What You Never Asked (and never wished to know) About Tendon Surgery Recovery

So it's been an interesting week!

Jessica has lovingly chronicled my surgery and immediate recovery (most of which I do not recall, except a 45-minute conversation I had with a unicorn about #2 lead pencils and why the #1's never took off), as well as my shower techniques. A few new things about this past week after surgery:

• I felt great when I first got home... it was the middle of the first night when the general anesthesia wore off when I jolted up in bed and thought Pixie was gnawing on my tendon. I gingerly propped myself up and downed two Percocet to make the pain stop, which it eventually did... but that was not fun.
• I grew a red beard! I supposed I'm on strike from working at the office, so I figured I would grow out my beard a bit to get a status check (yep, still red! yep, still AWESOME!).
• As long as my leg is elevated and iced, everything is good... at first when I got up to go to the bathroom, it was hooooorrible. Pain, swelling, fumbling on crutches... I got back to the couch and my toes looked like giant purple impressionist paintings of their true selves. And yet, 30 seconds of elevation and they were as good as new.
• My mom is back! For the first time in 2 years, she came back to Oregon to view the carnage and to help with wedding things for a bit. To say she was a bit uncomfortable at first would be an understatement, but soon she was into her groove of "where should this go?" and "let's get these things squared away" and "if I made a casserole, would you eat it?". Oregon must bring it out in her.
• I haven't been outside in more than a week. Too far and too hard. I do keep the windows open to remind myself of what the world sounds and smells like, but the life of a hermit is quite overrated, if it's rated at all.
• Once I can run again, I am going to Forrest Gump it and just keep doing it. My left leg will look like a garden hose by the time the cast and boot are off.

That's it for now. More later when I clear the roots off between my butt and the bed.

Showers Have Gotten Decidedly More Complicated

Posted by Jessica


First Dave has to stuff his leg into a giant garbage bag.


Then he tapes the top air-tight.

Then he stuffs his leg into a second garbage bag. And tapes it again.

Then he hobbles to his shower where he gets to sit in a lawn chair lovingly stuffed into the stall by his helpful fiancee. He rests his foot on a small up-side-down tupperware container and uses his pitcher for rinsing. The whole cleansing ordeal, which took him 5 minutes pre- gimp-ification, now takes 45. During the process, from outside, one can frequently hear loud thumps and crashes and muted growling grumbles. One knows better than to inquire or offer assistance though, lest said muted growling then becomes directed at one.

Looks fun, right?? :)