Why hello there, shoulder

Hello, friends! The good news is that my main reason for starting this blog, my journey with my ankle surgeries, has largely come to a resolution at least on the medical side. My flexibility has returned, and I am slowly continuing to build up strength.

On the other hand, I have still been struggling with constant migraines. In late September, however, I was finally able to pinpoint with what I felt was a fair amount of accuracy the cause. Following this summer's excitement with a round of vertigo, I had a follow-up appointment with an ENT specialist.

I went into her office and was blown away by how thorough and holistic this doctor's approach was. Although my ear, nose, and throat checked out fine, she put her hands on my neck and shoulders and said, almost casually, "Say, you've never had any trauma to your left shoulder or neck, have you?" Because you've got a tremendous amount of tension here and that might be what is causing these constant migraines."

Those of you readers who don't know me in real life might not be aware, but I have had chronic pain in my left shoulder since 2008 when I slipped on some ice in my parents' driveway and fell onto my back. It took us nearly 4 years to figure out that when I fell I had detached the muscles along my scapula, and in 2012 I flew down to the Shoulder Center at the Lexington Clinic in Kentucky where I had surgery to reattach those muscles. As far as I am aware, these guys are still the only ones actually doing the procedure.

Here's what it looks like:

This surgery took me from missing a year of grad school and a 6-8/10 on a pain scale to a 2-5/10. It literally gave me my entire life back and made my shoulder something I barely noticed, to the point that when the migraines started up again in January, it wasn't until that ENT doctor mentioned my shoulder that it all clicked into place. 

Of course it is my stupid shoulder. On one hand, thank goodness I'm not adding another weird medical thing to my list of weird medical things. But, I'm really not thrilled that after all this time this stupid thing is still an issue. I made an appointment with my neurologist. When I got in to see (not the neuro, but one of his PA's) I explained what I had discovered to date, then said that I was interested in exploring physical therapy as an option. She said "I'd like to see you back in three months, and let's explore physical therapy then. First, I want you to try taking this additional prescription which is good for tension-type headaches." 

So, I walked out of that office and called my primary care physician, got in to see her PA the next day, and got them to write me a script for physical therapy. Low and behold, my near-daily migraines cut down to weekly.

And, when I got into a minor car accident that gave me whiplash in my left neck and shoulder (of course)? They jumped right back up to daily migraines. 

The good news is I have another appointment with the neurologists the second week of January. I'm going to take all of this information in with me, and if they don't listen, time for a new neurologist. Again. But, all of this is about being your own best advocate. And the best news is that I have an amazing physical therapist who is a dream to work with, and has really been a great part of my care team, through both my ankle and my migraine journey.

Happy Independence Day!

Today was my six-week follow-up appointment after getting the stitches out after my Modified Brostrom surgery. The appointment itself was a pretty quick, he checked the flexibility of my ankle (a little stiff) and we discussed the knee swelling (shouldn't be an issue now that I'm out of the boot) and the game plan for the next six weeks. Here's how it looks:

• Heavy-duty brace (seen in photo) all the time for the next four weeks
• After the first four weeks, transition out of the brace, the wear it when on grass and rough terrain for the foreseeable future
• Physical therapy on my own, unless I feel like I'm not improving

I've been in physical therapy more often than not over the last four years, and "you know the drill at this point. No point in wasting your money on co-pays when they're not going to tell you anything you don't know, and I don't see the need for any physical manipulation at this point." His recommendations were using a theraband to do 12/6s, 9/3s (although not pushing the 9:00 side, as that's where the repair is), as well as doing calf raises, towel toe scrunches, and building up from there. All the stuff I'm used to doing. I will keep you updated!

Keep On Keeping On

Hello Friends,

I'm sorry I haven't given much of an update but at this point, there hasn't really been a whole lot to report. The last month has been one of the more difficult ones I've dealt with in awhile. While I'm still dealing with the headaches and migraines, the most difficult part has been coming to terms with the fact that my family lost my beautiful, vibrant cousin Sarah in a car accident earlier this month. Needless to say, it has not been an easy few weeks, and traveling out to Oregon in a walking boot while using a cane was a bit of an adventure, but it was good to get to spend some time with my family, even if it was for a very sad reason.

