Mini-Milestones

One part of me is completely shocked how many days have passed since surgery and another part is fully aware of exactly ALL of the days since I started the process that began with a "cleanse" of the digestive system on April 27.  

I was even more disconcerted as I was considering what we were doing on April 26, 27 AND even the morning of April 28 (surgery was in the afternoon of April 28).  Tammy and I were working very hard to try to get everything we could taken care of on the farm, at the house, at school and for my job.  We were working outside doing farm things right up until we grabbed what we needed for the afternoon and drove south to the hospital.

I'd hop right on the tractor and drive it somewhere and hop down to load up brush into a bucket, then I'd hop right back up....  you get the idea.  Other than my normal caution I use to stay safe on the farm, I wasn't thinking overly much about making my body do the things I wanted it to do.  I just did it.

This came back to me as we were walking around the farm on Sunday.  I took a trip out to visit with Crazy Maurice, checked out Valhalla, noticed a few sunflowers coming up in one of our fields and then even did a short bit of mowing on the lawn tractor.  That's not bad from the standpoint of recovery.

But, in comparison to how free and easy the work was on the morning of April 28, it can be a little disturbing.

Don't worry, I am fully committed to a properly cautious and appropriate recovery and rehabilitation.  I know full well that over-extending can result in MORE down-time.  I just have to find a way to appreciate the mini-milestones that I have reached recently.  They don't sound like much - unless you have also experienced a surgery or procedure like this - then you'll probably appreciate why they are worth celebrating.

I finally managed to sleep an entire night in my own bed.   While it is true that there are only a few positions that are fully comfortable for sleep, it is better than the SINGLE position that was possible in the reclining chair.  Is it absurd to finally decide to get up and feel a sense of accomplishment that you successfully slept?  If you're fully healthy, perhaps it is.  But, for me, it was a huge win.

But, wait.  If you think that one is silly... how silly is to celebrate the fact that you had a bowel movement?  Very!  Unless you haven't had a normal bowel movement for a while.  Then, you just might understand.  (too much information?  don't care - my blog!)

Walking for ten minutes on the treadmill that was kindly loaned to us so I could use it to recover was another mini milestone.  I did accomplish that one fairly early - but it was at a pace that was more of a shuffle than a walk.  I celebrated far more when I managed to walk a ten minute session at a normal pace.  When you compare it to how I was moving prior to surgery it seems a bit silly to celebrate "I walked" as a milestone.  

I managed to plant a double row of lima beans using our light Earthway seeder one week to the day after surgery.  This was one of my stated goals going into this and I am pleased that I managed it as well.  We both knew that moving was going to be a big part of recovery, so a well contained bit of seeding that would require not straining on my part was reasonable.  Add in the moral victory that it was something we needed to do for the farm....

And, I have been able to water the plant seedlings most days for the past several days too.  This is often a task we just do without thinking about it too much.  Suddenly, it is MY task that I CAN do so I can feel that I am contributing a bit.  The mini-milestone here is that the number of tasks that I can comfortably and safely do has been growing, which makes me feel better about myself.  Another win.

And, that's your Farmer Rob update for May 10.  Still a bit frustrated that he can't do what he could just a couple of weeks ago with ease, but pleased that each day has provided a few mini-milestones.