OOPS – Part VI – Final Installment

Continued from last week

Monday, March 2, 2020

We arrived at South County Orthopedic Center at 9:45 as directed. I checked in and completed all the paperwork. Then we waited for a while until my name was called. I was told to go into the restroom and change into a gown. They gave me a large plastic bag for my clothes. Getting out of my clothes without help was a bit of a challenge.

Larry waited outside. I handed him the bag and then exited through the door on the opposite side. A nurse met me and took me to a bed. She asked if I wanted Larry to join me.

Yes!

He arrived a few moments later.

Strangely, I had absolutely no qualms about the surgery. I knew Dr. Moskow and trusted him completely.

The nurse tried to remove my wedding rings. I haven’t had them off since I had them repaired in 2001! She tried lubricant and pulled hard, but I knew they wouldn’t go over my joint. Sure enough…

So, she put tape over them.

Then another nurse got me ready. She put the IV into my left hand.

Then the anesthesiologist arrived. He told me he was going to numb the nerve to my hand by going in below my collar bone.

What?

I turned to Larry. “Okay, now I’m starting to be afraid.”

The explanation was it would reduce the amount of painkiller required. My hand would remain numb for around twelve hours, reducing the need for other medication. He also explained I would not be knocked out, but I would not remember anything—just what I wanted to hear.

