Celebrating One Year!

Yesterday I celebrated one year since my Left Total Knee Replacement (TKR). That surgery was my fifth surgery on that knee/leg within a 3 1/2 month period last year but the TKR was my last surgery. After almost four months of not being able to put any weight on my left leg I was up and walking the next day after having my new fake knee! Praise the Lord!

I have some swelling in that leg and the doctor says that I always will have. When I broke my knee I also tore my main artery going to my leg and that artery had to be replaced by a vein. My circulation is not as good as it was before the trauma. Other than the swelling I have very little discomfort in my knee/leg, not enough to take any pain medicine.

Today's Positives:
1. Yesterday I gave my last final exam of this academic year. Everyone passed my course. I don't yet know the results of the other classes.
2. The Nursing School year is done and the students and profs (me included) are very glad!!!!!!
3. I'm looking forward to two weeks of vacation, starting MONDAY! :-)

Here I am the day after my TKR (one year ago today), my first day to be able to WALK after my knee break:

Right Knee is OK!

My last update was letting you know that I had found a knee brace that fit my right knee (not the one that I broke last year). Well, I used it for two days but the brace irritated my skin so badly that I stopped using it. On Thursday of last week I noticed that I was having very little right knee pain. Since then I have taken NO PAIN MEDICINE for my right knee. That is over a week that I have been pain free!  I am careful not to twist it outward or I feel a twinge but otherwise I am not having the very painful knee that I had had for about three weeks. Thanks so much for praying. I know that it was because of being anointed with oil and prayed over and because of the prayers of hundreds of my prayer partners that I got over this "bout" of right knee pain which was due to a stretched knee ligament. Praise the Lord!

New Right Knee Brace!

Update from yesterday's blog. Many told me that they were praying that I would find a knee brace that fit.

Today Meladee Davis and I went looking for a brace that fit and we found one in the warehouse down by the tennis court. It is black, slips on like a sleeve but has metal braces on each side of my RIGHT knee. It is a good fit, not too tight but it does not slip down. This knee problem is on my RIGHT knee, not my LEFT knee which I broke last year. That knee is "fine", as fine as it is going to get. Now I have two knees to "nurse". It makes getting up and down from certain chairs more difficult but I'll figure it out. It is also harder to bend to pick up something from the floor. Looking at me getting in and out of the car is probably not a pretty picture. I can still drive. I imagine that I will need to wear this knee brace until my knee pain is gone. Thanks to those who have been praying for this new knee problem and also thanks to those who read my blog yesterday and have prayed that I find a brace that fit. Prayer answered.

The Moral of the Story is..!

On May 2nd I was sitting on a plastic chair in the hospital pharmacy. The chair suddenly broke and collapsed sending me straight down to the floor. Four ladies help pick me up off of the floor because with my left knee that will not bend well, I am unable to make that maneuver. I have been hobbling around since then and seemingly in even more pain now. The pain, in my RIGHT (not the broken one) knee.

In preparation for getting an X-ray on my knee tomorrow I went down to the Hospital so the Dr. could write for the X-ray in my medical record book. Dr. does not work tomorrow. At the same time she wrote for the X-ray she did an exam of my knee and diagnosed my pain problem. When the Chair broke and collapsed under me on May 2nd my right knee's medial collateral ligament pulled/stretched.

Treatment? Ibuprofen and rest and use a knee splint/brace so that my knee will bend but not rotate side to side. Well, we went down to the supply department and there was only one such splint/brace. I put it on but it falls down when I try to walk. It is an XLarge. We'll have to look for another one, perhaps in the Surgery department. I will still have the X-ray tomorrow, to check on my osteoarthritis but that is not what is causing my pain these past 18 days.

The moral of the story is, if you are injured and you LIVE and WORK at a HOSPITAL, don't wait 18 days to see a Doctor!!

Here am I sitting with my splint on my right leg. No sense in using this one though since it just falls down to my ankle when I try to walk! The bright side is that I am not X-Large, at least my knee isn't!!



Today's Positives:
1. It was a national Holiday here so I did not have to work at the hospital and could sit for another day, resting my knee. I did give two make up exams but the students came to the house for these.
2. I finally asked a Dr. to see my painful knee.
3. My computer arrived back today from being repaired in the States. YES!

