Alligatorob's Diary

[Llama]

Amazing how much the 12 year old granddaughter can lift, she is a strong and helpful kid.

I think it´s great when young girls discover their strength. It´s depressing how many grown women are unable to use the strength they have just because they´re not used to it. And with time of course it gets harder and harder.

 

[misty22]

Happy Easter y'all. I always celebrate by watching Jesus Christ Superstar, one of my favorite scenes:

. Hope no one is offended, none meant.

Yesterday was another day of slow but good recovery, I am getting a bit impatient but that's probably a good sign. Recovery from this one seems slower than my first surgery.

The Dr told me that it was supposed to be less traumatic and at some level maybe it has been but it hurts more. That may have more to do with where the cutting and hacking took place, more nerve endings or something. I have three incisions, one right at the belly button and two more below. As uncomfortable and embarrassing as it was the first was done through my urinary track, with no surface incisions. I am learning more about medicine than I ever wanted to know.

Anyway, less pain every day and more physical activity every day, yesterday I did a lot more work around the house, including more moving and reorganizing of things, again the grandkids were there for the heavy lifting but I still got pretty tired. I also ate well. Grandkids stayed over and were in my computer room last night so am posting this morning.

Hey Misty, good to hear from you! Yes I had hernia surgery, 9 days ago now, and I am recovering, slowly but ok.

I don't think I did, I really did let the grandkids do the heavy lifting, and that is what the Dr tells me would be the worst thing for me. And when I felt tied I just sat or laid down. Amazing how much the 12 year old granddaughter can lift, she is a strong and helpful kid.

I'm so glad you're doing better each day. Take it easy for a bit.

 

[Cate]

I was always a really strong kid & used to help my mum all the time when something needed opening or moving. It's only the last 5 years or so that I know I have lost a lot of my strength. I'm glad you are being careful, even though it is frustrating. Good for you, Rob. Undoing the surgeon's work by being impatient would not be smart & I know you are.

 

[alligatorob]

Today was a little slide back, I started trying to do more work around the house, I have a lot to catch up on, but just got too tired to continue. Maybe I pushed the recovery thing a bit too hard the last few days... I did get some brocolli planted, my first veggies of the year. It really is too early, they may well freeze, but broccoli can take some freezing and it feels good to get the garden started. I ate well, and other than tired I did not feel bad, so all is not lost.

I think it´s great when young girls discover their strength. It´s depressing how many grown women are unable to use the strength they have just because they´re not used to it. And with time of course it gets harder and harder.

Yes, I think it is interesting. Growing up in the old conservative bible belt south I learned a pretty traditional view of what women could (or should) do and not do. My mother however had a more progressive view and often tried to set me strait. Not long after I got to adulthood big changes came and women were getting into more and more career fields and I got to learn through exposure. When I started engineering school there were no women's bathrooms in the engineering building, none, but lots of men's. That changed pretty quickly. I have learned that women may not be identical to men, but they can do pretty much anything we can do. Upper body strength may average a bit less than ours, but I know physically fit women can outlift most men, only at the extreme upper end is there any real difference. On the other hand I think that women may on average have more stamina at some things than we do. And today there are as many women's and men's bathrooms in the engineering building, and they get used just as much! Certainly is best if men and women have equal chances to achieve, in all ways. Not just morally, but economically, we are all better off if people are all allowed to do what they do best.

I'm so glad you're doing better each day. Take it easy for a bit.

Thanks Misty, and this afternoon and evening I did just that, took it pretty easy!

Undoing the surgeon's work by being impatient would not be smart

That is for sure, I don't want to have any of this redone!!

 

[Llama]

Not just morally, but economically, we are all better off if people are all allowed to do what they do best.

Hear hear! Good thing your mom unwittingly prepared you for the future.

 

[Trusylver]

A lot of people struggle to adapt to social change, not just men, and not just gender related, all generations make assumptions about generations that are not their own, like Gen Z assuming Boomer know nothing about tech. As a Gen X I sit and watch the mud slinging of millennials and Gen Z towards Boomers, and Boomers putting down the youngsters at every opportunity.

