Here I am

Last Thursday (19 August), I had my second ortho checkup. My arm and left leg are healing well, but the plate in my right leg has shifted a half an inch because my bones are so weak. The orthopedist ordered a cessation of physical therapy on that leg and is trying to get me a bone stimulator to help with the healing on my legs. I'm also making a point of drinking a packet of Carnation Instant Breakfast every day for the extra vitamins and minerals -- maybe they will help the healing as well. I will remain in rehab until my bones are able to handle me using the two-piece sling I use for transfers at home (minimum another month).

Furthermore, we discovered earlier this week that my left foot has been sweating in its brace, and so I have a couple of spots in the beginning stages of skin breakdown (skin red but not broken open). I will be getting my ankle x-rayed at some point to see if I even need the brace or if the tib-fib fracture is healing as slowly as the breaks.

I actually got girly on Wednesday and bought a couple of skirts. ::shiver:: I don't think I've bought a skirt or a dress in almost 20 years. It's just that even shorts are a pain (literally AND figuratively) to put on over these leg braces.

OK, I think I may get back in bed soon and get to work on my manuscript revisions . . . IF I can keep my eyes open.

Yes, I'm alive

For those who didn't know, I was in a car accident on June 7th in which a 20-year-old failed to pay attention to the large red stop sign in front of him, causing us (my parents, Reba, and myself) to hit him at 50-55 mph. Mom bruised her right hand and knee, Dad had a concussion, Reba's sutures from a surgery that morning tore open, and I broke my right humerus and both femurs and cracked my left tibia and fibula. I underwent a six-hour surgery on June 9th to attach plates and screws to my humerus and right femur and a rod along my left femur. Basically, I now have more hardware in me than a Home Depot.

I was in the hospital for three weeks, then I was transferred to a rehab facility where I still am. I get therapy on my arm five days a week and on my legs six days a week. I'm not healing as quickly as *I* would like, but I am healing. Moby (my van) was totaled, which upset me a lot. She was a good van, and she didn't deserve to go out like that. My folks quickly found me a new ride, though -- a maroon-colored 1993 Ford with a working AC. I have christened her the Red Baron.

Isn't life grand?