Whew!  Interesting week. Last Friday when I saw Dr. Polun, he found a new infection in the right foot. He cultured it. I went on antibiotics (Duracef -- generic Cefadroxil 500 mg 2x/day) (with probiotics to offset the killing of the good bacteria as well as the bad by the antibiotics). Treating the wound with Povidone-Iodine (generic for Betadine).

Are you old enough to remember mercurochrome? Getting painted red on every skating scrape and skinning from falling?

That's the Povidone solution effect.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2518/what-happened-to-mercurochrome. To be clear, Povidone solution is not mercurchrome, it just paints like the mercury-containing liquid.

Ah, childhood.

OK, that's enough.

So on Day 123 since the surgery, having made a lot of progress, I had a setback.

I had pushed my doctor mid-July to let me pull the right leg into the shower and shower it. I'd dry it, and then leave it unbandaged for a while to further air-dry it. But the infection at the wound site was caused by moisture.

I remembered later that last week we had a couple of days of flood-watch downpours. One night coming back from the bus the only way to cross the street was through ankle-deep water. I got home right away and changed the bandage but...

The doctor was concerned. I was scared. The next day I mentally made bread dough with the fear and beat the crap out of it, whomping it down on the breadboard in my mind, punching and smashing it, yelling at it. Can't mess around. As I've learned throughout this recovery, to give into negative thinking especially the powerful negative of fear is a very bad and fruitless path. So I beat up the scared. And did what my doctor prescribed.

The other lesson of this time has been, while doing what the medicos say, then to leave it to God. Time to trust.  Friends prayed.

Yesterday, the vascular doctor, Dr. Kozloff, said the foot looked good, was coming along. Dr. Polun confirmed that today. So good problem identification, treatment plan, following the treatment plan, contolling the fear, claiming the healing in God's love -- hooray!

Another odd development has been stiffening, weakening, discomfort in the gooder leg, the left one, old stalwart that's been carrying the day -- though with physical therapy I've been strengthening the right quite a bit. John Jowers, PT, said my range of motion in the main player, the big toe, was ahead of schedule.

I've learned that if I rush across the street to make the light, I stress the better leg and have to use the cane again for the left. The next morning, after a good night's sleep, the left is better.

John gave me exercises for the stressed better leg. Sit on a high stool so my legs dangle. With a loop of resistance band around both ankles, keep the right leg down, and raise the left, then lower. 10 x. 3 sets per 1 session a day. That's a knee extension. Secondly, hold the right leg up and out, and raise the left, then lower it down, stretching the band. That's flexion. 10x, and 3 sets of that 1 session a day.

I had been babying the left leg while walking by stepping down on the ball of the foot because the heel pull hurt. With this compensation, the leg felt unstable, unreliable. John said to do the normal heel placement, but to do it thoughtfully, deliberately, and softly. This takes more time, and my steps are shorter. But I can feel that the back of the left leg is not so stressed, and that the footstep feels more stable.

I am so grateful to walk. I try to walk at least 6 blocks every day and more. It's so great to walk, y'all!


Friday 8/31/12