Shoulder Surgery Recovery: Days 4-6

Day 4: Begin the Belly Massages

I took another short walk with Duke and Bam. Bam helped me get undressed and wrapped in plastic wrap for my first shower. It felt amazing to shower. I like being clean. It was the first time I also saw myself naked since surgery. I feel huge, bloated, and fat. The old eating disorder part of me needs to quiet down.

My neighbors brought us food, which was awesome. I feel bad for Bam doing all the work lately. I’m glad he was able to have someone take care of him just a little bit.

I felt really bloated all day, and 3 tablets of laxative had done nothing. I decided to massage my belly that night (https://www.wikihow.com/Relieve-Constipation-with-Abdominal-Massage), but I went to bed feeling blah. Bam was great; he set up the ice machine and tucked me into bed as usual.

Day 5: First Bowel Movement!

I sat on the toilet with my poop stoop (a little stool I prop my feet on when I need to poop; the squat is best for a great steamy dump) for a while, and I finally got some relief on the toilet. I ended up vomiting right after, which was not fun. I immediately went back to bed because I still felt exhausted. Finally, after waking at noon, I decided to weigh myself again. 107lbs with the sling. The extra surgery weight is slowly coming off. I got on with my day by icing on the couch and answering some messages. I appreciate people thinking about me, but I’m a very introverted person, so answering texts is even more exhausting. Forget phone calls. I haven’t used my phone since the surgery.

Bam was a little more relenting today. I got to put my own berries in my oatmeal and put it in the microwave. All under supervision, with one hand, of course. He emptied the drip tray for the espresso machine, and I was allowed to clean it while he and Duke were at the dog park. He knows the kitchen is my one area I need clean, so he washed a frying pan before leaving. I put away the clean dishes, put the dirty ones in the dish washer, and cleaned up my espresso machine station. I then slept from 2pm to 5pm. Sleep is my number one joy these days.

My stomach did not feel good in the evening, so I did some more gentle massage and drank some hot water (mixed with Hydrant apple cider mix, which is really just a mix of Vitamin C, zinc, and magnesium) and some hot soup (debated the intake of sodium, but it was what my body wanted).

After a day of no oxycodone (made it through with sleep and Tylenol, plus my double dose of aspirin), I took some oxycodone and anti-nausea and went to bed. Bam came in to hook me up to my ice machine.

Day 6: POST-OP VISIT TODAY!

I got up early to sit on the toilet and induce another bowel movement. Yay. Weight is at 108lbs with the sling. Took some aspirin and Tylenol with water. Managed to get out of my pajamas alone (just shorts and a really big t-shirt) and put on some spandex capris and a sports top (spaghetti straps sports bra that is tied into a shirt, so really easy to put on).

Putting on a shirt: bad arm in first, then head, then good arm.

Taking off a shirt: good arm out first, then head, then bad arm.

I’m hoping the visit goes well, and that I can take a longer walk today (and maybe even bike at the gym). I’ve been reading other people’s recovery accounts, and I am a bit jealous of the ones who have been able to bike every day since surgery. I get super sweaty really easily, and I wanted to keep the bandages/sutures dry until today’s visit. I also was in so much pain (or drugged up to the point of just being a zombie) that I don’t think I could have. The two short walks I’ve taken so far have been really slow (if I go too fast, I can feel it jerking my arm, which is unpleasant, and I want my anchors to all heal properly), so I wouldn’t even consider them “workouts,” just movement.

Capital Weather Gang is anticipating a 10/10 spring day today. Let’s hope they’re right!

UPDATE:

I saw Dr. Nagda for the first time since my surgery. It’s been almost a week, and today I’m feeling the best I have so far. I’m trying to really focus on having proper form while sitting/standing (shoulder at the 11 o’clock position, not the 5 o’clock position). Dr. Nagda went over the photos from my surgery and explained what he did, and I got a piece of paper saying what I can do now.

Things I can do now:

1. No need to cover my incisions, even while showering (but no submerging them in water).
2. Can drive an automatic car, as long as I’m not taking narcotic pain medication during the day. Instructions say to hold the wheel at the 6 o’clock position with my surgical arm (out of the sling).
3. Still need to wear the sling for 5 more weeks (except while showering, performing exercises, or driving)—especially while sleeping.
4. Take my arm out of the sling 3-4 times per day for 10-15 minutes at a time to move the elbow, wrist, and forearm (without moving the shoulder).
5. Continue cold therapy (I love my Donjoy Iceman machine—keeping it forever), as needed.

For all you lovers of photos out there, here are images from my surgery! I’m probably gonna botch my summary, but here goes...

You can see my mess of a rotator cuff and lack of labrum. Apparently, my labrum was thin and not really great, so the surgeon rolled up some soft tissue and created a labrum. We’re giving this a bit extra time to heal, so I’m not starting physical therapy until April 30 (Dr. Dan Alcron doesn’t have an opening until May 6th, though, so I will wait). Looking at my rotator cuff, Dr. Nagda was able to see how it looked smooth, so I might just have pretty thin connective tissue (genetics, whooo!). He was able to fix the rotator cuff tear and the Hills Sachs lesion. Since my shoulder capsule is small, he could only fit in 3 anchors/stitches, but it seems to have done the job. He showed the area where he gave me a little more subacromial space too.

Here’s for a more stable, less painful shoulder!