Saturday, January 1, 2022

Extra excitement!

After the festivities ended, the guests gone, the excitement died down, we learned two of the assembled had contracted Covid. K was able to find testing kits, and most of us tested negative, including negative tests for L and myself. I sent a message to my primary doctor before the tests, and received a call from her shortly after I'd used the second test. She was just recovering from a break through infection. She is double inoculated and boosted, and happy for that. She says she only feels bad cold crummy.

I've exchanged a couple of texts with a nurse I befriended in rehab. They jokingly say Covid came in right behind me. There have been double shifts, nights with no aide personnel, and worse, providing nursing for all three wings alone. Those halls are soooooo long. 

Back at the hacienda, I've had three therapy visits. The first was an evaluation and some gentle exercises assigned. The second my actual therapist, and some more exercises, including "stand up, sit down" twenty five times. Then we headed off to the stairs to try to step up, step down. I made it part way and then told her she must find her own way out; I could go no further. Each morning thereafter, I could barely walk without excessive application of pain killers.

When the nurse stopped to evaluate my progress yesterday, I told her I had been fine up to "stand up sit down". She said it wasn't the exercise, it was the reps. They will be reduced to a reasonable number. And that's what is going on with me. My body and soul are aware of the time and work it will require to get back to the cane. And I cannot hurry it, as the stand up, sit down business showed.

Otherwise, it's business as usual. The blue towels are done; the melon towels are almost half done. I have some jackets and a coat I want to sell on eBay, but must wait until I find someone tall enough to hang them high enough for a good picture. A green corduroy  trench coat, a red barn jacket and a brown corduroy dress jacket, all LL Bean. I un-grew them, all favorites!

39 comments:

  1. I know I would be in pain after 25 sit down, stand up exercises! What were they thinking??? Cruel, to be sure. You have to start slow and easy. Do take care... healing hugs to you.

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  2. Hari Om
    yeah, forget all the rest, the muscles need to be coaxed into working properly too!!! But you are on the road and that is what counts. Bummer about the COVID. Stay safe...YAM xx

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  3. It looks like you got out of the Rehab just in time. Covid was at the doorstep just as you left! Slow and steady with the rehab at home is key. You proved that 25 repetitive exercises is not appropriate. The individual responsible for that directive should be banned. What is wrong with these people?

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  4. 25 is a huge number of reps- I am asked to do 15 max! and to stop if pain full because pain is indicative of too much movement or wrong movement. You are in the drivers seat, you can tell them 'NOPE". If I was as small as you i would offer to buy those things!

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  5. Sounds as if the physio is way too ambitious for your stage. Eight to ten reps is more standard at this stage, judging from friends' experience. And adding the steps in the same session, whoa, Nelly!

    Did you ever mention the size of the jackets? I missed it if you did.

    Do take good care. You've got tons of grit, but a therapist can mistake that for physical strength.

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  6. Slow and steady as they say…Good luck selling the coats.

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  7. Twenty-five? Oh please. That's a lot for anyone.
    I think we are all displeased with that particular therapist.
    To put it mildly.

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  8. Glad you found some covid test kits - I hear they are hard to come by. And try to keep the excitement to manageable levels, lol.

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  9. I am sorry to hear about Covid in "your" crowd and in the hospital too!
    I did wonder if the stand up sit down should have progressed longer before trying the step up step down, but at least reducing the number of reps should help.

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  10. Covid is everywhere these days. :( It is making it daunting to go anywhere or do anything. That many reps? That's nuts. I'm glad they revisited that.

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  11. Slow and steady. And twenty five reps of anything would undoubtedly have me reaching for the pain killers too.
    The rapid antigen tests are rarer than the teeth of hen's here. I am glad that you found one, and gladder that it was negative.

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  12. Of the various exercises at seniors ex class, the up and down is the hardest for me. It's the knees in my case.

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  13. That is sadistic, but I'm glad it got sorted and you are on the mend. Sorry about the COVID. I hope you stay well and have a happy new year.

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  14. Glad you dodged covid! It is EVERYWHERE right now.

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  15. This Omicron covid is sure spreading quickly. I'm glad you've managed to avoid it! Take it easy with the exercises. At this stage it's better to do a few and work up as you gain strength. You'll get there when your body is ready. I'm so happy you are able to be home now. Have a happy and healthy new year!

