Pt went well on Wednesday …. was able to get a few more degrees of ROM. I was there for almost two hours, but I had a good workout.
The dr. appt. this morning did not go as I had hoped. I don’t have much tolerance or patience for arrogance, second guessing, and the “everything you have done has been wrong” attitude at this point in a long medical journey. There was a lot of all of that today & I left more frustrated and upset. I had 10 vials of blood drawn and it will be three weeks before we know anything more or have reports back. We will see what the reports show, but I am not convinced this is the right doctor. It is going to take a lot for me to want to work w/him.
Brought lots of work home tonight, because I was out of the office for so long today ….. tomorrow is a new day with no appointments. Thank goodness!
Je
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Getting a 2nd opinion re: Skin
We made a little progress today in getting another opinion regarding the skin situation. I e-mailed my Chicago orthopod over the weekend & asked her if she ever had a patient with sutures that did not dissolve & ultimately caused issues. She wrote back on Monday and said that she had not had a patient w/my situation (no surprise there), but she suggested that I find a dermatologist that deals with something called, immune modulating drugs. I don’t know enough about immune modulating drugs yet, but I need to at least look at the option. We have not tried this yet.
I checked w/my dermo. dr. this am & she does not do anything w/this type of drug, so I asked for a referral to the best dr. in STL that does deal w/this treatment option. After much back & forth, I got the name of a doctor in STL. I quickly called his office and managed to get an appt. for this Thursday at 10:30am – someone had just canceled before I called. Definitely God working, as getting an appt. w/a specialist in less than two days never happens.
This new doctor specializes in “complex skin manifestations” …. I’d say I qualify! He has credentials that go on and on & has led over 60 clinical trials for different skin conditions. I also made an appt. w/the wife of my hip surgeon (for 10/10), as she is a dermatologist, too & I’ve been to her before. I may not need to see her, but I made that appt., before I heard back on the referral information.
I’ve gone the past four nights without taking the Rx sleep medication, so maybe we are turning the corner on this. We are taking new ROM measurements tomorrow afternoon at pt. The foot pain seems to be slowly improving with the pt, so I think it is helping.
Will keep you posted, but at least the appt. might lead to a new treatment idea or hope for improvement …. put me on your prayer list for 10:30am on Thursday!
Grateful for the ease in scheduling today! Off to fill out medical paperwork ….
Love,
je
I checked w/my dermo. dr. this am & she does not do anything w/this type of drug, so I asked for a referral to the best dr. in STL that does deal w/this treatment option. After much back & forth, I got the name of a doctor in STL. I quickly called his office and managed to get an appt. for this Thursday at 10:30am – someone had just canceled before I called. Definitely God working, as getting an appt. w/a specialist in less than two days never happens.
This new doctor specializes in “complex skin manifestations” …. I’d say I qualify! He has credentials that go on and on & has led over 60 clinical trials for different skin conditions. I also made an appt. w/the wife of my hip surgeon (for 10/10), as she is a dermatologist, too & I’ve been to her before. I may not need to see her, but I made that appt., before I heard back on the referral information.
I’ve gone the past four nights without taking the Rx sleep medication, so maybe we are turning the corner on this. We are taking new ROM measurements tomorrow afternoon at pt. The foot pain seems to be slowly improving with the pt, so I think it is helping.
Will keep you posted, but at least the appt. might lead to a new treatment idea or hope for improvement …. put me on your prayer list for 10:30am on Thursday!
Grateful for the ease in scheduling today! Off to fill out medical paperwork ….
Love,
je
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Pt and Skin update ....
Today was my 3rd pt appt., since we did the initial evaluation on September 10th. I feel like we are working harder than we’ve ever worked before on regaining strength, getting more movement in the foot, and improving hip strength. My appt. today was from 4:15-6:15pm …. my therapist definitely spent more time than usual. He does a lot of manual movement, which is more advanced than most physical therapy offices. I was exhausted when I left the session today! Tonight the foot is sore, but that is no surprise.
We are making a little progress w/pt …. One ROM measurement was -3 degrees when we began and today it was +4 degrees. At least we are taking baby steps in the right direction. My next session is on Friday of this week. I feel very blessed that the pt office is literally right next door to my office, so I can leave at 4:13 for a 4:15 appointment ….. this has been a big help convenience wise.
