My mother decided last year she was ready for some new knees, having worn the original ones out. She did some research, interviewed some doctors, and eventually chose the orthopedist that Chip Planck recommended. The surgery dates were scheduled after various winter activities she had planned -- she went to Cuba for a week with Michael L and a group (and her knees were very sore) and she went away for a weekend retreat with fellow co-counselors.
Last Tuesday she was ready to go. She had been diligent about her fitness training, going to the gym as often as three or four times a week. Her upper body strength was good, she had excellent cardiovascular conditioning and she felt that she had done her job to be as strong as she could be, even with her skinny chicken legs and her compromised lungs (which were doing great, compared to the past). She was on no medications except her inhaler and a vary small amount of Advil for her knees.
We were a little bit worried because she had a slight cold on Tuesday but she was feeling fine. She passed whatever check-up they had before the surgery and in she went at 8:35 AM. Michael L waited, a little bit anxiously. Everything went just fine and she was back out of surgery with no complications. She rested up for a couple of days at the hospital, doing all that was asked of her, learning to walk with the walker and her temporarily straight-braced leg. She came home yesterday afternoon and settled into the living room.
Her mood is calm and good. She is sleepy from the drugs, but unperturbed. She seems completely at peace with her temporary identity as a recovering patient. She is not always so good about asking for things (even last night she was cold, apparently, and did not ask for a blanket -- just like at the hospital) but she does make sure to ask for assistance when she is walking around with the walker. To me she looks graceful, even with the walker. This must be a result of her upper body strength and her core strength -- she doesn't lean on the walker, she just keeps it in front of her for balance. She looks like a dancer, even with that big chunky thing on her left leg.
It is nice to have her so accessible on the main floor of her house. We can just walk in and check on things whenever we feel like it, and we can also give Michael a break. We can heat up water for her thermos, warm up soup, move the furniture so it is more useful. She has never been one to ask for things, so we can just figure out what would be most helpful.
In just a week and a half, she will go in to have the other knee replaced. This seems more daunting now, as then she will have two legs that don't bend. Or maybe the first one will be bending by then. Today is her first session with the physical therapist (ouch).
Today I offered to give Michael a couple hours to go do errands and go to the gym. And then I went out and collected up Zoey, Carrie's 6 month old baby, so we could have a combo caregiving situation. Carrie could focus on her work and I could just hang out with the people who needed someone. For over an hour, there was an 80 year old and a 6 month old, sleeping quietly just a few feet from each other. The elder one on a tall bed, leg attached to a machine that runs icy water through a knee wrapping and the teeny one in a jumble of sweatshirts on the floor. When Anna came by to take over, I sprinted to the greenhouse for my turn. Shortly I got a text, "Sad baby. Diapers here?" Mom is by far the easier person to take care of as she goes to sleep without fussing and is easily entertained.
I am on the trail of some tall comfortable stools that swivel, so my mother will be able to do stuff in the greenhouse when she is ready. Might not be for a few more weeks, but I anticipate that she will be tired of being inside just as soon as she feels well enough to get out. It might be a good idea to figure out how to make her golf cart work with hand controls. Another thing to add to Jon's list.
So far so good. No one is surprised that she is the best patient ever. And we will have to remember to give Michael regular breaks. He planned to be the full time caregiver, and he is the one who is most responsible, but he will need support. Anna is doing a great job of creating order in the medication schedule -- one of her specialties -- and Gordon is doing a great job of making sure that the meds are managed in the most sensible possible way. In some ways, our team is really ready for anything. Babies, invalids, bring em on.
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