On the ankle front, things feel like they're stuck in a holding pattern. I don't have my follow up with the ankle surgeon until the 5th, so at this point am just sort of waiting, clomping around in the walking boot until that point. Hopefully, when I do go back in, I'll be able to gradually start weaning out of the boot, as well as being able to get into physical therapy. I'm pretty frustrated that I haven't been allowed to start that at all this time around, but I understand the need for patience. Sort of.

Over the last week, one of the problems I have encountered as a result of using the walking boot has been swelling and pain in my left knee, the same side as the boot. I know what this is, as it is the same problem I had while using the boot after the first surgery. It is a result of an uneven gait for too long, so I've started using a cane again. It is 100% the last thing I want to do, but it really does help. One recommendation? Be careful how many waterfalls you agree to hike up. Granted, I only went two viewing points above the bridge, but it definitely left me hurting a bit this week. Hard to resist the view, though.

Modified Brostrom Surgery - Return of the Frenemy

I apologize for being a bit slow to update you with my progress following this latest surgery. Unfortunately, I'm still battling this darn migraine on top of the ankle, so  I've been limiting my time on the computer, which seems to aggravate everything. Sorry, but thanks for sticking with me!

On the plus side, the ankle recovery seems to be going smoothly. The first few days immediately post-op were a little rough. I was a little surprised by the initial pain levels, but that was purely my own fault for expecting this to be more in line with the hardware removal, rather than an actual surgical procedure. Silly Jenna. Added to that my stomach's usual disagreement with pain medications and it was a slow start, but once we got a prescription filled to help that out everything settled down quickly.

I spent a very long two weeks and two days stuck on our couch, keeping my ankle elevated and being entertained by the kitty cats. I did a full read-through of my favorite book series (Percy Jackson), watched a few movies, had some great friends stop by and say hello, and took a lot of naps. I'm not a good sit and wait person, so honestly I'm so glad to be back at work and back in the swing of things.

Last Wednesday, I had my first post-surgical follow-up appointment. I didn't see the surgeon himself but saw his PA who I've seen before and like quite a bit. I also met with a student that studying with them for the year, and a nurse who was there to remove my stitches.

After the stitches were out, the student physician and the PA took a look over everything. They were quite happy with the lack of swelling and redness around my incision, but apparently during the surgery, both the anterior talofibular and calcaneofibular ligaments were exceptionally thin. Although they were still able to do the surgery as planned, that did change their post-op a bit. Initially, they thought I'd be in the boot for 2-4 weeks after the splint/cast, but now I get a full six weeks at least. Woohoo.

I'm a little frustrated by that, but after three separate surgeries on this ankle, I'm trying to remind myself that it is better to move slowly and do this correctly than to rush this and risk injuring everything all over again. I'm bummed I won't even be able to touch physical therapy until July, but I guess this is a good opportunity to practice being patient.

Initially, when the student physician came in and talked to me, he said that a lot of people who have had this procedure go into a half boot at this stage, rather than the full walking boot. But upon looking at my surgical notes and the thinness of the ligaments, plus hearing the demands of my job (outdoor historic site, chasing after 4th graders, giving walking tours that cover uneven grounds) they put me back into my old friend/enemy/frenemy, the walking boot. Check out my first, painful little baby steps below. By day two back in the boot my calf had stretched back out enough that I was walking comfortably again, but that first day or so was not super comfortable.

The next morning following my appointment was my first day back to work. And of course, it was an insane chaotic day where we had one 4th grader pass out from heat stroke (because why wouldn't it be 90 degrees in May) and had to deal with a volunteer being exceptionally rude to my new intern (wheeeee), plus just the general chaos that comes with trying to shepherd 75 ten-year-olds around a historic site. According to my Jawbone Up Move activity tracker, I went from taking about 300 steps on Wednesday to taking almost 4,000 on Thursday and 5,200 on Friday.