My returned computer!

"Tornado" Update and photo!

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a blog about a "tornado" like wind that took the Kanda Church parsonage roof totally off. I was at Kanda again this past Sunday and took a photo of the house, without it's roof.

 

An estimate of the cost of re-roofing the house is a bit over $2000. Almost none of the old roof's materials were salvageable.  Some Christians from other Churches have volunteered to buy some of the material for the repairs.The Kanda Christians have been taking up collections too. I have donors in the States who have given me ministry money so whatever is needed extra will be taken care of by that fund. I'm very glad that no one was hurt when the strong tropical storm winds took off the roof.

Nursing School restarted today. I worked all morning at the hospital an then this afternoon taught my first class of Introduction to Pathology. It is the student's "heavivest" course this trimester. Two students were let go after second trimester, because of grades. That leaves 14 students in the class.

Saturday a friend and I are having a small garage sale and then the following Saturday we're having a big sale. I still have quite a lot to do to get ready for the sales.

Our station Internet has been so slow. I had problems with my Itunes file and our internet is so slow that downloading a new file has not happened. It keeps timing out and only downloading maybe 20% of the file. I'm just glad I can still blog.

Today's Positives:

1. Work and class went well and this evening I've been resting with my feet up.

2. No rain today nor yesterday so perhaps the rainy season is lessening some. The drier it is here, the cooler. Summer is usually dry and cool season.

Thanks for visiting my blog. Have a good day.

From 5K to Wheelchair and Back!

 In July 2011 friend Deborah and I did our first  5K walk using the online training. What a victory for both of us. One week later we did another 5K with along with many others.

13 months ago TODAY I took a misstep and broke my left knee, then tried to catch myself as I was falling and broke my left wrist. Both were out of joint. Two ligaments in my knee had torn. The fire truck and rescue squad came to the house. I got to choose the hospital where they took me so I asked to go to the one closest to where my Mom lived so it would be easy for her to visit me. I also had a good friend, Nancy, who worked in the Emergency room.

The Othopedic surgeon who saw me in the ER said that he would "try" to fix my knee but that I might ultimately need a knee replacement. My knee and wrist were put back in place in surgery. A metal bar was put on my leg so that my knee would not bend. Then I went to the recovery room but then it was discovered that I did not have ciruclation in my leg so I went back into surgery and a vein was taken and turned upside down and sewn in to replace my popleteal artery. If I had been in Africa and had the same accident, I would have had to have my leg amputated!!!!

One week later I had a metal plate and screws put in my wrist to fix my Ulna. Still one week later I had a plate and screws to put my smashed Tibia back together. A half week later I moved to a Rehabilitation Center where I stayed for five weeks. I spent plenty of time in a wheelchair.

I had to learn to use a walker by holding on with my right hand and my left elbow and then hopping on my right foot. There were many muscles that needed strengthening for me to do this very far.  I had physical therapy and occupational therapy.


Eventually I went home, but not to the same condo where I had been living. I needed an apartment that had wide doors for my wheelchair and also a walk in shower. Two weeks later I learned that I needed a total left knee replacement but I had to wait until my Tibia was healed before that June 19th surgery. I had broken my knee on March 5th and had my sixth surgery on June 19th. During that time I was not allowed to put any weight on my left leg. The day after my knee replacement I was up and walking! I still needed weeks and weeks of physical therapy but the photo to the right shows one of the first days that I walked with a cane.

The day I broke my knee and wrist I told my Orthopedic Surgeon that I worked in Africa and needed to get back there. In September 2012 he gave me permission to return and on December 2012 I retuned to my work at teaching Nursing on the Equator. The one needing many Caregivers once again became a Nursing Professor and a Caregiver!!!






Now about that 5K. I do not know if I will ever do a 5K again but I am walking outside for exercise. I need to look down as I walk to make sure that I don't trip on something and fall again. I walk on bad pavement, dirt paths, grassy areas, etc as I walk on the station and from one hospital building to the next. I do try to take a short 15 minute walk most afternoons.

Today's Positives:

1. God has truly been GOOD to me to heal me and allow me to return to my work in Africa.

2. I am working on walking more. I walked 2 fifteen minute laps today instead of only one.

"Progress not perfection"!!