Five Post-Op

This was the week that marked my return to (semi) independence.  1.)  My parents were leaving for Virgina for a week to visit my brother.  2.)  I was going back to work part time.  I was stuck tying my shoes all by myself.  We joked that I could probably pay the neighbor kid next door to come over and tie my shoes every morning, but I managed okay by myself.  I still couldn't bend down to do it, but I could bring my foot up on my opposite leg.  It was nice to be on my own for a while.  I very slowly navigated around the grocery store one afternoon.  It felt weird to be out in public and be moving so slowly.  Some people gave me funny looks; I needed a sign on my back that stated I just had surgery. 

At PT this week, they had me starting to do mini squats and balancing on my operated leg, as well as walking forward and sideways in the mini squat position.  I was a little worried about incorporating new exercises when I was just getting my walking legs back, but I didn't have any pain or problems.  I felt like my gait was starting to normalize after a little over a week off the crutches.  I obviously wasn't going anywhere fast, but my limp was getting less pronounced.  PT said my range of motion was getting a lot better and continuing to improve.  It's really important to work hard on your range of motion since you have a limited time frame to get it back. 

I feel like I went back to work at the right time for me.  I could have gone back earlier, but it wouldn't have felt right.  The plan was 4 weeks totally off, 2 weeks back part time (4 hours/day), and then back to my normal full time hours.  Those first few days this week were tiring and I was very ready to get out of the desk chair by the end of my 4 hours.  My joint felt mildly uncomfortable by my limited positions.  I missed my recliner.  It wasn't bad, but I guess I didn't realize how much normal things still made me tired, even after a month. 

In the middle of the week, I was dog sitting for my brother's little 5 pound dog.  He was fun to have around because he was so easy to handle and I could actually take him for a walk and not worry about being pulled over.  We decided to try and make it around the block (approximately a half mile).  Toward the end I was dragging pretty badly.  My leg was just really tired and I was starting to get some pain in the joint.  Getting back to the house seemed so far away!  When I got home I iced it and took some ibuprofen and all seemed fine an hour later.  A few days later I was able to walk a half of a mile with no problems.  My walk schedule this week looked like this:

Monday: 1.5 miles (last walk on crutches)

Tuesday: 2/10 of a mile
Wednesday: 1/2 of a mile (dog walk)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: 1/2 of a mile
Saturday: 1/2 of a mile
Sunday: 7/10 of a mile

Sleeping was getting a lot easier.  My movements in bed were almost totally pain free and I could sleep on the operated side with only a little bit of weird feeling.  I am still sleeping with a pillow between my legs; I'll probably continue to do that as a precaution for a while.

Hanging with the little guy on a nice day.