As for the skin – nothing is happening on that front. The referral from my current dermo. dr. is someone that I have already seen & he was not helpful, so that is not going anywhere. I checked on scheduling with several others and the wait was mid-November/early December for an appt. Because I’d be a “new patient,” I cannot slip into a cancellation spot as easily. If I find a dr. that I want to see that is in the same practice as someone else I’ve already seen, it is hard to switch over to the new person – medical politics.
The left leg looks a tad better, but nothing has totally cleared up or disappeared. The right (operative side) leg and foot are still the same as they were 10-12 weeks ago. I’ve had the “you just have to live w/it” attitude this week which is not right, but some weeks I reach the point of growing weary & get tired of fighting for answers. It has to be something that I’m still exposed to …. & I feel like it is more than Staph or lanoline. Haven’t given up on getting another opinion, but I don’t have anything else scheduled yet . . . . locating someone that is “top notch” is hard. I may have some time on Friday afternoon to make some more calls …. half the battle is knowing who would be best to see. In getting another opinion, you always run the risk that he/she will say the same thing that I’ve heard before . . . which is frustrating beyond belief. I contemplated writing my Chicago dr. & asking her if she has had anyone with a suture allergy before & what did they do.
I’ve been crazy busy at work last week and this week (will go on until mid-Oct) …. have been working 10-12 hr. days & have had lunch at my desk. Tonight I went back to the office after pt. I’ve had multiple “mini-crisis” situations at work every day for the past week, which has made it hard to get actual work done. I am already over my student goal for the year (10,000 kids) & it is only September … am running out of days to schedule students. It is a bittersweet problem!
I need to scoot to bed …. long day. Keep up the prayers! Thankful for the +4 new degrees of motion today … this is big for me with only 3 pt sessions.
je
We are making a little progress w/pt …. One ROM measurement was -3 degrees when we began and today it was +4 degrees. At least we are taking baby steps in the right direction. My next session is on Friday of this week. I feel very blessed that the pt office is literally right next door to my office, so I can leave at 4:13 for a 4:15 appointment ….. this has been a big help convenience wise.
As for the skin – nothing is happening on that front. The referral from my current dermo. dr. is someone that I have already seen & he was not helpful, so that is not going anywhere. I checked on scheduling with several others and the wait was mid-November/early December for an appt. Because I’d be a “new patient,” I cannot slip into a cancellation spot as easily. If I find a dr. that I want to see that is in the same practice as someone else I’ve already seen, it is hard to switch over to the new person – medical politics.
The left leg looks a tad better, but nothing has totally cleared up or disappeared. The right (operative side) leg and foot are still the same as they were 10-12 weeks ago. I’ve had the “you just have to live w/it” attitude this week which is not right, but some weeks I reach the point of growing weary & get tired of fighting for answers. It has to be something that I’m still exposed to …. & I feel like it is more than Staph or lanoline. Haven’t given up on getting another opinion, but I don’t have anything else scheduled yet . . . . locating someone that is “top notch” is hard. I may have some time on Friday afternoon to make some more calls …. half the battle is knowing who would be best to see. In getting another opinion, you always run the risk that he/she will say the same thing that I’ve heard before . . . which is frustrating beyond belief. I contemplated writing my Chicago dr. & asking her if she has had anyone with a suture allergy before & what did they do.
I’ve been crazy busy at work last week and this week (will go on until mid-Oct) …. have been working 10-12 hr. days & have had lunch at my desk. Tonight I went back to the office after pt. I’ve had multiple “mini-crisis” situations at work every day for the past week, which has made it hard to get actual work done. I am already over my student goal for the year (10,000 kids) & it is only September … am running out of days to schedule students. It is a bittersweet problem!
I need to scoot to bed …. long day. Keep up the prayers! Thankful for the +4 new degrees of motion today … this is big for me with only 3 pt sessions.
je
Pt and Skin update ....
Today was my 3rd pt appt., since we did the initial evaluation on September 10th. I feel like we are working harder than we’ve ever worked before on regaining strength, getting more movement in the foot, and improving hip strength. My appt. today was from 4:15-6:15pm …. my therapist definitely spent more time than usual. He does a lot of manual movement, which is more advanced than most physical therapy offices. I was exhausted when I left the session today! Tonight the foot is sore, but that is no surprise.
