Thursday, February 28, 2013

Thursday

Today I finished the Being Human series that was on Netflix and read. I am hoping to finish my book soon. My grandma called and wanted to know who to make the check out to so no one would put flamingoes in her yard. Haha! She is in another state, but I guess she wanted to donate. Isn't that sweet? I love her!!

Dad came and got me after school for some PT. I did the arm bike, sitting on the ball and doing lat pulls, and wall push-ups. This time we got pictures! I also practiced "getting into" a 15 passenger van. Well, we set up something that was supposed to simulate getting into the van. Dad thinks I will have no problems, but I have my reservations. It's possible that I pulled something in my "good" leg... I sure hope not. Ugh!

When we got home, I read some more. Mom made cheese fondue and ravioli for dinner- yum!! Fondue is so fun!

I found out today that my prosthetist has partnered with someone that does the patient care part of the business. This is great because now he can make my leg when we get to that point!! Yay! I'll have to break up with my other company I guess. Oh well, I only chose them because of the guy that came and talked to me and he has now changed companies.

Tomorrow I will attend a 30 Hour Famine with my Youth until Saturday night. I probably won't write until I'm done.

And that's life...




Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Wound Care

I started wound care today. For you nursey-type people, here is my new regimen: Prisma (stays for a week), Aquacell AG, Mepilex, and stretchy sock thing to be changed every other day. My ortho doesn't want any "gunk" in my wound, but they didn't really put any in there so I hope he won't be mad...

After wound care, I went to Youth. I took my neighbor girl with me again (she went to wound care, too)- I think she really likes it!! We stuffed Easter eggs for the children and the egg hunt. We have a WHOLE lot and will probably do this for a few weeks. I really liked it because I got to talk to the kids while they worked. We don't always have "chill" nights and I enjoy them. The ride there and back was fun with my neighbor- she's funny and laughs at all our jokes.

When we got home, a sweet friend of mine came over and brought me some groceries and such. Apparently she is extreme couponing and has lots of extraneous items; she brought me some awesome stuff!! I think I'm going to help her cut coupons and go shopping- how fun would that be since I love it so much?! Yay!!

I watched some Being Human and Whitney today. I also read some. I need to finish the book I'm currently reading so I can start the one for my book club- they're having sushi... I mean come on!! Maybe I'll do just that tomorrow. We'll see!

And that's life...



Tuesday, February 26, 2013

You will NEVER guess what I did!

I deleted my Facebook app somehow on Friday. I think it was updating when I restarted my phone and it disappeared. However, the App Store thought it was still on my phone, so I couldn't re-download it. Weird. I tried to get it back Sunday night, but couldn't. Somehow I got it back this morning!! Woohoo! I hate checking FB on Safari. Ugh. Pretty good start to the day...

Then, I got up and got ready and watched some Netflix (Being Human). I am really liking this show! Ha!

This afternoon Dad took me to therapy. My ortho said I can use my arm basically 100%- no platform. So we tried some new stuff. We took the platform thing off Ranger (my walker). Woohoo! My PT had me use both arms to push myself off the table. She had me do push ups against the wall. She had me do the lat pulls sitting on the ball. She even had me stand and do my squats with both arms. No, Dad did not get any pics... It was pretty awesome! She looked at my leg and said it's looking better, and I agree. The best part of therapy was me purposefully sitting on the floor so I could try getting back up... I DID IT!!! I am so super proud of myself! I had to text my old PT and let her know. Haha! It was amazing!! Here's another awesome thing, we talked about me getting my leg. Like it's actually going to happen!! I hope it is as close as she thinks it is. We talked about how I would walk, how long it would take to be walking all the time, what I would do in the meantime, etc.

After PT, Daddy took me to Academy. I wanted to buy a cot for myself. I figure it will be easier to get up out of a cot rather than an air mattress for mission trip and such. I guess I'll know this weekend when I use the cot for the first time at the 30 Hour Famine. You can donate here: http://support.worldvision.org/site/TR/30HourFamine/30HourFamine?team_id=48712&pg=team&fr_id=2020.

Next, we met Mom at the new Brookshire's. Have I ever mentioned that I LOVE grocery shopping?! Ha! The store is super nice, but their prices are still a little high. I enjoyed looking around, though. They had the cutest baby apples- smaller than the ones at HEB. Adorable!!

When we got home, we had dinner and sat around (I read). Pretty swell day!

And that's life...

P.S. I'm going to take my first FULL shower tonight with my leg actually in the tub!! Yay!




Monday, February 25, 2013

Doctor

Today I went to see my ortho after a great nights sleep and lounging around most of the day (the weekend really took it out of me). He took my wound vac off!!! Yay! He reluctantly wrote me a prescription for wound care after I told him that I have an appointment on Wednesday. I don't think he wanted to write me one... He has a different opinion about wound care than the wound care people do. However, I am excited to see how this goes.

