April 17. My 2(ish) week post op appointment. Two days before I had gotten one of those generic calls confirming my appointment, which has been made prior to my checking out. You could tell it was a regular message where certain field were "merged" in. I had an appointment with "a physician" at "the hospital." Wow. Specific. Thanks Harborview. I got dressed and put two shoes on. First of all, this was the first time a show had been on my right foot, since the accident. Second, the fact that I even got a shoe on, was kind of a miracle, let alone a Nike Free (which is hard to get on, even able bodied).
My brother and mom came over to take me to the doctor. I opted for hopping down the stairs and my brother had brought some stool steps for me to get into the truck. It was MUCH easier than the first time I had gotten in. It was a sunny day and I was (and am) grateful for them giving up their day to take me for my check up. The drive was uneventful, thankfully. I'll admit I have some anxiety about riding in a vehicle.
We arrived and my mom grabbed a wheelchair. We waited in the lobby for my brother to park and then headed up to the Orthopedic Post Surgical Center. This particular office had JUST opened. I don't know where they were before, but it was unorganized and under construction. My stomach wasn't feeling good, so while I had been pretty positive, I was getting irritable while I was there. Meh, it happens. We had to check in, and the line took nearly 10 minutes to do so. I learned why after my appointment.
My brother got comfy with his Kindle and we waited maybe 3 minutes before a nurse came out. (Flashbacks to the hurry up and wait part I loved so dearly during my stay . . .). We went back into the room, which had a great view south on I-5, with the sun shining. The nurse took my vitals, confirmed a few things (what paperwork I needed for L&I, etc) and the doctor would be in shortly. A lady named Teresa came in, who has probably the most unappreciated job ever. She does all the paperwork for the doctors, so they just have to sign them. She filled everything out for the L&I paperwork, as well as some stuff I needed.
Shortly after, my doctor came in. He was cute and I actually remembered him. He introduced himself and said he had been in my surgery and had been one who had done many of my post op checks. I definitely remembered him. He was super cute (and on the team with big arms Krieg), with nerdy glasses, with a super soft demeanor. We talked through my surgery (since the last time I heard about it, I was coming out of a fog). He pulled up the x-rays on the computer and walked my mom and I through each step. He answered every question and I think even found me a little funny. He was so patient, unlike any other doctor EVER. Dr. Westrick I like you. (Later I told my mom that he was my type and she responded, even with his ring? No mom, he is my type minus the wedding ring. ;) )
Dr. Westrick brought printed version of some of the better X-Rays (both before and after). He removed my staples (3 of them, holding together a tiny 1" incision). My mom wanted to hold it. I don't even know what I asked him, but I remember feeling like he was willing to be there as long as I needed him to. I think my favorite was when I said I thought I could feel the screw. He smiled, and said, No you can't, you can feel the break. Ohhhhhhhhhh. :) Ha. That does make more sense, I suppose. It was really beneficial for me to understand the breaks and where they were more. I have an 88 mm long and 7 mm diameter screw. The largest they have. Forever and ever. My other two breaks were in bones that were too small/round/flat to fix. It explained a lot about my pain.
We did talk about my knee too, which I wasn't expecting. I had been told in the ER that I would get a referral to sports medicine for my knee, but that I would probably need surgery. My knee cap had been dislocated for several hours, which is never good. After about 10 days home, I called my for referral. Silly me had thought Harborview would have done that. Silly me. I talked to someone on the phone who asked me a lot of questions I felt like should have been accessible in my file . . . like why was I admitted to the hospital. I feel like that should be in my file. For real. I was told I would get a call back. Five days later, I got a call, saying my referral had been approved and would be receiving a call soon. Harborview soon.
Fast forward to my appointment. Dreamy Dr. Westrick explained that their sports medicine department was going through some "changes" and to not wait to hear from them. He wanted me in a different brace that allowed me to bend it, in physical therapy ASAP to get mobility and printed out two doctors he recommended at another hospital (gasp!) that he recommended. He encouraged me to get healthier, and then visit them, as having surgery on my knee, while my pelvis was healing was not ideal.
So, moving forward:
1. Still no weight on my right leg (for my pelvis) until 8 weeks post op (5 1/2 more weeks)
2. New fancy brace, to start bending my knee
3. Start PT for my knee now
4. Another appointment in 4 weeks, with X-Rays
5. 2 weeks after next appointment, start PT to learn to walk again, which should take 4 weeks
6. No NSAIDs for 6 months. I need my bones to heal on their own.
7. Cleared for at home, sedentary work only.
A few minutes later, a nurse came in to confirm that I needed the brace and would be back shortly. Un-Harborview like, she was back very quickly. Unfortunately, the brace was a velcro monster and needed to be fit. The nurse was a crack up. She had us all laughing in the room, while she cut the brace to shorten it, and I pointed out she was actually cutting the "girth" not the height. According to her, she was grateful I had skinny thighs, because if she needed to wear it, she would have to get a new one. After a lot of laughs and a few minutes, I was ready to go, once I got my shoes on (no easy task).
We went out and I was standing near the desk to check out. After a few minutes of chatting with my brother and showing the X-Rays, a lady yelled to me that if I was waiting to check out, I needed to join the line. This was the line I was in before, to check in. I was using a walker from the hospital at this point, probably because I wanted some independence. The line was all the way on the other side of the long desk. I kind of sighed and then started my journey over (with my mom right behind me with the wheelchair). It took me a few awkward minutes and the exact second I got in line, the same lady yelled that she could help me now. So, I walkered back over (practically back to where I had JUST been). Thanks lady, you know you work in the Orthopedic Surgical Center, right?
As I approached, the lady to my right was arguing with another admin about being stupid and not knowing how to do her job. So my "gruff" lady had to interfere, which meant I got to stand there longer. I think I did a pretty good job of being patient, considering this was the longest I had ever stood. My left butt check was starting to talk to me, right as I thought we finalized my next appointment. The lady next to me started to cause problems again. Luckily, my lady apologized when she finally wrapped up everything I needed. I sat in the wheelchair and we were out of there.
We left and I cursed at James Street. I think there are more potholes in James Street than all other streets combined in Seattle; which is ironic considering it is THE way into the #1 trauma center in the Pacific Northwest, and has the top rated pelvis team. Broken bones and potholes do not mix. Someone please pass this on to the City of Seattle. Thank you.
Uneventful ride home (yay!) and then back up the stairs. I decided I wanted to try hopping up the stairs, rather than sitting on my bum and doing dips. It looks more chaotic than it really is. It is jarring and not something I could have done even a week before. It was the opposite of going down. My brother stood on the stair above and basically served as a railing. I held on and jumped up on one leg. With the new brace, I could slightly bed my leg out of the way. It took half the time but I was still exhausted. That was the most action I had in weeks! And I needed some down time before my dinner dates arrived.
Harborview visit done and done.
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