We are making a little progress w/pt …. One ROM measurement was -3 degrees when we began and today it was +4 degrees. At least we are taking baby steps in the right direction. My next session is on Friday of this week. I feel very blessed that the pt office is literally right next door to my office, so I can leave at 4:13 for a 4:15 appointment ….. this has been a big help convenience wise.
As for the skin – nothing is happening on that front. The referral from my current dermo. dr. is someone that I have already seen & he was not helpful, so that is not going anywhere. I checked on scheduling with several others and the wait was mid-November/early December for an appt. Because I’d be a “new patient,” I cannot slip into a cancellation spot as easily. If I find a dr. that I want to see that is in the same practice as someone else I’ve already seen, it is hard to switch over to the new person – medical politics.
The left leg looks a tad better, but nothing has totally cleared up or disappeared. The right (operative side) leg and foot are still the same as they were 10-12 weeks ago. I’ve had the “you just have to live w/it” attitude this week which is not right, but some weeks I reach the point of growing weary & get tired of fighting for answers. It has to be something that I’m still exposed to …. & I feel like it is more than Staph or lanoline. Haven’t given up on getting another opinion, but I don’t have anything else scheduled yet . . . . locating someone that is “top notch” is hard. I may have some time on Friday afternoon to make some more calls …. half the battle is knowing who would be best to see. In getting another opinion, you always run the risk that he/she will say the same thing that I’ve heard before . . . which is frustrating beyond belief. I contemplated writing my Chicago dr. & asking her if she has had anyone with a suture allergy before & what did they do.
I’ve been crazy busy at work last week and this week (will go on until mid-Oct) …. have been working 10-12 hr. days & have had lunch at my desk. Tonight I went back to the office after pt. I’ve had multiple “mini-crisis” situations at work every day for the past week, which has made it hard to get actual work done. I am already over my student goal for the year (10,000 kids) & it is only September … am running out of days to schedule students. It is a bittersweet problem!
I need to scoot to bed …. long day. Keep up the prayers! Thankful for the +4 new degrees of motion today … this is big for me with only 3 pt sessions.
je
We are making a little progress w/pt …. One ROM measurement was -3 degrees when we began and today it was +4 degrees. At least we are taking baby steps in the right direction. My next session is on Friday of this week. I feel very blessed that the pt office is literally right next door to my office, so I can leave at 4:13 for a 4:15 appointment ….. this has been a big help convenience wise.
As for the skin – nothing is happening on that front. The referral from my current dermo. dr. is someone that I have already seen & he was not helpful, so that is not going anywhere. I checked on scheduling with several others and the wait was mid-November/early December for an appt. Because I’d be a “new patient,” I cannot slip into a cancellation spot as easily. If I find a dr. that I want to see that is in the same practice as someone else I’ve already seen, it is hard to switch over to the new person – medical politics.
The left leg looks a tad better, but nothing has totally cleared up or disappeared. The right (operative side) leg and foot are still the same as they were 10-12 weeks ago. I’ve had the “you just have to live w/it” attitude this week which is not right, but some weeks I reach the point of growing weary & get tired of fighting for answers. It has to be something that I’m still exposed to …. & I feel like it is more than Staph or lanoline. Haven’t given up on getting another opinion, but I don’t have anything else scheduled yet . . . . locating someone that is “top notch” is hard. I may have some time on Friday afternoon to make some more calls …. half the battle is knowing who would be best to see. In getting another opinion, you always run the risk that he/she will say the same thing that I’ve heard before . . . which is frustrating beyond belief. I contemplated writing my Chicago dr. & asking her if she has had anyone with a suture allergy before & what did they do.
I’ve been crazy busy at work last week and this week (will go on until mid-Oct) …. have been working 10-12 hr. days & have had lunch at my desk. Tonight I went back to the office after pt. I’ve had multiple “mini-crisis” situations at work every day for the past week, which has made it hard to get actual work done. I am already over my student goal for the year (10,000 kids) & it is only September … am running out of days to schedule students. It is a bittersweet problem!
I need to scoot to bed …. long day. Keep up the prayers! Thankful for the +4 new degrees of motion today … this is big for me with only 3 pt sessions.
je
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Dermatologist Appt. Follow-Up .....
