Steve’s shoulder surgery update…

On Thursday December 29th Steve finally had repair of his rotator cuff.

Everything went really well, but not necessarily as expected. We have our share of mishaps, or challenges, that we have come to affectionately call “adventures” and unfortunately the day of Steve’s surgery was one of them.

I’ll start at the beginning.

Steve’s procedure was done at a surgery center just outside of Charlotte, near the main hospital where he works. The only direct north-south roadway through this portion of the state is Interstate 77. It’s a very busy freeway, with a large portion currently under construction, so occasional backups and areas of stop and go traffic are common. We had to arrive at 1 PM and knowing what a nightmare the freeway could be, we left 30 minutes early.

Shortly after we got on I-77 and well before the area of typical backups, we were crawling in bumper to bumper traffic. We had just passed an exit and there wasn’t another one for 7 miles. My iPhone indicated heavy traffic, up to and far beyond, the next exit. It also showed our arrival time would be 1:15! Not good!

I’m not sure how Steve held it together. He was nervous about the surgery, in pain (he couldn’t take pain medication that morning) and stuck in traffic. Steve is never late, on time is late for him. This nearly pushed him over the edge. Unfortunately I was the one who did that!

When I have nervous energy I talk, so true to form, I talked and talked all about the addition we were working on at the house. I was talking through the next steps and the contractors I had to call when I realized he was really quiet. I looked over and he thanked me for reminding him about all the things he couldn’t be doing himself. Really, what was I thinking? Talk about kicking a man when he’s down! I quietly apologized and shut up.

Steve commented about all the Virginia license plates and sure enough most of the cars we could see were from Virginia. He had a hunch and a quick check on the internet confirmed his suspicion. The Belk Bowl (Virginia Tech vs. Arkansas) was being played in Charlotte at 2 pm, hence the reason for the traffic jam!

It took us 45 minutes to travel those 7 miles. It felt like hours, but finally we were off the freeway. After a short drive we arrived at the Surgery Center, 15 minutes late.

As we were rushing in, Steve was unloading his pockets and handing me things to put in my purse (wallet, phone …). He put his hand in his right jacket pocket and came out with a couple of very melted Hershey Kisses. His hand was full of chocolate!

He wasn’t supposed to have anything to eat since last night and now he smelled like chocolate. At that point, all we could do was laugh. Then his phone rang! It was the surgery center nurse wondering where we were.

Well, truthfully, we were at the garbage can, right outside the entrance, trying to erase evidence of the contraband Steve had in his pocket and it wasn’t going very well. Have you ever tried wiping off melted chocolate with a Kleenex? Not very effective!

Within 10 minutes of checking in, Steve was divested of his clothes, in a gown and on a gurney being prepped for a nerve block. The anesthesiologist explained it would eliminate his pain for 18-20 hours. (He was all for that, me too!) The procedure was uneventful and for the first time in months Steve was pain free. Shortly before 3:00 they took him back to the OR.

That surgery center ran like a well oiled machine. Everything was ready, everyone knew their role, everyone genuinely seemed happy to be working there and they were understanding and respectful. I was in awe! It was an amazing example of how a healthcare team should work and a unit should be run.

It took about 1 hour and 15 minutes and the surgeon was out to talk with me. Unfortunately he had a little “adventure” of his own upon getting into Steve’s shoulder. The rotator cuff tendon tear was worse than what the MRI indicated but thankfully he still was able to repair it through the scope. He had to double the number of anchors (screws) that he placed into the humerus (bone) to tie down the torn pieces of the tendon. He also found a biceps tendon tear that wasn’t noted on MRI, so he repaired that. (Steve had been having a lot of bicep pain prior to surgery and everyone thought it was just referred pain from the shoulder, good thing he looked around.) The shaving of the bony prominence, that caused all the wear and tear of the tendon, went as planned. Overall a successful surgery!

Despite the severity of the tear and the extra repair needed, the surgeon felt strongly that Steve should have a full recovery.

The first 24 hours post-op were great. He loved his new recliner with the electric controller (you have to sleep upright for the first couple weeks and Steve tried out over 50 recliners to find the perfect one). His shoulder/arm felt achy and his neck was sore from wearing the sling, but he had no pain. I started his oral pain medication at 12 hours post-op per the instructions, but when that block wore off he spiraled into a very dark place. It was a difficult 48 hours, to say the least, trying to catch up to that pain.

Unbelievably, on post-op day 7 he went back to work. He drove himself, one handed of course, and spent a couple hours putting his office back together (his office got flooded from a leak in the ceiling ruining his computer equipment, carpet…). He was home by lunch but it was progress.

Steve is 2 1/2 weeks post-op and everyday is a “little better,” he says. He’s encountered all sorts of challenges without the use of his right arm but he’s adapting. He’s back to work full time and is getting plenty of sympathy and offers of assistance from everyone he encounters. [I think he’s going to keep the sling!]

It’s still a long road ahead but hopefully the worst two weeks are behind him.

As always, keep it simple and do it with sass!

Kim

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save