Mom and I ate at a place called Mama Mia's for lunch. It was sooooooo delicious! The bread, stuffed mushrooms, pasta, and tiramisu I had were so scrumptious! I took 3/4 of my entree home, though because I wanted dessert. Haha! It is in an up and coming neighborhood and is decorated so elegantly and cute. I already can't wait off back!

I ordered some earrings and a ring last week and they came in the mail today! They are so adorable!! I really like them.

I think my elbow is really starting to gain some muscle and stretch out. I am trying to use it as much as possible. My shoulder is still giving me trouble, but I think that is stretching out as well.

It got so chilly by night time that we had a fire. Dad and I read most of the evening! Mom even made Frito pie! Yum!!

And that's life...

P.S. A little hilarity for today!! This describes my philosophy on me. Hahaha!











Sunday, February 24, 2013

Weekend Retreat

This weekend I went on a retreat with my Youth in the city that my wreck happened. I'll start with Friday.

Friday morning I got up and packed my bag. I did it all by myself!! I read and watched Netflix (Being Human) most of the day. After school, it was time for us to leave the church for the retreat. This was a little chaotic because I had to send Mom in my place until I could get there. "Why?" you ask. My ortho made a house call to change my wound vac!! Haha! I guess I really am his favorite patient. He said he doesn't do house calls, but he did for me. Crazy. Anyways, I talked to him about doing wound care and he said he would let me for a couple of weeks to see what we could accomplish. Yay! No skin graft, yet, and hopefully I won't have to have one. We shall see...

I got to the retreat just in time for bed. Ha! Great timing... Now, this is the first time I've been without my parents (over night and in another place) since the accident. This is also the first time I've been by my accident site. I didn't freak out or anything... I also didn't sleep that well because I was anxious about how everything would work and getting to the bathroom in the middle of the night and stuff like that. I did fine, though.

Saturday morning my good friend and I went to breakfast and had a fairly normal day. I wheeled myself around A LOT!! I never realized how much other people push my wheelchair... Haha! I slept like a rock Saturday night!! I could have used a few more hours, however. It turned out I knew a ton of people at the retreat and might have found a center director to shadow for mission trip!! Sweet! There was a talent show and 2 of my youth showed off their talents (the other one showed me and her mom her talent of Tae Kwon Do in the cabin before the show). I have very talented youth!! I'm so proud of them! We had lunch, dinner, small group time, and free time. I was excited I got to do so much!!

Sunday morning we packed the car up and had breakfast. We then attended small group (I was in an all adult one so we talked about fundraising and youth stuff). Very cool! We had a beautiful worship service to finish out the weekend and headed home. I didn't even freak out when someone else (a wonderful friend) drove me through my accident site. Ha! Go me!!

Dad took me to lunch after all the children were picked up or dropped off. We split fajitas at On The Border. Yum! When I got home, I worked on some youth stuff then took a nap. When I woke up (a bit grumpy- no lie) I headed to Youth for our regular youth. We worked on our Sunrise Service and I got to talk to my good friend. When I got home, we watched some shows (to decompress)- The Americans and Elementary. I'm writing this and am going to bed!! I'm so exhausted, but thrilled I spent the weekend amongst friends and youth and did a great job!! The weekend was a success for me as well as the retreat! I am so blessed.

And that's my semi-famous life! Ha!















Thursday, February 21, 2013

Interesting day

Today I spent most of my time reading and talking to people about my leg. Ha! My nurse friend called and talked to me about wound care and what could be done. I talked to my new PT and my old one about what I should do. I think I have decided to give the wound care a shot before we jump into another skin graft that has the same chance of working as the wound care. I have carefully weighed all of my options and talked to my support team (Mom and Dad). We will see how this goes.

I wen to PT today and worked on my arm mostly. We, of course, talked about the wound care. Then I did some weights with both arms, and just the left one. I am at 31 degrees! Yay!! I did the arm bike as well. Pretty good PT day.

After that, Dad and I went to HEB!! I bet you didn't see that coming. Haha! A good family friend sent me a gift card to HEB!!! What?! She loves me. We got some sushi (for lunch tomorrow), some cupcakes, and some samples. Yum yum!

When we got home, Mom had put on a roast all day (smells like heaven!), Dad made mashed potatoes. Great dinner!! Probably one of my favorites- roast, mashed potatoes, and peas. Delish!! That, to me, is the epitome of home cooked and scrumptious food. We watched some shows and went to bed.

Tomorrow will be even more interesting than today... Get ready!

And that's life...





Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Busy, busy day!

Today started out with an eye appointment for Dad in the hospital district. That went well; his eye is all good. We were supposed to meet a prosthetist, but he was running late. He moved the appointment to after my ortho appointment, but then that took so long he had to go to his next one. That's ok, though.