The dermatologist appt. today was had mixed results ….
- cream on the right leg (bad foot) is totally not working.
- cream on the left leg is working minimally.
- continue on w/the antibiotic for another 4 weeks.
- begin using the cream that we’ve used on the left leg, now on the right leg (bad foot).
- schedule follow-up appt. for four weeks
- stop shaving
- dermatologist feels certain that it is all caused by an allergic reaction to un-dissolved sutures in the right foot.
The cream that we’ve been trying on the left leg has caused the skin to thin pretty bad, so we have to stop using it on the left leg. She was not happy about this & now you can see veins! I did not totally understand the big deal, but she was alarmed. She felt the left leg skin is now paper thin, which is not good. I think the right leg/foot already has thin skin & now we are using the cream that will likely cause it to become thinner.
She prescribed some other foam Rx medication to use on the left leg. She believes the antibiotic is helping the most. No internal sutures anywhere (even hip) would be best for the future, but that is not realistic.
As for why we see the skin issues on the opposite leg, if it is an allergic reaction … her response was that sometimes the body mirrors a problem, so if it started on the right leg (which did happen), it is not uncommon for it to spread the same way to the left leg. Hard to imagine, but this is what I’m told!
She felt strongly that I’ve now consumed enough antibiotic that the chance of the Staph infection still being present, does not exist. I am still fairly fearful that when we stop the antibiotic (in another 4 weeks), it will get worse ….. this is what happened a while back.
I need to think more on getting another opinion …. probably not a bad idea. It seemed easy today for her to recommend to generally keep doing what we are doing.
Need to get onto some office work that I brought home. Tomorrow afternoon is my 2nd pt appointment. Thanks for continuing to pray!
je
- cream on the right leg (bad foot) is totally not working.
- cream on the left leg is working minimally.
- continue on w/the antibiotic for another 4 weeks.
- begin using the cream that we’ve used on the left leg, now on the right leg (bad foot).
- schedule follow-up appt. for four weeks
- stop shaving
- dermatologist feels certain that it is all caused by an allergic reaction to un-dissolved sutures in the right foot.
The cream that we’ve been trying on the left leg has caused the skin to thin pretty bad, so we have to stop using it on the left leg. She was not happy about this & now you can see veins! I did not totally understand the big deal, but she was alarmed. She felt the left leg skin is now paper thin, which is not good. I think the right leg/foot already has thin skin & now we are using the cream that will likely cause it to become thinner.
She prescribed some other foam Rx medication to use on the left leg. She believes the antibiotic is helping the most. No internal sutures anywhere (even hip) would be best for the future, but that is not realistic.
As for why we see the skin issues on the opposite leg, if it is an allergic reaction … her response was that sometimes the body mirrors a problem, so if it started on the right leg (which did happen), it is not uncommon for it to spread the same way to the left leg. Hard to imagine, but this is what I’m told!
She felt strongly that I’ve now consumed enough antibiotic that the chance of the Staph infection still being present, does not exist. I am still fairly fearful that when we stop the antibiotic (in another 4 weeks), it will get worse ….. this is what happened a while back.
I need to think more on getting another opinion …. probably not a bad idea. It seemed easy today for her to recommend to generally keep doing what we are doing.
Need to get onto some office work that I brought home. Tomorrow afternoon is my 2nd pt appointment. Thanks for continuing to pray!
je
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Talked with Dallas doctor today ...
Earlier this week, I decided that the ongoing foot pain was enough and that it was getting harder to ignore or “live with it.” I struggled to walk one time around Sams with my boss on Tuesday, so that was the last straw. I sent a fax to Dallas and Dr. C’s PA called me back this morning.
We did the best we could on the phone, but it is never quite the same as meeting in person. She had spoken w/Dr. C, he asked a few questions, so she got my responses, went and talked with him and then came back and conferred with me. I am very thankful that they are willing to try to work through it via the phone.
The bottom line is that Dr. C thinks my Achilles tendon is weak and is “overloaded” when I stand/walk. He asked if I had previously had the Achilles tendon lengthened, but I had not. He doesn’t think this hinges on the forefoot tendon lengthening. His PA asked me if I could stand on my tip toes on that foot …. I tried it and could not. She said that is a classic sign that something is not right with the Achilles tendon. We are hoping that it is just a weakness/strength issue and not something more.
