Dear So and So

[Sky King]

Dear foot, ankle, tendon

you can successfully handle today's annual hike to the Trinket Tree - honest. Placing our lucky rabbits foot on the tree will surely guarantee a great 2012 ;0

[Biciclista]

To whom it may concerned.
RESTFUL??? ARGGGGHHHH!!

To TE ladies. At 7pm I finally got Donald home. Thank goodness my older son Josiah came home with us too. We got in the door, D greeted the cats. Then the visiting nurse came and stayed for almost 2 hours!!! She was only there for one thing, to teach us how to give him his IV antibiotics.
We have to somehow scale back pain meds, and somehow help him be a little less wakeful at night and more wakeful in the morning.

Dear TE ladies, if there's someone here that knows about that, please let me know.

[NbyNW]

Mimi, I got my pain med tapering strategy from a friend who also had a cancer-related surgery. I don't remember what I was on when I fractured my sacrum, but this worked for me:

- don't take pain meds first thing upon waking up -- get dressed, have breakfast, etc. and take a little time to assess how you feel.

- (subjective part) when the pain is just around or beyond what you can bear in order to function (depends what you plan/need to do that day!), that's when you take your first dose for the day.

- gradually take that first dose later and later each day.

- at some point the Rx med will be a bit more than you need -- either you are taking it so late in the day or the pain is dull enough that it's not worth taking ... carefully switch over to your OTC pain reliever of choice ... I'm an ibuprofen person but extra-strength Tylenol was recommended to me at this stage. Check with Dr. &/or pharmacist about potential interactions, as in how long ago should your last dose of Rx be, before it's safe to take OTC.

The other thing I would add to this is to find ways to focus the brain on things other than the pain. TV is too passive for me, I couldn't watch TV all day. Thankfully I was still in grad school so I had a few papers to write, and a thesis topic to come up with. And I was getting ready for a quarter in Italy, so I spent a half hour in the morning and a half hour in the evening practicing my Italian with language tapes.

Some people can really get absorbed in crosswords and Sudoku. There's lots of ways to distract yourself while resting up.

Sounds like Donald's being in the hospital for such a long time may have messed with his sleep patterns ... hopefully things will settle down over the weekend!

[Biciclista]

thanks NbyNW, i am making sure he gets tylenol in between the oxycodones.. that way so far he's only taken the smallest dose of the oxy...
We've been out for two short walks so far. No flat ground around my house. Very happy.

[NbyNW]

It's a beautiful day to be outside! I just came back from walking my dog. I was under the weather last week, so it's nice to get some sunshine for extra motivation.

I hope the sunshine and fresh air get Donald all tired so he can get some good sleep tonight!

[emily_in_nc]

So happy Don is home, Mimi! A very Merry Christmas to you both!

[Crankin]

So happy for you, Mimi.

[bmccasland]

thanks NbyNW, i am making sure he gets tylenol in between the oxycodones.. that way so far he's only taken the smallest dose of the oxy...
We've been out for two short walks so far. No flat ground around my house. Very happy.

Mimi - I think Oxy has tylenol in it. It might be better if RD took something else as his alternative pail reliever. Check with your pharmasist or his doctor. My orthopod specifically told me not to take tylenol with Oxy (or was it hydrocodone?) I had to switch pain meds because Oxy made me sick.

[shootingstar]

Great that he's home in time for Christmas, Mimi.

Somehow hard to believe he would not blog about this major surgery.....

[ivorygorgon]

My dearest dogs. I truly love you sooooo much my heart swells when I look at you. BUT give me some darn room in the bed!!!!

[Owlie]

Mimi - I think Oxy has tylenol in it. It might be better if RD took something else as his alternative pail reliever. Check with your pharmasist or his doctor. My orthopod specifically told me not to take tylenol with Oxy (or was it hydrocodone?) I had to switch pain meds because Oxy made me sick.

Long story short, there are preparations of both oxy- and hydrocodone with acetaminophen (Vicodin (hydro), Percocet (oxy), etc.) So yes, absolutely check with the pharmacist or doctor.