So, from here, it is really just trying to be patient with myself, not pushing too hard at work, and doing what I can to keep the rest of my body healthy while I wait until July 5th, which is my next appointment. My stamina levels are slowly returning, so after another few days of work I'm going to try heading back to the gym and will start doing some upper body weights. Gotta start somewhere!

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Hello from the other side

I won't write much now as I'm on some pretty serious pain meds and quite exhausted to boot, but today's surgery was very successful. The ligament was very thin, but the doctor was pleasantly surprised by how little scar tissue was in the area. Just goes to show why sticking with a PT who does a lot of hands-on manipulation is a good thing!

Ligaments & Bone Chips & Migraines, Oh My!

In my last post I apologized for not having written for awhile, and while I wish in this one I could give you some answers as to exactly why that is, unfortunately, I am still waiting on those myself. Life has sort of given me a one-two punch lately of both a significant return of my ankle problems with what is, to date, a 22-day long headache with no known trigger.

5 Ways to Deal with Pain in Disney

I have had the not so much a pleasure of traveling to Walt Disney World twice while dealing with chronic pain and am about to make that the charming third time. First time around was my shoulder and now I'm fighting with my lovely left ankle, the latter of which has flared up and will likely be a bit of an issue during our upcoming January 2016 trip.

Surviving Disney, preventing further injury, not slowing down your family or friends, all while still enjoying yourself can seem like a daunting task. But there are steps you can take that hopefully will still give you the chance to have a magical park experience.

#1 - Identify those things that are going to cause you more pain or difficulty - there might be some that surprise you!
When we went to Walt Disney World back in August 2015, I was actually in a pretty good place ankle wise. It held up a lot better than any of us expected and wasn't really until the last two days out of a five-day trip that it even slowed me down. I had planned ahead for a lot of walking through the parks but did not anticipate the rides. A number of the rides required a fair amount of bracing, which put a lot of stress on my ankle. Space Mountain, in particular, was hard to enjoy. I was really caught off guard by that, but now going into this upcoming trip I know to be more careful or to just be the official bag holder for some of the most intense rides.

#2 - Train for your trip
Now that you've identified those things that might cause you problems during your trip, do what you can in advance to prepare yourself. Worried about walking a lot? Try to take small walks every day to build up your stamina. Worried about jostling? Talk with your family about football-style blocking for you in the crowded walkways (this is what my dad and brother did during our 2010 trip!).

#3 - Take breaks. Lots and lots of breaks. 
My first Disney trip with chronic pain was way back in 2010, pre-scapular muscle reattachment surgery. My family's usual pace through the parks was frenetic to say the least, and I just physically couldn't have kept that up. So instead of sprinting from ride to ride, we got the Dining Plan. We sat down and ate meals instead of eating on the run, we talked to each other, we relaxed. And our day at Universal after getting jerked around by the Spiderman ride, I called a cab and went back to the hotel. I was really bummed to miss part of a day, but it meant that I was alive the next day when we went swimming with manatees (still to this day one of the coolest things I have ever done).

During our trip last August, we had just finished the Finding Nemo show and my in-laws and husband decided that they wanted to do the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. Now, I don't know how good your Animal Kingdom geography is, but those are pretty much opposite sides of the park, and the "trail" is a self-guided stroll.  After some internal debate, I let them know that I would be happy to meet up with them once they were done, grabbed myself a bottle of soda, and parked on a nice flat wall where I could people watch and just bask in the awesomeness that is the Tree of Life. Did I miss that walk? Yup. But was I more alive and present for more of the trip because I took a break? Absolutely.

#4 - Bring supplies
What physical items will help make your trip easier? For me, I'll always have Aleve in my purse and I'm going to be wearing my ankle brace. A cane would probably also help me out, but I'm going to be too stubborn for that. I'll also have plastic bags with me and will ice my ankle in the evenings once we get back to our room using ice from the handy dandy ice machine in the hotel. There are some supplies you can get when you're in the parks, but they'll be more limited.

My last ditch if everything is awful plan is to rent a wheelchair when we're in the parks. The cost per day from Disney is $12, $10 if you're renting for multiple days. Wheelchairs don't leave their respective park. Disney also has a partnership with five different rental companies who can deliver right to your resort, but for me the idea of traveling in the buses with a wheelchair seems cumbersome and I am not that limited mobility wise. The website All Ears has put together a much more comprehensive explanation of dealing with the parks while in a wheelchair, and I won't repeat their well-arranged information here!

If you've looked other places for information on dealing with mobility issues in the parks, you've probably heard about the Disability Access Service Card, formerly known as the Guest Assistance Card. Please note that Disney has modified how the card works and it is no longer available for wheelchair guests. You can see get more information about the new DACS card from Disney themselves.

#5 - Don't be afraid to ask for help
This can mean a lot of things depending on yourself and the people you're going with. Need a wheelchair? Don't be afraid to ask someone for help up a hill, especially in Animal Kingdom. Need to slow down for a bit? My family walks VERY quickly (I'm the shortest legged at 5'7") so I occasionally need to remind them that I'm falling behind. Need to sit down and take a break? Maybe suggest that it is time for your daily Mickey Mouse Ice Cream Bar break. Every family does one of those, right? (BTW, swap out the rando in that picture for a golden retriever and that is the most "my mom" photograph ever taken.)

I hope that this helps you, and takes some of the nerves out of your trip. I'm starting to get kind of anxious about my visit, which is in less than a month. I can't get in for physical therapy for another week, so I will only have a few sessions under my belt before the trip. I am thinking that if it is the week before and I still have a lot of inflammation and pain, I may see about getting a cortisone shot. I had one right before our wedding and it let me dance at the reception and wander around Quebec for our honeymoon.

Have you dealt with pain in the parks? Is there a piece of advice I missed that you think would be useful for someone else?

All-American Surgery One Year Later

This Wednesday, just three hundred and seventy days after my All-American Surgery, I had my one-year follow-up appointment with my surgeon. It has been a long and tough twelve months, but I wanted to take some time to talk about where I'm at now and what work is still left.

Let's start with a high note. November was the healthiest month I've had in probably two years. On Thanksgiving, I went running. Outside. I went 2.3 miles alternating running for 60 seconds and walking for 90 and felt great. Like, might have sat down and cried a little bit from happiness once I was done. That wasn't the first time I'd run, I'd gone on several on the treadmill at the gym. I also was very successfully meeting with a personal trainer once a week and doing a variety of strengthening and stretching exercises, not just with my ankle but in general.

And now the low note. The Sunday after Thanksgiving, my husband and I were doing yard work (in Upstate NY. CRAZY weather this year). We've had one spot on our gutters that drips onto a windowsill when it rains, so we decided to go up and clean the gutters out. Ladders + unsteady ankles do not equal a good plan, so I asked my wonderful husband to go up for me while I held the bottom. We successfully cleaned the gutters out, he didn't fall off the ladder, and as he was coming down I took a step backwards to get out of his way and rolled my ankle on a clump of grass.

What has followed has been very frustrating. My Achilles tendon swelled right back up, and I'm having pain on the outside of my ankle joint, right where I was having problems prior to the surgery. I've stopped running and training, cut way back on my daily physical activity, and still have quite a bit of swelling.

The good news is that I had my one-year follow-up appointment on the 16th. As part of the regular appointment, we took x-rays of the ankle and bone wise, everything looks great. He gave me a script to restart physical therapy, and if things haven't improved after a few weeks I'm supposed to come back in for an MRI. The trick has been that we did a lot of traveling over the holidays (been gone since the 20th, heading home this afternoon) and we are heading back to Disney World with my family on January 19th. That doesn't give me as much physical therapy before our trip as I'd like, but we'll make do.

All-in-all, I'm glad I did the surgery but the recovery has been difficult. They said that full recovery was at least a year out and boy, I did not believe them. The sprain is absolutely because my ankle is still weaker than it should be, which just means I need to be more vigilant about doing my exercises. In my ideal happy world, once the swelling goes down I'll start doing yoga consistently to help keep everything flexible and strong. If you saw in the photo, I still have a lot of swelling but also quite a bit of bruising which at this point I'm just assuming I'll have from here on out.

So, sorry that this wasn't the glowing and excited one-year report I was expecting to write after Thanksgiving. Check back soon for my 2016 goals and ambitions.

All American Surgery: Nine & Ten Month Recovery

I think that, at this stage in my recovery, it is easy to forget how far I've come. In the last two months, I went to and danced at a friend's wedding, I spent an entire day walking around the Adirondack Museum with a friend, and as you'll see below I'm even rocking walking tours at work. I no longer have to plan my schedule around my ankle, and that is amazing. It still hurts, it still definitely gets tired at the end of the day. My left hip aches quite a bit, largely because of my stride. But, I have come SUCH a long way from where I was even three months ago, and I'd be remiss if I get into the grumbling about not moving fast enough without mentioning that fact.

I'll probably give one year its own post, but the last two months have blown by so quickly and change at this stage is slow and incremental, so I didn't feel like each month warranted its own post. Sorry those of you who were waiting on baited breath!

What I Would Have Done Differently - Been More Consisent
Unfortunately some of this was out of my hands. I managed to get a really nasty sinus infection that is still sticking around, even post-antibiotics, and it has slowed me down a bit. But, most weeks I am making it to the gym twice a week, huzzah! It still isn't a habit yet, which is my next goal for sure.

A Few Screws Loose

I won't say too much now because I'm on pain meds and am pretty loopy, but I wanted to update you and let you know that yesterday's surgery was a success and I am home resting.

I'm pretty sore, a little more so than I expected, but am making good use of my iWalk 2.0 around the apartment until I can get everything moving well enough to get into my walking boot. I only thought I'd be out of work for two days but once I came to they said I should take a whole week. My apologies if you follow me on Instagram, this means you'll get a whole bunch of pictures of Mr. Moose during the next seven day. More updates coming soon!

All-American Surgery Update: Six Month Update

First off, I want to apologize for not posting any updates over the last month. I will be 100% honest with you. The last four weeks have been some of the toughest I've ever had.

June is my busiest month of the year at work, my dad is going through a major job transition after working at the same place for 36 years, we're buying a house (yay!) but are having problems with the closing (boo), and on top of all of this it feels like my foot is trying to fall off.

I am really frustrated. My ankle is still red and swollen after even a limited amount of time on my feet. Last weekend we had a major event at my museum, and thank goodness I have amazing volunteers and coworkers because I really had to limit my movement. The above photo is the evening after that event, a day where I took MAYBE 4,000 steps.

This coming Monday, I will have a second surgery, this time to remove the screws from my ankle. When I met with the surgeon last week, he actually speculated that I'm allergic to the titanium screws. I know I have a slight nickel allergy (can't wear cheap earrings) but his guess as to why I'm having so much pain is actually because the upgraded screws still aren't compatible. He's hoping that once we go in and remove them, I'll be back on the road to recovery.

I am pretty anxious about this. Hopefully we pop the screws out and I am back on the road to healing. We're heading to Disney in mid-August, and I want to be able to keep up with my husband and in-laws!

Sorry for the downer post. I wish I had better, happier news to tell you. The plus side here is that I will shortly have a pretty house I can start to make our own, although let me tell you moving in a walking boot is going to be great fun! If anybody has any tips or suggestions on how to manage that, I'm all ears!

A Small Setback

If I had to be laid up, at least I had good company

I am impatient. I know many of you are probably in the same boat. When they told me I'd be out of my brace in a few weeks, I believed them. And actually, I had two weeks where things felt great. I went for bike rides, even went for a walk (woohoo!) and was happy that spring was here.

Then, last Wednesday I trained several of my new museum educators, which included a full scale tour and walking across the uneven fields of my site. 

Thursday, I attended an Earth Day event and had to park my car half a mile away. By Thursday night, I could hardly walk.

Friday, I woke up crying. The good news is that I had physical therapy scheduled first thing. Usually, we start with heat and/or biking to get things warmed up, do my exercises, then use ice and the electrical stim to cool everything off. Friday, we did stim and heat, I biked for ten minutes, did a few stretches, and then we did stim and ice. Both of my PT's expressed concerns about the screw on the outside of my ankle. They felt like it was more pronounced than it had been previously. I took the day off of work, slept, and kept it elevated. 

Saturday I went to work, and tried my best to not move at all. Sunday I felt like I had moved backwards three months. I really wanted to go to the gym or go for a walk, but I knew my ankle wouldn't tolerate it. Instead I sat on the couch and watched Princess Diaries.

All American Surgery Update - Four Months

Yesterday I had my four month check-up with the Physician's Assistant to touch base about my continued recovery from the All American surgery. I am still doing physical therapy twice a week, and my limp is definitely less noticeable. My ankle is still stiff in the morning, and swollen at night, but there is progress.

The other big news is that I will be going back in six weeks to schedule a surgery to remove the screws in my heel and ankle. They are still exceptionally tender, and you can actually palpate the edges of the screw in the heel! I'm glad we are doing it, but definitely not looking forward to more surgery. But, more on that as it gets closer. Now, the updates!

What I Would Have Done Differently - Changed PT's Sooner
Since the surgery, I've worked with two different physical therapists. One is the one I did pt with previously when we thought the ankle was sprained, and the other who has filled in when my regular was gone or sick. They work side by side, and are both very nice and friendly and smart, and I don't want to misconstrue that at all.

An Exciting Announcement!

Ladies and gentlemen, exciting news...

All American Surgery Update - Three Months

What I Would Have Done Differently - PATIENCE
This is really nobody's fault but my own. Before the surgery, my doctor's told me that full recovery would be at least a year out. And I believed them, but I really didn't believe them. I knew it'd be a slow process once the walking boot came off and I started moving on my own, but I didn't realize it would be this slow. Patience has never been my virtue.

I had my three month checkup at the beginning of the month, and handed over my walking boot in exchange for a very sturdy brace complete with boning and more straps than I know what to do with. The Physician's Assistant told me we'd be looking at wearing that for 2-3 weeks, with its removal directed by the physical therapists I could now start seeing. I, of course, thought this meant I'd be off like a shot...how wrong I was!

All American Surgery Update - Physical Therapy & Returning to Work

What I Would Have Done Differently - Managed Timeline Expectations
When I first went in for the surgery, they gave me the return to work timeline of six weeks to three months. I am in my late twenties, relatively healthy except this whole stupid foot, and I absolutely though I would be gone for six weeks, eight max. Instead, I was out of work for two and a half months, and still have pretty heavy restrictions on what I am able to do. But, the exciting news is that I am finally back, and it only took me four days to go through all of my emails!

What To Wear With a Foot Cast or Walking Boot

I am a very firm believer in wearing what makes you comfortable. Now, I should specify here that comfort doesn't actually have to be physical comfort. There is also emotional comfort, and any woman who has slipped into her favorite dress will tell you all about it. Personally, I am not really one to lounge around in sweatpants and a t-shirt for more than about a day. Right after the surgery, I did for a bit, but as soon as we started having company come visit I was wearing jeans and a nice top. Several people remarked on this, but honestly getting dressed made me emotionally feel a lot better.

Now, what you wear will depend on a lot of things. The season, your own personal style, how you're feeling, and what you've actually got going on at the end of your foot. As an FYI, most of my clothes are from some combination of The Limited, Express, Gap Outlet, and Target, and I tried to get as close as possible to what I actually wear in the outfits I made below. Here's what worked for me at the different stages I went through post-surgery.