 

[alligatorob]

A lot of people struggle to adapt to social change, not just men, and not just gender related, all generations make assumptions about generations that are not their own, like Gen Z assuming Boomer know nothing about tech. As a Gen X I sit and watch the mud slinging of millennials and Gen Z towards Boomers, and Boomers putting down the youngsters at every opportunity.

That is very true, I think it is human nature for the younger generations to want to break loose and take charge, and the older one to slow the process. Result is the usually unfounded sniping...

“Young people are high-minded because they have not yet been humbled by life, nor have they experienced the force of circumstances.…
They think they know everything, and are always quite sure about it.” Aristotle, 4th Century BC

Some things never change...

One thing I like about this forum is that our bond is a shared problem(s) and not being able to see each other our first impressions have nothing to do with age. It has helped me understand how easy it can be to talk at an equal level with people of almost any age, not so easy when meeting people face to face. We do over time learn each other's ages, but not until after the first impressions are past.

 

[Cate]

One thing I like about this forum is that our bond is a shared problem(s) and not being able to see each other our first impressions have nothing to do with age. It has helped me understand how easy it can be to talk at an equal level with people of almost any age, not so easy when meeting people face to face. We do over time learn each other's ages, but not until after the first impressions are past.

That is so true! If only people of all ages could see past appearances & stop making value judgements & generalisations. In a perfect world. Hope you had a lovely Easter, Rob.

 

[alligatorob]

Another day of slow recovery, too drained to exercise, but I stayed on calorie track and logged. I think the pain is causing at least some of the fatigue and exhaustion, just a guess. The pain is not getting worse, only getting better very slowly, and after a while that is really tiring me out... I quit taking pain pills a week ago. I hate the feeling I get from the pills, and I don't think that at this point they would make me feel any better. For me pain pills don't really take the pain away, they just make me high so that I don't care... Anyway, enough about that.

I have been eating more fruit and veggies, and the result is more carbs, not sure that is a bad thing. And now 3 or 4 days back on dairy things doesn't feel wrong either.

Hear hear! Good thing your mom unwittingly prepared you for the future.

Yes, my mother was a unique woman. Very progressive and liberal at heart, but able to live and get along with her non-progressive friends and family quite well. She was very subtle about it, but had at least a little good influence on a lot of people. I learned a lot from her, wish it had been more!

If only people of all ages could see past appearances & stop making value judgements & generalisations.

So hard to do, I find myself guilty of it all the time. I do think recognizing it and working on the problem is about the best we can do...

 

[Cate]

Rob, I don't see anything wrong with taking plain old paracetamol for pain, when you need it. I steer clear of anything else. There are so many people addicted to opioids prescribed after operations that you do well to be wary of them.
Eating more veggies & fruit must feel good. I couldn't live without them. Your Mum sounds like a really good person. She has passed a lot of herself on in you. Please don't put yourself down. I also think that I am guilty of making generalisations & judgements, but these days I pull myself up on them quickly.
Keep taking good care of yourself. It sounds like you are slowly coming right.

 

[Emilyrose]

Rob, I love Jesus Christ Superstar, 'Gethsemane' and 'Everything's Alright' are my absolute faves.

Sorry to hear the recovery from the hernia operation is taking some time. I'm glad that the pain is easing slightly day by day. Hopefully this is your last hospital visit for a long, long time!

 

[alligatorob]

Another lost day, felt real tired, no exercise. But calories were alright and I logged. Still think I am slowly feeling better, very slowly...

I have made a bit of a discovery, I really like powdered nut butter, almond and today I tried peanut. Similar flavor to the real butter but with a whole lot less calories. A teaspoon of regular nut butter has around 100 calories, a teaspoon of the powder around 25.

Rob, I don't see anything wrong with taking plain old paracetamol for pain, when you need it. I steer clear of anything else. There are so many people addicted to opioids prescribed after operations that you do well to be wary of them.
Eating more veggies & fruit must feel good. I couldn't live without them. Your Mum sounds like a really good person. She has passed a lot of herself on in you. Please don't put yourself down. I also think that I am guilty of making generalisations & judgements, but these days I pull myself up on them quickly.
Keep taking good care of yourself. It sounds like you are slowly coming right.

