Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Kicking Me While I'm Down

Many thanks go to my lovely fiancee Jessica for "telling my story" as I asked her to do the night of my Achilles fun. Now, just like Achilles of old, you know my weak spot (apparently when I was dipped in the River Styx they held me by my heels AND my shoulder) and that is the best part of the worst stuff.

Yesterday we went to consult with an orthopedic surgeon, a sprawling office that certainly needs a moving sidewalk since half the people there are on crutches. He concluded, based on a "squeeze the calf" test I'm sure took years to perfect, that my Achilles is fully torn. He offered two options:
  • Cast up to my thigh for 4 weeks, lower-leg cast for 4 weeks and then "Golden Girls" reruns for 6-8 months before I can resume athletic activity
  • Surgery, followed by 2 weeks in cast, then 2 months in a boot (most of that with crutches), back running in about 6 months

Upon hearing our options, Jess and I felt like we'd been offered the option of lethal injection in either Bubble Gum or Tutti Frutti flavors -- in other words, neither option was good but we may as well enjoy the little choices we have. Our response to the doctor was basically, "How soon can we cut?"

The answer is: Today at 1PM. So I'm going under the knife today to repair the tendon and start the rehab process. Through all of this, Jess has been an absolute champ, helping out however she can and at the same time dealing with the ramifications of this from the wedding perspective. It goes without saying that this isn't how we had expected the wedding plans to proceed from this point. We'll certainly make the most of it, but for now we're stuck in our current location, coordinates 120 degrees Shock and 150 degrees Ugh (I believe this is near a Shari's in Clackamas but don't quote me on that).

More to come post-op --

3 comments:

Will and Sandy said...

We are so sorry for the two of you. But know we are thinking of you and that if there is anything we can do for you, we are on it. We will be praying for you and are looking forward to many movie nights this summer!

Jessica Baker said...

We're thinking healing thoughts. Hang in there!

Tracy said...

Oh Dave! You are in our thoughts! No fun, but at least you have a wonderful, compassionate, and, dare I say, extremely hot woman by your side. :)
We'll be home in a month to spend some couch time with you.