Nursing Influence

I had my one-week post op appointment and received all good news. Doc says that I’m healing well and that he is happy with the lack of swelling in my foot. He says it’s because I’ve been such an awesome patient and have been keeping my foot elevated most of the day. :) Honestly, I’m kinda proud of myself too… I’m not good at laying on the couch for most of the day, but it’s been a priority to take care of my foot this week. It has definitely helped that I’ve had so much school work to do and my 11″ Macbook Air sits so nicely on my lap while I’m on the couch. :)

If you haven’t already guessed, above are my pre and post-op x-rays. My doc was nice enough to burn them to a disc for me so I could share with my friends :) In the pre-op picture, you can see how that bone jets out on the lateral side; in the post-op picture, you can see my new hardware (the screws) and how nicely aligned that joint is now.

Well, my surgery was a success… bunion removed. I went into the hospital about 2 hours before my scheduled start time, had my vitals taken, peed in a cup, got poked in the arm with an 18gauge needle, etc, etc.

Everyone at the hospital was really nice – it seemed like they weren’t very busy that day. Lots of staff coming in the pre-op bay asking if my nurse needed any help. Two different CRNAs came in to do my pre-op H&P. What can I say? I’m one popular patient. Chad, the CRNA that did my anesthesia works with a former co-worker of mine, so we were swapping funny stories about him as he was slipping me some versed. I remember rolling into the OR, scooting over to the operating table, and Chad telling me “this is just some oxygen”…. yeah, right. I don’t remember a darn thing after that mask :)

I guess it took me about an hour to regain consciousness after they brought me into the PACU. The doc went out in the waiting room and showed Chuck the x-rays they took in the OR and apparently everything looked really good. We stopped and grabbed some grub on the way home, but I passed out before I even finished eating.

I slept most of the day yesterday (the day of my surgery) but my foot was still numb from the local. This morning, I woke up, put on my walking boot, and about passed out from the pain as I was trying to limp into the bathroom. Not a fun way to start the day. I successfully made it to the couch with an ice pack and some narcotics. The day has gone much better ever since I’ve kept myself on a schedule with the pain pills… I’ve even made some progress on a quilt I’ve been working on. :)

T-minus 5 days until I go under the knife… as a patient. Eeeeeek!

I have a tailor bunion on my left foot that’s been painful ever since I ran the Ragnar Relay in February (a 200-mile team relay). At first, I tried resting my foot for a few weeks… then tried running again… still painful. So, I rested for two months – two whole months!!! Then, found it was still painful as I tried running… darnit! So I made an appointment with my podiatrist to get his take on the situation. I’ve already had surgery to correct the tailor bunion on my right foot, so I knew exactly what I was getting myself into.

Consultation appointments, a pre-op appointment, pre-op labs, Xrays & a MRI have all been completed and it’s finally time. I’m really not nervous about the surgery – the thought of anesthesia, needles, scalpels, or blood doesn’t frighten me in any way. But, what does scare me is the thought of something going wrong during the surgery and hurting my foot – I’m not old enough to have a bum foot for the rest of my life. The thought of being in a walking boot for the next 4-6 weeks gives me a bit of anxiety as well. That’s 4-6 weeks out of work as well as 4-6 weeks away from cardiovascular exercise (hoping I get the all clear to ride a stationary bike at the gym in a few weeks).

Wish me luck!