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  16. Twenty-five reps! Glad you let them know (after your body let you know!) that 25 is too many!

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  17. I am going to try including that stand up sit down exercise in my routine - maybe only two or three at first.

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  18. I'm so glad you tested negative. Take it easy!

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  19. I swear that some physio-therapists are sadists in fact. It's amazing how they can devise a regimen to inflict the most pain and the least benefit to a body that is crying "No!" Good luck with your recovery, Joanne, despite the torturers!

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  20. Please be careful of therapists who try to take you beyond what your recovery is ready for. After knee surgery, my physical therapist was overdoing the necessary stretching. I told her after the first time that my knee had terrible swelling after the first session. She took the stretching even further the second time and my knee swelled up so bad that two of the stitches split open. My surgeon had to put me on oral antibiotics and told me to tell the physical therapist that I was not to do that range of movement stretching exercise until the two torn open places healed closed again. The torn apart stitches slowed me down on my stretching exercise, but in time I was able to get full bending movement in that knee. My therapist was excellent,as I had worked with her after my first knee surgery. I think sometimes they are just very enthusiastic about getting us to where we need to be in our recovery and get carried away.

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  21. I think you're a tough old bird (if I may say) and know best how far to go, and also that you won't give up, so just keep going and don't let 'em bully you.

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  22. Replies
    1. Dear lord, NO. My daughter really hurt herself at those.

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  23. A close call indeed! Glad you are home again.

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  24. So happy you were negative and sorry about those exercises but good you listen to your body and throw back those pain killers. You amaze me with the weaving. Soldier on.

    XO
    WWW

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  25. And K of long covid? Did she also test negative? I've not been good at my home exercise/yoga routine and no classes between the week before christmas and next week. It will be a groaner the first few times after classes resume. Glad to hear you are making progress as fast as your body will allow.

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    1. And double vaxxed and boosted! Yes, she came up negative.

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  26. Stand up, sit down - Reps make muscles but starting slowly keeps those muscles from screaming in protest. Glad you're doing better.

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  27. So glad you are home again!
    Best wishes for continued progress & health!

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  28. Have heard other stories similar to yours. My dear friend had a family get-together at Christmas and learned the next week that someone came down with Covid after attending. She and her boys were tested, one was positive, the others negative. But he was vaccinated and boostered and his symptoms seem minimal. Glad you and L were negative, but do continue to be careful. And I agree with everyone else that 25 repetitions seem like a lot. Wishing you a healthy happy safe 2022!

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  29. All you have to do is continue to test negative.

    Such a worrisome time.

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  30. I am surprised they started you with 20, 25 reps. The 2 times I got sick and had to have physical therapy, they started me with 10 or 12 reps, and worked me up to 20 or 25. When I got tired or sore, it was quitting time. The Big Deal was I did the exercises several times a day to build up strength. I was really hoping this year would be when we could start seeing friends and family again, but looks like Omicron has different ideas...

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  31. Thus far I've been able to avoid Covid.

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  32. Early days of physio are brutal. I didn't think I'd ever be mobile again after my knee replacement. All in good time. Keep up the good work.

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  33. Glad you dodged covid. Keep wearing a mask when you work with PT. Some folks are instructed to take a pain pill before PT sessions. Not to knock your brain loopy, but to help with the PT session and afterwards. Go easy with the reps. Maybe substitute frequency spread out during the day with fewer reps. Congrats on your progress so far. Linda in Kansas.

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  34. Very glad you've avoided covid and got your exercise situation more under control!

    Remembering your last post: My 8-year-old car had the check engine light go on in the fall of 2020. The Very good independent mechanics tried Everything; It would go away for a few days and then come back again. Finally they gave up, said they had tried everything that the manufacturer's advice people had offered, and I would have to take it to the (despised) dealership. While putting that off, spring came, and one day the light went off and didn't come back on again!
    I got the car's yearly inspection early, in the height of summer, anticipated that the light would come back on when the temperature went below freezing. Sure enough, it did.
    Hope yours turns out to be simpler to solve!

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    1. Actually about the same. No apparent cause, so they turned it off.

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  35. I'm glad they reduced the reps. Pushing you to the point of triggering pain severe enough to curtail the next day's activity until pain killers kick in seems to be counterproductive in my mind anyway. (I am not a doctor and I've never even played one on tv, so perhaps I should be disregarded altogether.)

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