Greetings family, friends. About ten times a day I get a sincere query, 'How ya doing?', so I'm gonna stick an update out here to answer just that and more. And before I go any further how sweet it is to be asked by so many folks that really care about the answer.
Karen put my leash and collar of love on me on Tuesday and took me over to see Dr. Wyker at Raleigh Ortho. I am down to two areas of concern for which we'll track progress; the shoulder and the pelvis. Regarding the shoulder, we took x-rays on Tuesday and my new stainless steel parts are doing their job and all the pieces of Humpty Dumpty's scapula are pretty much where they're supposed to be. There is one fragment whose position isn't precisely optimal, but precisely optimal would be where it was originally had I never had the accident. The implication of this is that there may be some hot spots that we're going to have to push through once physical therapy (PT) is under way. PT will start next week. Everything I've heard, from Dr. Wyker, anecdotally, from others with similar injuries indicates it's going to be a year, in round numbers, before my shoulder gets to feel as good as it's going to feel in the future. A long road yes, but I'm expecting to regain nearly all function so this ain't a bad deal.
The hip's going to be a challenge on multiple fronts. At the top of one of my femurs there's a looped part of the pelvic bone. I have two fractures in this loop that are just going to have to heal over time. Try not using your hips for two minutes; not real practical. And no one has instructed me not to use the hips, just to be aware that it's going to be sore for several months. I'm imagining that even after the general soreness abates, certain activities will remind me that trauma was in the house not long ago. I can imagine sitting on a bike is going to take many attempts before I'm comfortable for long periods of time. So that's the manifest concern regarding my pelvis/hips. I don't think I've shared this en masse until now but all of the films of my hip indicate significant arthritis in the hip joint. For many years I have had issues with my hips with respect to biomechanical function, pain during specific motions, and a popping of my hip that once popped felt fine, although getting the pop to happen took some courage against pain for a brief second. I've no doubt that the genesis of all of this noise germane to my hip is the arthritis. I'm only 40 years old and I have many, many active years left in me. This isn't news anyone wants to hear, but again, it's treatable. We'll come up with treatment plans for the arthritis after the fractures heal. Again, this could be far worse and with the knowledge I now have I can fight back and make a fragile situation a tenable one.
I will return to work on 14 April. I will be working from home for the first week and then transitioning back into the office full time incrementally over the next couple of weeks.
I've saved the important people for last. Karen is doing much better and the thing that got her to this point with all her marbles is first her personal strength and then the support of our family and friends. Yes, she was a little bit overwhelmed at first, but we all were and at the end of the day, the greatest burden of responsibility and care fell on her shoulders. I love her so much for the grace and strength with which she is handling this. I can sum up how I feel about my wife in four words, I want for nothing.
David now understands the nature of Daddy's hurt arm a little better and he has once again found safe harbor snuggled up on my right side. I can now help out at the end of David's day with story reading, a lullaby and prayers. It might not sound like a lot, but it means the world to me to be able to spend time with him again and it helps Karen get through the crescendo end of her day. I can also empty the top of the dishwasher :-)
Camden loves his Daddy and just wants to play, read and dance. He has not been cleared for lap time yet, but as my shoulder gets stronger we'll get him back up there ASAP. I miss his hugs so; when he hugs you it feels like someone turned your heart into a Cinnabon.
These last two entries were typed entirely with my right hand so please excuse the abrupt closure to this entry. Thanks to everyone that has expressed their love and caring in whatever way they could.
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