This will gross some people out....on November 20th I got to see the arm for the first time after surgery. They took the soft splint off and I got to see the pin. I have to admit it was kind of weird seeing something sticking out of me, and it didn't even hurt.
My hand is still very swollen...and you can see the bend of the pin on the right side...
I was surprised how great it all looked! It was all wrinkly, and it was already smaller (maybe I should have my butt worked on! Ha ha!) but the wounds looked awesome! I expected a huge incision, but there were three small ones. That is where the metal plate is, and there are screws in each area (saw them on x-rays).
Oh my gosh, it itched! Now I was very lucky because this happened in cooler weather. I didn't sweat or itch too much before this. But once I touched it I couldn't stop....it was heavenly!!!! They also washed it off for me. I was so happy!
Stitches are in.....
Stitches are out....then they wrapped me back up again. They were happy how it all looked.
December 9, 2013
It is time to take the protruding pin out of my wrist. This time it isn't near as pretty as the last time. It looks a little gnarly but it is all still good. Perfect example of "You can't judge a book by it's cover." Ha ha! It only took a few minutes and all the wrinkles started smoothing out. Our bodies really are amazing!
I am touching the pin, and I even pulled on it. When they said it was thru the bones, they were not joking. I could not even feel it when I tried to move it.
I am so mad that we forgot to video the Doc taking the pin out. We were so enthralled with all of it we just forgot. The Doc got a pair of pliers, got a hold of the pin, assumed the pulling stance, put his other hand on my wrist, and he started to twist and pull. Sounds painful, right? I was not saying anything and the Doc said he was sorry he was hurting me, and I told him I was fine, I was just forgetting to breathe. Then I said "This is so freaking cool!" and he smiled and said "Yeah, it really is, isn't it?" I was amazed at how hard he had to pull to get that darn thing out! And it really didn't hurt...it was more of a hard pressure. The next couple weeks were not fun - my wrist was sprained from that thing coming out.
They also did not put an external splint on me. They said that the plate on the inside was splint enough so I was good until the next surgery. I only had to wait a couple of days for the hole to close up where the pin was then I could take a shower! A full body shower with no plastic glove on my arm! Woo hoo!!!!
I will say the internal splint did it's job. I could not move the wrist at all. But I did miss the visual that the soft splint gave. I went to the grocery store and was back to dealing with idiot cart drivers. God forbid I make it to the tomatoes before they do...geez. Needless to say I only made a couple store trips in three months. I went to work - I came home. I just remembered another reason Brian is my hero - he had to juggle his work schedule to drive me home on my half days. I don't remember how long it lasted, but I was glad when I could drive single handed. It freed him up a bit. We did take me on a 'test drive' to make sure I was going to be able to maneuver the arm around. It was tricky but I did it.
By now I am one month into this....little did I know that it was just the beginning....
Until later, Karen and Tripp who thinks I left town since he has not seen me for a month!
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