I've been home for about half a week and I have been making some real improvements in that short time. I think it's safe to say I'm feeling better than I was at the same point in my last recovery. I'm definitely not perfect yet, but I'm getting there. I still need to take narcotics to get through the day feeling like a normal person, I can't stand up straight without feeling like a few things inside me are tearing, and I'm not allowed to lift more than 10 pounds or drive a car, but I'm still very happy because I can...
Poop every day without taking a laxative
That's right! I can have a bowel movement all by myself these days and I've been having one every day for the last five days! Being constipated was making me feel terrible and thankfully I don't have to deal with that anymore. I think it's finally over because I'm eating regular sized meals on a daily basis and I'm taking a smaller amount of painkillers than I was in the hospital. The nurses kept blaming the narcotics for my poopy problems and it has gotten better since I started taking less. I never knew pooping could make me happier than it did before, but this is easily the best thing that has happened to me since getting home.
Walk almost two miles without stopping
In the hospital I couldn't actually measure how far I was walking, I had to use time and the number of laps around my floor to determine my improvement. Now, with the help of google maps I know exactly how far I'm going and yesterday I set a new personal record when I went for a two mile walk without any breaks or stops. The whole walk was on flat ground, but I have lots of time to add in the hundreds of hills around my house to my walks. The last time I had surgery it took me almost two weeks to build up to the distance I hit yesterday. I feel so good this time around that I'm sure I'll be running half marathons by this time next week. I don't mean to sound over confident, but I think that's a natural progression.
Take the dog for a walk all by myself
Nothing makes you feel less like a man than a 15 pound perma-puppy being stronger than you, and that was the case when I first got home, but not anymore. One of the more painful parts of recovery from open-heart surgery is the muscle soreness in your chest and back over the first few weeks following the operation. Last Thursday my ribcage was cut and held open for about six straight hours. This puts a lot of weird pressure on all the parts of your torso and it takes weeks for all the little pains that it causes to go away. It also makes it really painful to do things that involve any of the muscles found in your chest and back. Pushing and pulling are almost impossible for the first few days. Today, though, I did an important test and found out that I can now handle the heavy strain and immense loads a very tiny dog can exert on a leash. Slowly but surely I'm getting my manliness back one small victory over puppies at a time.
2 comments:
I'm so glad you are sharing about your bowel movements. All my questions have been answered now.
Hey, it may be a bit gross, but trust me when I say it's a big deal for me. It's another part of normal that has returned to my life.
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