He started the meds, and I was out…

~~~

As I began to wake up, I remember being aware of lots of pain—not the pain itself but of crying out. The nurse injected three or four doses of Percocet into the IV. I finally started to relax.

I was aware of Larry being there. This helped a lot.

It didn’t take too long before I felt less fuzzy-headed. Soon the nurse and Larry got me dressed.

Once I was fairly clear-headed, the nurse, Heather, explained what had been done and showed me the x-rays. She gave them to Larry.

She gave Larry a prescription and told him to get it filled. I told her I didn’t want to take the opioids. She told me to go home and eat something because she didn’t want me to take anything on an empty stomach. Just as the doctor in the ER had said, “Take one after you eat and a second before you go to bed. You need to stay ahead of the pain.”

Then she went over what I needed to do when I got home and afterward. I now sported a small splint similar to the one I’d worn in, but this one was generic vanilla and not the stylish black and pink one I’d had before.

She helped me into a wheelchair. Larry pulled the car to the front entrance, and he helped me in. We came home and ate lunch. Larry filled the prescription. I wasn’t in pain, but I took one pill as directed. I rested all afternoon. Before bed, I took another, even though I still had no pain.

I never took another one, and I never had any pain after that! A true miracle!

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

We called and made the follow-up appointment for the following Monday.

Thursday, March 5, 2020

I called Victoria at Natural Nail Care and told her my fingernails had been shredded when I fell. They desperately needed attention. Also, it had been quite a while since I’d been in for a pedicure. Larry’s toenails were like claws once again, and his fingernails were a mess. I had several gift certificates, so she agreed to let us come in for his-and-hers mani-pedis. What joy! This is one of my favorite places in San Juan, and we both enjoyed seeing Victoria. My nails looked and felt much better. Larry even enjoyed being pampered, and I appreciated the way his nails looked and felt.

Friday, March 6, 2020

We went to Flick Fellowship at Community Presbyterian Church, where we discussed the film The Farewell and enjoyed a potluck supper.

Monday, March 9, 2020

We went to Dr. Moskow’s office in the afternoon. When they removed the splint and uncovered my arm, I was surprised. So was the nurse. “Wow. There is no oozing, no blood. The incision is closed. You heal really fast. We’ll take out the stitches today.”

Hooray!

The stitches were removed. Steri-strips were put on. No splint! The best news was I could now take a shower! Yay! They gave me a brace. It covered my thumb and went about two-thirds of the way to the elbow. What an improvement over the splints!

When we got home, our friends Scarlett and Steve arrived. Their visit had been planned long before. We adore them and always enjoy being with them. This visit was no different.

Tuesday, March 10, 2020

We decided to go to Mollie’s Café in San Juan for breakfast. Yumm! Scarlett took this photo. Note the brace and lack of sling. Note my smile. Yep, we were having fun!

They had to leave to visit her brother. We’d sure have loved to have had more time with them.

Originally, we were supposed to leave the next day for San Diego to attend the Left Coast Crime Conference. However, after my accident, we decided it might not be a great idea to try to do everything while in a hotel. (At the time, it took over half an hour for me to get a shower and dress. It didn’t make sense to try to manage at the conference and still get to our sessions, so we cancelled.) The conference started as scheduled, but the next day, the hotel cancelled, and everyone had to leave. When we heard this, we didn’t feel as bad about missing it.

In the afternoon, I taught my Stephen Ministry class at Geneva Presbyterian. It felt like things were getting back to normal.

Friday, March 13, 2020

I had my first physical therapy session. By now, people were beginning to stay apart. I went home with some exercises to do.

Since then, my hand has been getting stronger and more flexible. Every day, it feels more like normal. Still a long way to go, but making progress.

We're staying home as much as possible and enjoying a quiet time together.

Thanks to everyone who prayed for my healing, called to check on me, and sent good wishes. I have missed seeing friends, but I call and communicate by email and on Facebook.

This has been a good time to stay at home and rest and recover. It’s getting better all the time.

OOPS – Part V

Continued from last week

When we arrived home from the airport on Monday after dropping off our guests, we took a nap. It had been an exhausting but fun weekend!

Tuesday, February 25, 2020

Time to call the orthopedic surgeon. At the ER, they gave us the name of one, but he was over an hour away. Googled for a closer one and found the South County Orthopedic Specialists (SCOS) on El Toro in Laguna Hills. Definitely a better choice!

I called and made an appointment with one of their hand specialists. (There are two). The first appointment they had was late in the afternoon on Thursday.

Wednesday, February 27, 2020

We had to pick up a copy of the CD of my x-rays from Mission Hospital before my appointment with the surgeon. I had to do this once before. That time, I called Radiology, and they had the CD ready when we arrived. Not so this time.

We had to go in person up to Radiology with all the paperwork from the ER. Then they had to confirm my identity. Then—finally—they requested the CD. And, we waited. And waited…

Finally, they called my name and gave me the disc. Just another annoyance…

Thursday, February 27,2020

Checked in for my appointment. I was surprised when they had all of my information already. I asked which doctor I would be seeing. I had thought the name Dr. Moskow sounded familiar. The receptionist confirmed he would be my surgeon. Then I remembered he had done minor surgery to remove a cyst under the nail bed on one of my fingers several years earlier. I remembered him, and I liked him!

