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Had op yesterday. Came home today. TFCC tear repaired. ECU tendon re-stabilised. Ganglion cyst removed. No other problems found! Yay! 2 weeks in plaster, then i get my stitches out. 6 weeks before I'm allowed to use my right arm. Can return to work in 2 weeks, if they can accomodate for the fact that I can only use my left hand (I hope they can. 6 weeks at home will drive me nuts!) Feeling fine, except for sore throat from anaesthetic tubes and my hand/fingers have swollen up real bad. It's hard to keep it elevated above heart level for extended periods of time. typing with one hand is a real pain, but just wanted to update and let you all know, it went well. I got through the whole hospital thing without getting triggered.

(((Amanda))),

I'm glad your surgery is over and that it went well. I hope your recuperation goes smoothly also.

Yay! I'm glad it went well and wasn't a triggery experience.

That's fabulous news! The surgery, sure but the fabulous part is that you weren't triggered! *happy dance*



So ... when you get the ability to type better / easier, let us know how the drive and hospital part was. I know that was a source of some stress earlier and to hear you come through it like a trooper is great news.

WHOOHOO , Amanda! I'm so glad that surgery is over for you! Time to heal and relax!

You handled "the hospital experience" so well. As Ash said, let us know how you made it through when you are feeling better!
God Bless
Steff

A lot of self talk basically. Yeah, I was feeling very scared and nervous but was able to keep reminding myself that some fear under the circumstances was normal. I was able to just observe the "I feel terrified, therefore I must be in danger" feelings and re-assure myself that "just because one surgeon had put me in a very disturbing and traumatic situation, didn't mean that ALL surgeons or even just this one, would." Feelings aren't fact. It makes a really big difference when one can just observe feelings without passing judgement on them or trying to understand them - they just are, and they're ok, and they won't kill me if I just sit with them.

On the drive down, we talked a lot about other things which was a good distraction. We made plans for what C would do whilst I was in surgery, what we were going to do that evening and discussed dinner plans (My rumbly tummy having been starved since 7am was dreaming of dinner.) seeing as last minute the hospital had changed me from an over-night stay to a day-stay. My driver didn't want to drive back after dark and seeing as check-in wasn't until 1pm (and it gets dark by 5pm - winter) I had to book a motel for the night for C & I.

I normally like to have all the T's crossed and the I's dotted and to know exactly what is happening and when. I like to suss out where I'm going and with whom and have "an escape plan" in place, but this time, I had to accept that things were beyond my control. I had to just go with the flow and trust that whatever happened in each moment, I had the ability to handle it. Staying in the moment, can be a powerful tool in itself to ward off fear and worry.

The hospital part was all so quick, I had no time to let fear-based thoughts take hold. Within 45 minutes of arriving, I was in theatre. I woke 2.5 hours later, all done, all casted up. I did have a great deal of pain, but I was heard and I was given some injections immediately. An hour and half later, I was up, dressed, given a light meal and was ready to leave. My impressions of the hospital and the treatment providers were all good. As ACC were paying, my treatment was all done in the private sector and compared to my public hospital experiences, it was far superior. (They even let their patients keep their dentures in whilst under anaesthetic )

So the key things for me:

1. Stay in the moment.
2. Observe the feelings - they are real, but they are NOT always fact.
3. Distraction when thoughts become troublesome.
4. Trusting and having faith in myself - I can handle whatever happens, in any given moment. I can speak up if something feels bad/wrong to me and I can ask for what I need.
5. Feel the fear and do it anyway!

I now have another extremely positive hospital/medical/surgical experience, which whilst it can't undo the earlier traumatic ones, it does help me to balance out the black (all bad) thinking about hospitals/surgeons. (I hope this post goes through now as it took me ages to type with one hand - LOL)

Awesome job, Amanda! Cheers

Sounds like you put a lot of skills into practice there Amanda! Great going!

I am glad this was a positive experience for you. Thank you so much for sharing the skills you used and offering an opportunity to see them demonstrated as working and effective. (Especially for taking the time and effort to type it out with one hand.) I really appreciate that!

I hope you recover soon and will soon be able to use two hands to type with!

wow, i am so glad about all this.

a line you posted struck me. "i told myself because i felt terrified didnt mean i was in danger". what a huge insight. i am keeping that one.

tend to you, spoil yourself some now!

Amanda, I can relate to the feelings of terror and the resulting belief that there is reason to be so afraid. I am glad that you were able to put your trust in your doctor and that your medical care was basically a positive experience. We know too well that pain is paired with healing, eh? I have not logged in for awhile again so I was glad to see such a positive post about your surgery and a narration about how you got through it in the best way possible. Keep up the good work!

Things are progressing slowly, but at an "as to be expected" rate. Normal wrist flexion & extension is around 70-80 degrees both ways. I'm currently at 65 degrees flexion (almost within normal range) but only 30 degrees of extension, but this is to be expected after surgery involving extensor tendons. My grip-strength pre-op was around the 10kg mark, and at 6 weeks post-op, it is back to 10kg. In my non-dominant hand my grip-strength is 30kg, so normal for my right would be expected to be around the 35-40kg mark, so I have a ways to go there. Goal: is to have it back to full strength and range of movement within 3 months.

I'm now out of the 6 week "no lifting, weight bearing" period and am starting to use my hand a bit more. Have gone back onto full duties at work, although I'm still favouring the left hand. Obviously it's going to take some time before I can lift heavier items and have to build up gradually, but it's such a relief to fnally know that I can safely use my hand without risking undoing the repairs. The pain messages are pretty good at telling me when enough is enough, or something is too heavy.

All, in all, I'm quite pleased by how I managed/handled the 6 week left hand only period. It got pretty damn frustrating at times and the helplessness/needyness associated with it, created a real challenge for me. It's hard for me to say what I need and to ask for help, especially for some of the more basic things. It helped to remind myself that it was temporary thing and how fortunate I am not to have a permanent disability. Anyway, just thought I'd update on the progress and post as a reminder to myself that I can handle a challenge.

I'm so proud of and inspired by you, ((Amanda))!! Well done!