Before I jump on a plane & rush anything, we both agreed that pt is worth trying to see if we can get the Achilles tendon stronger. Amazingly, we have never done much in pt with the Achilles tendon before. We didn’t mention anything surgically, as I don’t even want to discuss that at this point. So, we are starting pt tomorrow (Friday) at 4:20pm. I wasn’t able to get any appointments for next week, but hopefully that will change after the initial meeting tomorrow. Dr. C didn’t think a cortisone shot was advisable. His PA said that I know where to find them in Dallas, if I need to see him.
After the May surgery, we didn’t do pt & in hindsight I am guessing that the Achilles tendon was weaker than anyone realized. This is one of the downfalls of doing medical care out-of-town & not being able to do post-op care with the same doctor.
Tuesday afternoon is my follow-up appt. w/the dermatologist. I anticipate her referring me to another doctor, but we’ll see what happens there. I am going to push to have the blood work repeated to see where we are w/the infection numbers.
Thanks for praying this week. I feel like we made some progress today, which is a good feeling.
Hugs,
je
We did the best we could on the phone, but it is never quite the same as meeting in person. She had spoken w/Dr. C, he asked a few questions, so she got my responses, went and talked with him and then came back and conferred with me. I am very thankful that they are willing to try to work through it via the phone.
The bottom line is that Dr. C thinks my Achilles tendon is weak and is “overloaded” when I stand/walk. He asked if I had previously had the Achilles tendon lengthened, but I had not. He doesn’t think this hinges on the forefoot tendon lengthening. His PA asked me if I could stand on my tip toes on that foot …. I tried it and could not. She said that is a classic sign that something is not right with the Achilles tendon. We are hoping that it is just a weakness/strength issue and not something more.
Before I jump on a plane & rush anything, we both agreed that pt is worth trying to see if we can get the Achilles tendon stronger. Amazingly, we have never done much in pt with the Achilles tendon before. We didn’t mention anything surgically, as I don’t even want to discuss that at this point. So, we are starting pt tomorrow (Friday) at 4:20pm. I wasn’t able to get any appointments for next week, but hopefully that will change after the initial meeting tomorrow. Dr. C didn’t think a cortisone shot was advisable. His PA said that I know where to find them in Dallas, if I need to see him.
After the May surgery, we didn’t do pt & in hindsight I am guessing that the Achilles tendon was weaker than anyone realized. This is one of the downfalls of doing medical care out-of-town & not being able to do post-op care with the same doctor.
Tuesday afternoon is my follow-up appt. w/the dermatologist. I anticipate her referring me to another doctor, but we’ll see what happens there. I am going to push to have the blood work repeated to see where we are w/the infection numbers.
Thanks for praying this week. I feel like we made some progress today, which is a good feeling.
Hugs,
je
Monday, September 6, 2010
All is about the same ....
I am doing okay .... it was nice to have a longer weekend. Not much progress or new news on the leg spots or foot pain issue. The sores/rash on one leg might be a bit better, but it is not substantial enough that I can tell you we've solved it. We are doing about three "treatment things" simultanelously, so it is hard to tell what is helping. I am making myself do the protein/vitamin shakes. The incision lines continue to itch - much more than normal. There are no areas that are totally clear, so we have a ways to go yet. This week coming up will be the last week on the antibiotic. After I went off the antibiotic on the first round, it got significantly worse.
I tried to do some mild exercise this weekend, but wasn't successful. I stopped trying .... I am fairly sure that the foot pain is going to be a bigger issue in about three weeks when I need to be on my feet the majority of the day. For now, I am getting by with trying to ignore the problem. If I didn't know what how great it felt at one time, most would probably say that what I have now is "as good as it will get." Hopefully it will be better some day ... keep the faith.
je
I tried to do some mild exercise this weekend, but wasn't successful. I stopped trying .... I am fairly sure that the foot pain is going to be a bigger issue in about three weeks when I need to be on my feet the majority of the day. For now, I am getting by with trying to ignore the problem. If I didn't know what how great it felt at one time, most would probably say that what I have now is "as good as it will get." Hopefully it will be better some day ... keep the faith.
je
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