I planned on writing this as the kids were going back to school. Unfortunately, Cathy and I have been so hard at work on our back deck, that we haven’t had many nights to do anything else. It’s has also been dry and mild here in Atlantic Canada so we’ve been working outside every night. Tonight is a rainy night, so I’ve got a few minutes for a quick post.
I wanted to document some of the crazy stats involved in post operative care and also some of the things I was able to get out and do while recovering.
Post Op Care
Most of my summer was spent on my back… and no, not in a good way. I’ve mentioned in previous posts how time consuming the care is but I thought it might be fun(?) to calculate how much actual time each of the steps take. These stats are since my surgery date to now (4 months post-op):
- Prep and Clean-up = 4248 minutes = 71 hours = 3 days
- Dilation time = 10974 minutes = 183 hours = 7 1/2 days
- Sitz Baths and showers = 2684 minutes = 44 1/2 hours = ~2 days
- Douche = 708 minutes = 12 hours = 1/2 day
- Airing out/drying = 9585 minutes = 160 hours = 6 1/2 days
That’s nearly 3 weeks out of the past 4 months making sure that things are staying healthy and healing well.
Recovery Time Activities
I spent a lot of my recovery time watching shows on streaming services. Some of the series that I’ve gone through since my surgery include:
- Succession
- Ted Lasso (for the 3rd time)
- Wednesday
- Emily in Paris
- 3 Body Problem
- Land of Women
- Orange is the New Black (nearly finished)
This is on top of watching nearly every Blue Jays game (I’m a huge baseball fan) and the normal shows that Cathy and I watch together such as Amazing Race, Masterchef, Bridgerton, and a few others.
Some of my time was spent on gaming. I was surprised that I really didn’t want to spend my time on video games though. That said, I did get through a season in MLB the Show and I got pretty far into Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom but I don’t see me going back to either of them any time soon.
I also got out for daily walks to get some exercise and help with the recovery process. You can see that I took it easy in month 1 but I really started moving in month 2. By August, I was getting back to work so that cut into my exercise time but I targeted about 45 minutes of walking per day.
- June: 136,000 steps – 5 hours of walking
- July: 277,600 steps – 22 hrs of walking
- August: 210,600 steps – 10.5 hrs of walking
- September (so far): 223,000 steps – 14.5 hrs of walking
Finally Getting Out of the House
June really was a write-off and July took a while to get going in terms of activities. It wasn’t until the end of July that I felt good enough to go out and enjoy the summer. Usually during the summer months we will go on day trips as a family. Usually, it will be a hike, or an overnight camping adventure, but that was really out of the question for most of the summer. We did eventually get out to the beach as a family which seemed like a good compromise. I wasn’t able to get into the water yet for fear of infection, but as it turns out, neither was anyone else as the water quality at the beach tested poorly the day before and swimming wasn’t recommended.
We made the most of it though. The boys got in up to their necks, and Cathy and I did some wading up to our knees. Colin and I tried to make sand castles like we did when he was little. We also just relaxed by tanning and reading our books. And of course, when in the Shediac area, we had to get some lobsters to take home and eat for supper.
After the 2 month mark, I was a little more adventurous and Cathy, Nathan, and I enjoyed an outdoor concert festival on the August long weekend. We watched Devon Cole, Colony House, and Tokyo Police Club before getting really loud and crazy for Our Lady Peace. It was a great night for Cathy and I to get out and bump into people we know and let loose a little. My voice was completely messed up the next day. Nathan went to all 3 nights of the festival with his friends so he was really sore by the end of it.
Also in August, Cathy and I participated in our first Pride Parade. I was surprised how much I enjoyed the walk. We were joined by a handful of family and a few friends from work. We walked with my work group who supplied shirts and flags for everyone. As I’ve mentioned before, my work has been extremely supportive and it showed with the large group that came in support of the Pride Parade.
Finishing August, we celebrated Nathan’s 19th birthday. In this part of Canada, he can now order alcohol at restaurants and buy it on his own everywhere else (or go and get something for Cathy and I when we don’t feel like going out). We then moved him into his first apartment to start his 2nd year of university. I had healed enough that I was able to help lift and carry some of the heavier items.
Through it all, I still managed to keep up with my self care. Overall, I’m very happy with the way things have healed up and I’m essentially able to do anything that I would have been able to do before the surgery. Sure, my surgery made the summer a bit of a bust, but we still tried to make the most of it.