The Reaper is chasing me and I tripped.

[nearwildheaven]

@Machine_Elf

This rings a bell.

I had A Very Bad Day when I was 25: an extremely unpleasant medical procedure followed by a miserable aftermath. By the end of the day I was in the ER, getting a saline IV because I couldn’t keep fluids down, with my urinary tract lighting on fire every time I peed because I had been catheterized earlier in the day. I felt like shit, I was mentally and physically exhausted, and feared the next time I would have to pee. I was a young, healthy man who had never been through anything like this, and it freaked me out. I remember lying there and thinking “this is what it will be like to be old.”

So yeah, sometimes the anxiety that comes with prolonged physical suffering can be as miserable as the physical suffering itself.

Sorry for what you’re going through, Lumpy. Hoping for better times ahead.

I read that link, and it just about had me tied up in knots even though I don’t have all the body parts you talked about!

[nearwildheaven]

@Truman_Burbank

You might also ask your MD about my new friend, the Fentanyl patch. Helps get me through the night.

Those are not intended for short-term pain relief.

[Lumpy]

@Machine_Elf

This rings a bell.

I had A Very Bad Day when I was 25: an extremely unpleasant medical procedure followed by a miserable aftermath. By the end of the day I was in the ER, getting a saline IV because I couldn’t keep fluids down, with my urinary tract lighting on fire every time I peed because I had been catheterized earlier in the day. I felt like shit, I was mentally and physically exhausted, and feared the next time I would have to pee. I was a young, healthy man who had never been through anything like this, and it freaked me out. I remember lying there and thinking “this is what it will be like to be old.”

So yeah, sometimes the anxiety that comes with prolonged physical suffering can be as miserable as the physical suffering itself.

Sorry for what you’re going through, Lumpy. Hoping for better times ahead.

Good lord, I haven’t suffered a tenth of what you did. I count myself lucky.

[susan]

I’m glad you can see improvement. What a drag!

[DorkVader]

@purplehorseshoe

Chair yoga! Dark chocolate! Chair yoga while eating dark chocolate … ?

Looks like Minnesota now allows CBD products, which can help with pain minus all the constipating “fun” of opioids. They make all sorts of stick-on patches and creams these days, including versions with menthol and stuff for topical pain relief.

Sleep is good, and I’m glad you’re able to get some restorative rest. Keep us updated!

HEY!?! Your chair yoga is in Lumpy’s dark chocolate!!

Or did his chocolate get in your yoga?

Uh, wait, that comes across better with the visual aid from the old reeses commercials…

Anyhoo, best wishes Lumpy, keep on keepin on (and getting better)

[Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank]

I’ve been though similar. Stick with your PT and think happy thoughts. "Just a few more weeks. . .just a few more weeks. " If all goes well, you’ll be much better soon, and you’ll have a GREAT appreciation for every day your body operates within normal parameters. The day you fully realize you’re not immortal comes as a shock, but hopefully you can go back to trying to ignore that soon, just like the rest of us.

Mark the days, maybe keep a journal. I did. It was full of nothing but nonstop bitching. You gotta pass the time somehow.

[CairoCarol]

Well, crap. That sounds beyond awful.

If it helps, I am now feeling not only sympathy but admiration. In your shoes (arms?) I am not sure I could write such a cogent description of what you are experiencing.

[Lumpy]

I was reviewing old posts of mine and was reminded of this, thought I’d give an update seeing I’m at about the nine month mark:

Pain went away after about 2-3 weeks. Rehab has been slow: 90% on the left arm. For a long while I was having very little noticeable improvement on the right. What finally changed is that two months ago I was prescribed a medicine called Gabapentin which is supposed to help pinched and irritated nerves heal, and since then I’ve had much improvement. Right arm now back to maybe 1/2 - 2/3 what it was, with the prospect of further improvement. Fortunately I can finish 2021 on my savings if need be while recuperating further.

[Kimstu]

Improvement is good! Slow improvement is frustrating, but improvement is still good!

[What_Exit]

That sounds very promising.

[Exapno_Mapcase]

Gabapentine is a great drug. I had unbelievable pain from a cyst pressing on a spinal nerve and the gabapentine stopped it cold. Had spinal surgery after that but it went much better than yours.

However, I’m still struggling with the complications from the heart surgery I had a month ago, so I definitely can emphasize about the slowness of recovery. I keep reminding myself what I was like when I came back from the hospital (the second time) and how much improvement I’ve seen since, even though I’m nowhere near where I want to be. Every day brings me closer, though. I liken it to climbing an enormously high ladder. Each rung is an effort and seems to get me nowhere, although a week or a month’s worth is an accomplishment.

Hope you continue to improve. Just remember, our bodies weren’t designed by an intelligent designer; they were thrown together by a drunk sadist.

[DemonTree]

@Machine_Elf

I had A Very Bad Day when I was 25

That was suitably horrifying. (Fixed link here.)

Glad to hear you’re improving @Lumpy, even if it’s taken a while.