*Left: 25 week surgery anniversary*
Today marks 5 weeks since my second surgery, which means...I only have one more week of non-weight bearing!!!
Over the last week, I have been doing a lot of planning: (1) prepping for my dissertation defense, (2) preparing to move and for the start of my new job, and (3) getting ready for my upcoming surgery recovery transition.
Dissertation Defense
My defense is scheduled for next Tuesday, exactly 26 weeks (6.5 months) after my first surgery and 6 weeks after my second surgery. Tuesdays mean more to me than they used to, so I am really happy that my defense will also be on a Tuesday. As they say, "Only on Tuesdays." This week, I have been working on the corrections that my committee has requested to my manuscript, getting all the paperwork signed and together, and creating my defense presentation. I have one more week to finish it all up for the big day!
Move
After my family visited my new apartment options for me last week, I finally decided on a place. I received the lease for my new apartment today. I have to get it signed and notarized, and then I will be all set to take up residence in my new city at the end of this month. My hiring paperwork at my new university is also almost complete. On this end, my move out day and time, and the moving truck is reserved. I still have to work on scheduling my utilities to end here and to start up at my new place. I also have to PACK!!! AHHHHH!
Surgery Recovery Transition
Since I am coming up to the 6 week mark, I have been calling since last week to get my PT prescription sent over to the PT clinic. I called again yesterday morning. By yesterday evening, a scheduler at the PT clinic called to tell me that they received my prescription and that my therapist wants me to start this week! I was like, wait...what? So...yeah...much to my surprise, my first day of PT is TOMORROW!!!!! With the last surgery, it took until week 7 for me to get all set up to start PT. This time, I am starting at week 5. Since I didn't get the tendon transfer this time, my foot is actually much more advanced at this point than at week 5 with the first surgery. I can tell that the bones are healed, so I have started putting just a little weight on it. I am so glad I get to start PT earlier, because I am moving in less than 3 weeks. By the time I move, I need to be full weight bearing in the boot, or really close to it, and have enough strength and flexibility in my right foot to drive again. I am catching a flight from here, but once I get on the other end, I need to be able to drive. I've already selected a PT clinic in my new city, but I'll need to set up a transfer of all of my info and get a prescription for them.
Feet Update
On Friday, I had to make the journey to school to get some paperwork taken care of and to meet with a writing tutor to go over my dissertation manuscript. I took the public transportation train from my apartment that has a stop at my university. Getting to the train, riding it, and getting off were fine. The problem was that the Writing Center is located in the middle of my campus where no shuttles go. I had to trek to there and away from there while scooting with my knee on my walker. When I got home, I decided to stop by the grocery store, since I haven't been in over two weeks, not since my dad left. Since I had nowhere to put my walker, I ended up pushing a basket through the store with it, instead of riding a motorized scooter. Then, I had to go a few blocks to get back home. By the end of it, I estimate that I went 1-1.5 miles with the walker. It was tough at the time, but I didn't really pay the consequences until Saturday and Sunday. My back and neck were so tight, my palms and wrists hurt from putting so much of my body weight on them through the handles, and my left foot hasn't been the same since. I broke down and took a Tylenol 3 on Saturday night, and have taken a Percocet each night since then.
Today, I had to take another trip, a few blocks from my apartment to the business center to print some paperwork. I also stopped at the grocery store for a few items and returned back home. This time I wore my ankle brace on my left side and my boot on my right side. I really think that the extra stability helped my left foot. I have another hard journey at school tomorrow with multiple meetings before I go to PT. I will definitely be wearing my ankle brace to preserve my left as best as I can.
All of my incisions are closed and I peeled off the remaining steri-strips. Over the last couple of weeks, I have really had trouble with one of my incisions, the one where they inserted the bone wedge. Luckily it finally closed up this weekend. I peeled all the steri-strips off because it has already been several weeks and I wanted to take them off before my skin grew into them too much. I was instructed to peel them off by my doctor at 6 weeks when I got my cast removed with my first surgery. I lost a lot of my newly repaired skin with them. I didn't want that to happen this time. My incisions didn't really scab up this time, since I have been able to wash them daily. It really just looks like there is some dead skin that needs to fall off.
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Reflection
With all I have to take care of in the next few weeks before I move, on top of taking my surgery recovery seriously, I just have to stay focused and keep going.
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