Post-Op Day # 21 - Dr's Appointment X 2 or make that 3!

This morning I had my appointment with Dr Chi to see what he thought about the calf cramp/pain and just to ask a few questions(circulation? how much elevation should I be needing?).


He said it could be a couple things ----could very well be the nerves in my lower leg are all "angry" from surgery and are trying to sort themselves out during the healing process.

OR, it could be a clot.

So to be safe I have an appointment at 4:30Pm for an ultrasound on the left leg to see if there are any clots. If there is clotting then the next step of treatment would be to start taking blood thinners(eg; warfarin).

Anyways fingers crossed, its nothing at all but the nerves trying to heal.

Today my ankle feels good but again, the calf feels tight/sore and the circulation in my foot isnt good. BLA!

Adam took me for a nice walk around the block this morning, the weather is GORGEOUS! ah yes, could it be SPRING?!

I'll come back later to let you know how the DVT ultrasound goes.


OK -- UPDATE as of 10pm
well I swear I just cant get a break, I had a bad feeling about it but yes, there is a fairly big clot in my left calf and now I'm on a course of blood thinners.

We had to drive to the Overlake Hospital in Bellevue(we were Issaquah for the ultrasound) for the consultation(vascular specialist) in regards to the blood thinners, getting the prescriptions etc..

Its so scary to think about all of this

the worst part(for today LOL) was that I'm going to have to give myself injections(Lovenox) for 5 days and I'm a total NEEDLE WUSS!
I thought she was joking at first but nope, she was serious and boy, my tummy started to do flip flops just thinking about it.

I had to give myself an injection while I was there so she knew I could do it ---ugh! I DID IT, I couldn't believe I did it!
I did like she said, pinch some skin(in the belly), wipe it with an alcohol swab, let go, take the safety cap off the syringe then grab the spot that I disinfected and POKE the needle in like a dart!
Then you have to push the plunger all the way down till its empty, pull it out and push it hard so the safety cap pops up. OMG, what an ordeal for me but I was proud of myself for doing it and NOT getting QUEEZY OR PASSING OUT! WOOHOO!

Its Sub-Q but still, it burns so bad, felt like a huge bee sting and you can't touch it the area afterward -- no rubbing to make the pain go away!
I have to alternate which side I poke(morning and night) till I'm done.
I have a nice bruise coming too, she said that would happen. Im going to look like a drug addict! ROFLMAO

The stuff is call Lovenox, 60mgs, I guess its quick to get into your system, that way my body has something to help thin out the blood asap. I'm also on Warfarin 5mg once a day.

this coming week I have to go for a bunch of tests(anticoagulant levels or something) till they know how much I need. Next week I have another ultrasound to see if there's any change in the clot after a weeks worth of the thinners.

there will be lots of follow up appointments and more ultrasounds in a month, then 3months etc...

I had been doing some research on the calf aches/cramps post-op and read about clots, of course I PRAYED that I didn't have them but not such the case.

Thats why I was so concerned and went to the Dr Asap....
Anyways, I'm hoping I will be OK, I will be on this stuff for at least 3-6 months, maybe more depending on what happens with the clot and how my blood is -- they're going to do some other blood work so we can prevent any other clots!!

Wow, I'm exhausted, it was a long day and it's time for bed.

I'm adding a couple pictures of my injection site(bruising) and what the syringes look like. LOL

Thanks for checking up on me