Spare parts

 Well, I thought I would be out of commission for a lot longer than two days!  Exactly a week ago today I had a hip replaced.  Absolutely everyone who has had one, my surgeon, my primary doctor, everyone said it would be a piece of cake and especially so for me because I have had two knees replaced - and knees are the worst.   But still, it IS a bit of a 'major' surgery to take a bone out of a body and replace it with a piece of metal. 

Well.  The first shocker was that I was home the same day. No overnight hospital stay.  I had the use of a walker from a friend but the doctor said I would need it for two days and a friend said "you need the walker for your head, not your hip." And he was right.  By Sunday night it was parked in a corner.  PH has been hovering but I keep shooing him away to go do what he wants or needs to do but I certainly don't need nursing. Mostly the first couple of days I just needed him to put one sock on my foot. 

No pain, no opiods, no walker, no cane, no compression socks, no restrictions on my activities especially since I don't need narcotics for pain - because there is no pain.  The area just feels like a bad bruise but certainly not pain. I could take the stairs with alternating legs by day 3.  I am astounded at how easy this has been. I was even vacuuming on day 3!!! 

So, I guess there are no excuses?  There are weight restrictions on how much to lift, I did have a bone replaced after all. And if I were not retired I couldn't go back to work for 3 months.  But movement? Do what I can handle, that's what they say.

 The ONLY thing that is different and that I forgot about and is maybe a biproduct of anesthesia is the lack of appetite. All of the body's energy is centered on healing the incision and bone and I'm going to let it, so good long naps are the order of the day.  I DO get very tired.

If any of you are ever recommended for a new hip?  Don't run away, run toward having it done.  It could be FAR worse, like living with the pain of needing it, and it's not your knee. 

While on our long car trip the first of September I worked on Sashiko for the first time. I must say it's the perfect car project. I did two larger pieces that became pillows, I showed those in the retreat post, and I did these four ornaments.  The piece of fabric for these was extremely fine, like a finely done linen.  They were together as part of a bigger piece and I couldn't imagine them getting the wear and tear a pillow might so I cut them into four and turned them into Christmas ornaments for the two kids' families.