"Thanks Cate, it feels good to think I have some of my mother's character. Hard to impossible not to have prejudices, what matters is what we do about them. Recognizing them is the first step.

Rob, I love Jesus Christ Superstar, 'Gethsemane' and 'Everything's Alright' are my absolute faves.

I like both also, but Gethsemane is probably my favorite. Thanks for the visit Emily, always good to hear from you.

 

[alligatorob]

Still not exercising, but I am getting closer. On track with calories and logged so not a bad day. I am begining to wonder if I am eating too many calories now, particularly without exercise. Will keep an eye on my weight to see.

 

[Llama]

If you're introducing more carbs into your diet again that should push the scales up, right?

 

[alligatorob]

Another day without exercise, but I see the Dr tomorrow morning, a clean bill of health may help motivate me to start doing at least something. I spoke with an old friend today, he had similar hernia surgery a few years back and he told me it too him 3 or 4 weeks to get back on his feet, so maybe I am not in such bad shape. It was interesting he is about my height and a very active person, a hiker and backpacker, someone I have always considered to be in tip top shape. He told me he weighs about 170 lbs, 20 lbs more than I! I was shocked.

If you're introducing more carbs into your diet again that should push the scales up, right?

I suppose that is true, as I said I will try to be patient and see what happens.

 

[alligatorob]

Not a bad day, went to the Dr and got the ok to start some light exercise. So I did a couple of hours of much needed yardwork. Need to catch up on that, not long to time to plant the veggies now.

Had an interesting talk with the Dr. He told me the hernias were worse and took a lot more repair than he had anticipated. That is why I am taking longer to recover than he originally lead me to believe it would take. He said the biggest one was obviously quite old with lots of scar tissue, he said I have probably been feeling pain from it for 30+ years. And I think he is right. I have had belly pains for a long time that I just wrote off to gas and/or other digestion issues. It occurred to me that I have not felt that pain at all since the surgery, it has been kind of masked by the surgical trauma and resulting pain, but now I know the old pain is gone. And the new ones are slowly getting better and won't last. Kind of funny what I learned to live with and just attribute to being fat and eating poorly...

 

[Llama]

I wish doctors would make a habit of telling people these things right away. Cate not knowing about being intubated and you not knowing the surgery ended up more complicated than expected is very much in line with many of my patients - especially after shoulder surgery - being upset or even panicked because of pain or restrictions that are 100% normal at that point in recovery. And I'm sure some of them just weren't listening beforehand but it can't be all. If you're planning to do a type of surgery where it typically takes 6 months until someone is able to operate heavy equipment again: tell them! Sorry, rant over.

 

[alligatorob]

Not a bad day, I did a lot of yardwork and am exhausted tonight. My belly hurts a little, but not much. I was careful not to do any heavy lifting, not very heavy anyway. Worked on getting the gravel drive back into condition, cut some weed trees, prepared the garden for veggies (not done, but started), and moved the compost pile. My calorie count was good and I logged, as I said not a bad day. Feels good to be getting active again, even if not formal exercise.

I wish doctors would make a habit of telling people these things right away.

So do I, my doctor left the hospital before I woke after surgery so this was the first time I had a chance to talk with him. I wish he had called, it would have better helped me understand what I was feeling. His office, a med tech I guess, did call a couple of times to ask how I was doing, but she knew nothing of my situation. Just looking for bad signs I guess... But in the end all is well, or getting that way slowly...

 

[Llama]

Reminds me of my uncle who after breaking his neck in an accident years ago was in a lot of pain when I came to visit. Turned out he'd been told not to lift anything heavy but the doctors hadn't specified how much that was. He felt very virtuous for filling up the buckets of feed and water for his horses only halfway. While the doctor would have meant a max of 1-2 kg (if my neurosurgery internship was anything to go by). Again: communication can make such a big difference. The thought of my uncle carrying two big buckets while wearing a halo frame still makes me scream though

 

[alligatorob]

Today was just ok, two steps forward and one back I guess. Did not feel up to doing any yardwork or exercise, but otherwise am fine. Its just a slow process... Had a birthday party this afternoon for a couple of the grandkids with close together April birthdays. I took the smallest piece of birthday cake I could cut.
LaMa, that's funny. At least my doctor got that one right, can't lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk.