Ugh!

Shoulder surgery stinks!  I was not prepared for the aftermath. When I went in for surgery I was told that a large mass of calcium would be removed from my right shoulder.  I figured I would be back to normal in no time.  Turns out there was more to it.  When they dug out all of the calcium, they realized that it had grown into my tendon which now left a gaping hole.  That meant they would have to repair and anchor the rotator cuff.  I also had a bone spur that needed to be removed.  The doctor did what he had to do to fix it all up.  When I finally woke up after surgery I didn't feel much pain, just drowsiness, nausea, and cold.  But when the anesthetic wore off at 3:30 am I was in so much pain, I couldn't hold back the tears.  That was the first night of weeks of sleepless nights, pain and frustration.

Luckily I have an incredible husband.  Without the use of my dominant hand, and because I was in so much pain, Ben pretty much did everything except pee for me those first few days.  He changed my ice for me round the clock, brought every meal to me in bed, helped change my clothes.  He took care of the kids and everything around the house.  He did my eyeliner and blow dried my hair.  You name it, he happily did it.

My neighbors have been phenomenal too.  Cristy, my next door neighbor, sent out a text to see if anyone would be willing to help out with meals.  8 different families brought us meals or helped watch Qyntn, and several others offered to help.  There are definitely angels among us!

Even my kids have been very helpful.  It's been nice to see how willing they are to serve me.  They're awesome!

Losing the use of my right hand has been way more challenging than I had anticipated.  Have you ever tried to do up your bra one handed or do your make-up with your non dominant hand? Just for fun you should try it.   I can't style my hair at all..no curling or straightening, or even a ponytail.  I need two hands for all of that.  Changing poopy diapers, doing dishes, putting on my seatbelt, everything seems so difficult with just my left hand. It has been super frustrating!

The sleepless nights have been really rough too.  I can't seem to find a position that isn't painful, and can't get comfortable wearing a sling all night.  The nights are long and lonely, and the fatigue makes me irritable, and impatient.  It's no fun!

To make matters worse, doc says my shoulder is much tighter than what would be considered normal, so he had me start physical therapy a week early.  He wants to get it moving so it doesn't tighten up even more.  I get it, it is for my own good, but moving and stretching it really hurts.  I wish I could just fast forward through these next 6 weeks.

To top it all off, I've put on a few pounds which is depressing. Since there aren't many activities I can do without jarring my shoulder, I have been sitting around eating a lot for weeks.  I will be so happy when I can get back to my regular workouts!

I'm hoping this will all pay off in the end, in the meanwhile, I better stop eating so much.