Saturday, March 29, 2008

Crutches

I'm still using crutches. I hope to be free of them after my next doctor's appointment on Thursday. I have aluminum crutches, which are lighter and easier to adjust than the old wooden ones. On disadvantage, though, is that they are a lot louder than wooden crutches. With each step, the handles click and rattle. If I were a ninja, I'd never be able to work with them. Ninjas probably use bamboo crutches that also shoot poison darts.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Physical Therapy

I've started going to outpatient physical therapy twice a week now. I've got a new set of exercises to do. Some of the exercises are probably because I'm able to do more and some are because the therapist likes them. I rolled onto my stomach for the first time since the accident. This may not seem like much, but it was exciting to me.
I asked my therapist about doing the MS-150 in September. I got a long pause that I didn't like. When I pressed her, she said that it wasn't out of the question, but she didn't know enough about my condition to give a prediction. I still hope to do it, but I'm not going to sign up yet.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Making Progress

On Tuesday I went back to my hand doctor. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I had been frustrated by the lack of visible progress in my hand's range of motion. My doctor, on the other hand, was happy with how I was doing. I don't have to wear the splint anymore. I can also use my right hand for the walker and crutches now so I removed the arm rest from each of them. I won't have to go back unless I am not making enough progress on my range of motion. I still have a list of exercise to do at home. Using the walker without the armrest is making my wrist tired but I'll get used to it.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Not what I had hoped

I saw my hip doctor today. He gave me permission to go back to work but not much else. The only change in my hip precautions is that I can now put 30 pounds of pressure on my left leg. This really doesn't allow me to do anything new. I will see him again at the beginning of April and I should get more freedom then.

If you haven't heard enough about acetabulum fractures yet, I have a couple of links. This one is a series of pages that give a lot of information about acetabular fractures, surgery, and potential complications. I also found an illustration of the type of surgery that I had.

The more I learn , the more I realize that I have to temper my expectations. I had been told that it would take three months for my hip to heal. Well, the bones may be healed after three months, but it is going to take time after that to regain my strength. One thing I read said that I could expect up to 80% of my strength and movement back after 6 months, and up to 100% after 1 year. I just have to remind myself that the phrase "up to" is not a guarantee.

I am not going to be riding my bicycle for a while yet, but Helen is picking up the slack. She rode close to 4 miles on Grant's Trail today. Maybe we'll be able to do some rides together once I'm back in the saddle.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Helen got a bike


My wife got a bicycle today. She had been planning to get a bike someday. Since we had been in the bike shop a few time recently, she found one she liked. Helen hasn't ridden a bike since she was a kid but you don't forget how. She is still getting used to shifting and using the brakes.

Monday, March 10, 2008

I want to be well

I'm ready to be better now. I feel like my recovery has hit a plateau.

My hand made a lot of progress right after they took it out of the big splint. I think that this made me fell like it would be totally healed soon. Since then, progress has slowed down. I'll ask more questions about what to expect when I talk to my hand doctor next week.

I'm hoping that the hip doctor will let me put weight on my left leg after my appointment this week. I know it's possible that I'll have to wait for the next appointment. Even if I can put weight on it, I will still have some restrictions. At the very least, I expect that he will give me a release to go back to work.

I'm trying not be depressing here (or depressed). It's just disappointing to discover that I don't have mutant healing powers like Wolverine.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Goals

I didn't set any specific cycling goals for this year. This is good because I would not have been able to meet them after the accident anyway. I did meet all of the goals that I set for last year: 6000 miles, the super randonneur series, and riding a century each calendar month.

Riding a century every month was harder than I thought it would be. Most of the centuries were solo because there are very few organized centuries around here (none for October through March) . For me, the hardest part about riding a solo century is getting on the bike. Once I've started, it's not very hard to finish. But in a lot of months, I kept putting it off until almost the last weekend because of laziness or other commitments. This meant that sometimes I was riding in less than ideal conditions.

Of course, my cycling goals for last year were things that were under my control. My goals right now are dependent on things that I can't control. I can't go back to work or put weight on my leg until I get my doctor's permission. The settlement with the other driver depends on the insurance company and lawyers.

I am very pleased with my lawyer so far. I am hopeful that we will be able to prove that the other driver is 100% at fault. She has talked to the witness and has looked at the sequence of lights. Everything that she has found out so far looks good. It also matches exactly with what I have been saying. After what I have been reading, I am not surprised that the Coca Cola driver lied about the accident. Telling the truth would be tantamount to admitting fault and he may have been worried about losing his job if he did that. That doesn't mean I am condoning the fact that he lied, just that I understand why he did it. What I don't understand is why he didn't give me his insurance information while he was in the hospital, and why he told his insurance company that he didn't know who I was. If this case were to go to trial (unlikely) maybe that could be used against him.

Saturday, March 1, 2008

RSS Feed

I added a link for an RSS Feed to the sidebar. If you don't know what an RSS Feed is, don't worry about it.