Buzz Killed!

The last week has been one big blur. My plan to have surgery 2 days after the last ovcx in L'ville seemed like a really good idea because I had already taken the time off work to go to Bend for Nationals. However, it totally scrunched everything together and it totally killed my buzz I had from winning the last 3 cx races and the ovcx series. Now I'm just buzzing on pain killers (which really don't kill the pain). Talk about going from the top to the bottom of physical conditioning. Buzz Killed!

Surgery was in Carmel and I can't say enough kind words about the staff at the facility. They did a great job of balancing letting me maintain my professional control and being the patient. Since us anesthesia people like to be in control, that was much appreciated. I was also very pleased with my anesthesiologist. We discussed my plan for anesthesia and I was thankful to know what her plans were for me in detail. Nice. Then it was off to the OR. I was ready to get going and get on my way to getting this ankle fixed up by one of the best in the country!

Next thing you know I'm in recovery waking up several hours later. I kept waking up to the my monitor alarming. I'm so in tune to monitor alarms that I couldn't ignore my own. I kept looking up to my heart rate being in the low 30's and a nurse looking at me like she was concerned. I assured her that this was normal for me and we tried to ignore the alarms for a while until it was finally time to get booted out of the recovery room.

Dr Porter was pleased with how the surgery went and is confident that we are on the right track to getting back close to 100% once I get healed up. He said he had a lot to do to the ankle during the surgery and that their was some major cleaning up to take care of in addition to the major reconstructions that needed to be done. I love how, in the end, it all comes down to a outside scar that doesn't even begin to tell the story of what was done on the inside.

(A quick dressing change out of the cast post-op day 3)

So after hanging out in the surgery center all day it was time to make the trek home 2.5 hours away. Of coarse, we ran into the first major storm of the year and it took us about 1 hour more then normal to get back home. That being the case I was super thankful that Dr Porter did an ankle block for me (numbing medicine injected around the major nerves of the ankle) so the car ride was more tolerable on a freshly cut ankle. I was thankful to be home and in my makeshift downstairs bedroom. My parents headed home and I waited for my sister to get off of her 2nd shift work to get me settled in for the night.

That never really happened. Post surgery sleep is never really good and that was the case all night for me. I just couldn't get comfortable and the nerve block was wearing off fast and I tried every trick in the book to ease the pain, but it looked like I was in for a long night. I finally drifted off to sleep for a couple hours at about 5am. Whew!

The last couple days since have been a little rough, but I have had some good moments and I know more of those will come. You can never really prepare for the amount of pain that will happen, even if you have been through it before. Being that this was a revision with an added reconstruction on top of it, I knew it wouldn't feel nice at all. It is much more painful than the last reconstruction. I pretty much just sit around waiting for the time to take my next vicoden, holding as still as possible with naps that come on without me even knowing it. I feel like a druggie, especially since I don't even like to take ibuprofen on a normal basis, but that's how it has to be here for a few days until the pain and swelling settles down. My ankle and foot are super swollen and I can hardly even wiggle my toes because there is so much blood pooled around them. My anesthesia peeps helped me with my first dressing change tonight and that was enough to make me want to pass out since the slightest movement is excruciating, so I'm glad that is over.

I have strict orders to not put any weigh on the ankle and not leave it dependent for more than 5 minutes at a time. That pretty much means I'm holding down the couch for a while. After a few weeks I may be able to step it up a notch and start walking with the crutches and spin a little on the bike with the cast. I'll be in the cast for a while and looks like I will be catching up on my movies and reading that I have got behind on all season long.

I'm very thankful to all the people around me in my life to help me through the tough times right now. My sister really is a blessing to me right now as she has went way beyond her duties as a sister. I get so stir crazy and she knows how to put me in my place without making me feel like I'm out of my mind.

Thanks to everyone for all the prayers and thoughts, I appreciate them all and cherish every one of them!