I’m taking another long weekend off work to rest my knee. Sigh. It was waaaaay better, and then I ran across the street to catch the bus and set it waaaay back. AURGH!
Painful. Hard to sleep. You know, I’m sure—an exercise in patience.
But today I’m having lunch at Marz’s old workplace —(an easy bus connection)—because my landlord is coming over around noon with the city apartment-license inspector and I wanted to avoid that socially awkward meeting.
After this I plan to stay still with my leg up til Monday morning.
But now I’m having a tomato croque-monsieur (no meat) and an oat milk latte, and reading Home Fires: The Story of the Women’s Institute in the Second World War, by Julie Summers.
Immediately I learned something: The WI was a pacifist organization. I thought they just made jam.
I was inspired to take the book off my shelf because I just watched World on Fire, season 2, (PBS/Masterpiece) about interconnected lives in Europe during WWII, from the British home front to Indian sappers in North Africa (like The English Patient) to a German girl in the Lebensborn program to propagate the “Aryan race”.
It also follows a French and a Polish woman risking their lives in their respective country’s underground resistance movements, and it crossed my mind—will it come to this in America?
so here are my two cents especially since i am still dealing with the results of a fractured elbow. ice packs will help with the inflammation -- i think you have some if you have that much pain. so follow what is recommended with ice packs. even when i was still wearing my brace i was advised to do ice several times a day and even after 2 months from the surgery. you only want to do some much rest as your muscles start atrophying after a few days. ibuprofen helps with inflammation. also suggest checking with your gym person to see what they can recommend to strengthen the knee muscles. wear a brace and no running for buses!! you can give me a big raspberry for this!!!
ReplyDeletek
Thanks, Kirsten! Yes, it's hard to do ice when it's so cold out, but I'm sure you're right!
DeleteAnd indeed, I need to start strengthening my leg muscles.
I'm waiting for my State health insurance to re-start--then I will go to PT!
I got a knee brace too--from work!
DeleteHow is your elbow, K??? I hope it's better
yeah, all good stuff. unfortunately one doesn't realize what use we make of knees and elbows until we can't!. my elbow is now in good shape. i still do exercises that the physical therapists provided to me. the plate and screws are annoying and the surgeon told me i could have them removed in a year if i wanted to except i doubt insurance will cover it. and the thought of going through the surgery and rehab again.....the surgeon showed me the last x-ray and you can't even tell that the bone was fractured. i personally was surprised that it healed quickly at my age. my therapist was surprised how quickly my range of movement came back -- i told him i was an over-achiever. tell me to do something and i do it. thank you for asking!
Deletei did learn an interesting anecdote from one of the therapists: if a child fractures their elbow and doesn't do the recommended therapy because it hurts, their arm will be limited all their life. that alone spurred me to be faithful in doing my exercises.
k
Good for you—It’s only smart to do one’s PT exercises, but when I confessed once to my PT that I had only done mine half the time, he said,
Deletealmost nobody does them all.
Reminds me that my father in his later 70s, he developed high blood pressure. His doctor said he could go on medication or he could try exercise.
So for the first time in his life, my father joined a gym and religiously worked out three times a week.
When he went back to the doctor, his readings were all much improved and he didn’t need to go on medication.
The doctor told him he was his first patient to actually do that!