I got into his examination room (with several exam tables). We had brought the CD of the x-rays, and they copied it into their electronic files. (This place is VERY efficient!)

A nurse removed the heavy, bulky, splint. Thank goodness! Underneath, my skin was all covered in little red bumps, and it itched—badly!

He looked it over. “What did they put under the splint?”

“Nothing.”

He looked surprised and shook his head.

“Do you have something for the itching?”

He brought some gauze soaked with iodine and bathed the inside of my arm.

The doctor checked the x-rays. “The good news is the break is below the joint. This is a much easier situation to deal with.”

Thank GOD!

“You have two choices. You can let it heal as is with the bone out of alignment, but you may have limited movement.”

I don’t think so. I told him I needed to be able to fully use the hand. My work depended on it.

“The second choice is to do surgery and insert a plate and screws. The healing time will be shorter, and you should have good motion afterward.”

No contest! Surgery it was.

I complained about the dumb sling. “It is made out of slick nylon, and no matter how tight we get it, my arm keeps slipping out, defeating the whole purpose.”

“Then don’t use it. Just try to keep the arm upright with your hand above your heart.”

HOORAY!

I started to use the Napoleon technique. I zipped my jacket about ¾ of the way. Then, I slipped my arm inside. This kept it at the right angle, and was MUCH more comfortable than the dang sling.

When I told the nurse how uncomfortable the darn thing was, he pointed out a loop. “This is for you to slip your thumb through.

Really? I pointed to my thumb, which still looked like a bloated boiled sausage and was beginning to bruise. “Uh, I don’t think so.”

He nodded.

He replaced the huge “sugar tong” splint with a much smaller one. This one went from my fingers halfway to my elbow. First, though, he put a black knit “sleeve” on the arm. Then the splint. Then he wrapped it in sticky bandaging—pink! I loved it! Pink and black was a popular color combination in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s. This was much smaller and lighter.

While we waited to see his PA to schedule the surgery, we went back out into the waiting area. Larry went to the desk to pick up the x-ray CD. So, I sat down next to a young lady. She looked very distressed.

She told me she had a toddler at home, and her hand had been going numb. She’d already had a couple of surgeries, and nothing had helped, so she was very worried. She asked about my arm and asked who my doctor was.

“Dr. Moskow."

“He’s the one I’m going to see.”

“You will love him. He did minor surgery on my finger a few years ago. “ I showed her the scar. “I absolutely love him, and I trust him completely.”

I watched as she relaxed a bit.

Larry returned and we went back in to meet with the PA.

Surgery was scheduled for the following Monday. Before then, I’d need blood work and chest x-ray.

As we came out and headed for the elevator, we ran into the same young woman I had been talking to earlier. She was leaving the exam room from the other side. She smiled—a whole different person. “Thank you so much. You’re right. I like him very much, and I feel better about my surgery.” She went on to the reception area, and we got on the elevator.

“Okay, now I know why I was supposed to be here today.” I love those occasions when God affirms my purpose.

We went to my primary care doctor’s office with the orders for the blood work and x-ray.

The on-call physician took the blood samples, but the x-ray facility was already closed for the day. (It was after five.)

So, we went home.

Friday, February 28,2020

We spent quite a bit of time trying to get the x-ray. Lots of running around… Finally got it done.

Saturday, February 29, 2020

Had an urgent call from the surgery center asking if I had gotten he blood work done. Yes, I had. They hadn’t received the report. I gave them the contact information for the lab. SIGH!

Sunday, March 1, 2020

My Christmas gift from Larry was tickets to see The Book of Mormon at the Ahmanson in downtown L.A.. I had no intention of missing it!

Larry helped set up for the coffee hour between services. (I was useless in this department!) Then we attended church. We left immediately to get to L.A.

We made exceptional time, even though it was drizzling.

I hadn’t eaten anything, so we decided to go to go to Abernethy’s, since we were able to be seated. Nothing on the menu was much to my taste. Larry decided to get the burger. So did I. We sat next to another couple and had a delightful conversation with them.

The play was audacious and rude and very funny. (I adore irreverence, and this was right up my alley!) It was written by the writers of South Park and had the same sense of humor.

Afterward, we went to see our goddaughter’s new apartment in Pasadena. (We had made arrangements before we went.)

As we drove there, I was reminded of how much I love the old town. Charming.

We were delighted to find her parents there already. She has a really charming place. Of course, we expected no less since she has always had terrific taste!

We decided to walk the two blocks to Green Street to Green Street Restaurant for dinner. (Keep in mind, my ankle was still wrapped in an Ace bandage. On Monday, the entire sole and heel were solid navy blue!) Still, taking a walk felt good. We took our umbrellas since it had been drizzling off and on.

Our friend from grammar school owns the restaurant, and it is a Pasadena favorite. The food was excellent! He wasn’t there, but we left our business card with a note for him. He emailed the following day. (We are also friends on Facebook.)

After dinner, we went back to the apartment for a short time. We live at quite a distance, so we don’t get to see these friends often. I had missed them!

With surgery scheduled for the next day, we left to get home and get ready for the big day!