Foot Cast
I primarily stuck with bootcut jeans, wide legged sweatpants, and occasionally shorts although I had my surgery in December in Upstate NY so those never made it out of the apartment. What I found was that I had to work with pants whose legs were wide enough to fit over top of my cast. I also found that knit Christmas stockings made great toe covers!

Walking Boot & iWalk 2.0
During the period of time when I was in the walking boot but non-weight bearing, depending on my trusty iWalk 2.0 pegleg to get around, I relied on long pants that could be tucked into my boot. The boot is big enough that, although I can fit sweatpants over it, the bootcut jeans I'd used with the cast wouldn't go over the top. I pulled out my straight or skinny jeans, and primarily wore those. Because the pegleg fastened around my thigh, I avoided wearing leggings with tunics, dresses, or skirts, anything that would look awkward with the handle and strap. The above outfit is one I wore out for dinner for a friend's birthday.

Walking Boot & Going Back to Work
Tuesday next week (YAY!) I will finally be returning to work, but I will still be in my walking boot for probably another month. I'm planning outfits for dressing professionally with my walking boot still hooked onto the end of my foot. Luckily, my office is very easygoing, with only one other full-time staff member, so if I need to put my foot up on my desk with some ice packs, it isn't a huge deal.

PS #1 - You might notice that the shoes here are the same. This is actually intentional. You'll need to find what shoes you own work for you. This is especially important once you are weight bearing in your walking boot. You want something comfortable, but also tall enough that your hips are lined up. I made the mistake of wearing flatter shoes one day, and that night my hip ached so badly I couldn't sleep. Don't make the same mistake I did!

PS #2 - If you're surgery takes place over the winter, and you chose to use an iWalk 2.0 (which I HIGHLY recommend) you'll also have to be a little selective about what coat you use. I have a gorgeous trench sort of winter coat that I love, but it comes down to my knees and the handle of the iWalk 2.0 got in the way. Luckily I also have a nice and warm puffy coat, which is great on days like today when it is supposed to get down to -10, and ends at my hips so doesn't bother my pegleg!

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Taking Control

I have no idea if this is the same way for men (although I sense that it is not) but in my experience, when women have large emotional upheaval, we use our hair as a way to give vent to our feelings. I think that this can be a positive or a negative, happy or sad, all depending on what we need.

I actually didn't do the "post-wedding" chop, although I know a number of women who have. I've personally done a "breakup chop", I've done a "you couldn't dye your hair because you're doing living history but now its over" redhead switch, and now, I've done the "I have no control over just about anything but I can control my hair so it is GONE..."

Delaying the Half Marathon

My big motivation that has kept me going through the last two months has been that, in a year's time, I'd be running through Cinderella's Castle on my way towards the finish line of my first half marathon. That mental image helped me push through when we were stuck in the hospital, it has given me the strength to get through being sick from the pain medicine, and it has helped me be a good girl and follow the doctor's orders to the letter.

All American Surgery Update - Two Month Update

What I Would Have Done Differently - Talked About Mental Health
These last few weeks have been really, really difficult. My poor husband. He's already stretched thin between work, grad school, and the professional choir that he's in that rehearses a full weekend every month. Add to that a snippy, grumpy, mobility limited wife who usually handles the meal planning and cooking and splits the rest of the housework, and he's had a huge burden added to his already too full plate.

I've also had, in the last three weeks, five nights where I've gotten less than four hours of sleep due to over-thinking and worry. The blame for that is squarely on my foot. I have had a lot of anxiety about the reintroduction of weight, and especially how soon I'll be able to return to work comfortably. If I was thinking, when I had my regular visit with my doc a few weeks back, I would have talked with her about this and seen what my options were. At the very least, now that my cast is off and I'm a little more mobile, I'll be setting up a haircut (because nothing says steps forward like a new do) and a full body massage asap. Maybe I'll go all out and get a mani pedi while I'm at it.