After Dad's appointment and the non-meeting, we ate breakfast in the cafeteria. I got an omelet, not that I ever got one while I was IN the hospital... Next, we were off to my ortho. After waiting for a while and X-rays, he said my elbow looked pretty good and my leg did not. He put me back on the wound vac so it can ready the "hole" for a skin graft. My heart is a little broken... However, I take comfort in my faith in my doctor. He doesn't worry about phrasing anymore; I mean it's been forever. He let me choose what I wanted, although both options eventually led to another skin graft. He is going to let my plastic surgeon do this one, although I think my ortho did a better one. Ironic, no? Ha!

Funny story about the wound vac: they called us to return it. This consists of sitting it on the porch in a box. UPS comes and gets it and labels it. On the phone the guy was perturbed that we were "waiting on a box"; we didn't have one that it would fit in. He seemed in an all-fire rush to get it back. We promised it would be ON THE PORCH by Tuesday. And it was. They did NOT pick it up yesterday. I guess that turned out to be a good thing because I need it again. Ugh. Anyways, Dad called our neighbors to see if they could take it off our porch until we get home; neither were there. However, my dear friend drove by on her lunch break and picked it up for us. She rocks!!! My ortho pre-prepped it for the vac- you know what that means: TAPE. Double ugh. All was saved so I could use the wound vac again... Yay.

After the doctor, we ran some errands. We got Dad some new shirts and returned a few things. We ate lunch at Chili's- YUM!! The service was pretty awful, but my steak and mac-n-cheese were good! After all that, we came home.

My little neighbor girl doesn't have a youth group, so I invited her to go with me. Tonight she did!! We had a great lesson about the Ten Commandments (that auto-capped those words! Cool!!) and the Lenten season. Great discussion by my fave teachers! She said she likes hanging out with me. I blushed. Haha! She is a wonderful girl and I can't wait to see what God will do with her. Dad and I came home to hamburgers (he had to stop for buns) and then sat around and read.

I messaged/texted a nurse I know and used to work with. We talked about this leg of mine and what wound care we're doing (gauze changes only). She seemed worried about this, which worries me. I have complete faith in my ortho, though, and trust what he says. I do kind of feel like we could have done more... I don't know. Dad asked me the other day if I wanted to change any of my healthcare people; I really don't. I just want to be healed!!!

Mixed feelings about the day. Good news, though, looks like I'll need to keep blogging daily so I don't stress... Haha! Yay! I really like it, I just don't want to bore people... Anyways, enjoy!

Prayers please for healing and my family.

And that's life...













Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Wound Care

At the comment of a dear friend and Dad, I have decided to stop counting the days. It really isn't all that healthy, probably. I get really caught up in counting and "it's been this long" and such. So I'm not counting anymore.

Today I got to see my seester!! I love her and we talked about her life. We watched Face Off while she was here; great show!! I have really missed her so it was good to see her. She brought me tortillas from Rosa's!!! She loves me.

Dad came and got me for PT. Only, we didn't do anything physical... She just worked on my wound. She (and half a dozen other people) say it looks better. I don't know... I gave up stress for Lent (no, I'm not Catholic, I'm Methodist, anyone can do it) so I need to not let this worry me. I need to focus on the positive.

I think I'm going to cut back on my posts a bit. There doesn't seem like there's that much to report on a daily basis. I mean, I'll still post like twice a week, but everyday seems a little monotonous. Thoughts?

I have Pinterest inspired hair today.

And that's life...





Monday, February 18, 2013

Day 184- 6 Months

It is with tears in my eyes that I write this post. I am happy about how far I have come, but am sad I am not as far as I had hoped. I guess you can't rush healing, huh? I want to thank everyone who I have met and who has prayed for me so far. I can't express the gratitude I feel. I have met some amazing people on this journey and expect I'll meet some more before it's over. I have spent a lot of time healing and working hard to reach goals that will help me walk again someday. I have spent far too long in a hospital or hospital setting and plan to continue having all of my days at home. I go to PT twice a week and work on my arm and overall body strength.

Day 184- I got up and sat around the house today. Dad got off early so we hung around until we went to dinner with Mom. Then we got to go to Sam's Club... I LOVE bulk shopping! Haha! Anyways, I pushed myself around the store most of the time, with BOTH arms. Go me!! We got home and started The Americans, which I like so far!

Recap
Hi! I'm JenaeRenae and I was in a serious car wreck 184 days ago. So this is the story of my wreck and recovery so far and an introduction to my life. Don't worry, I'll keep the whining and complaining to a minimum.Warning: pictures will be on here; if you're squeamish, beware. A LOT happened in 184 days...

Broken bones: at least 5
Surgery/procedure count: 22
Bruise count: a billion
Wreck:

I was hit basically head on and shattered my right ankle and dislocated my left (thank you, Jesus) elbow. It was pouring rain and an Escape hydroplaned into me across a turn lane, but hit me with the back of the car (which is less weighted than the front) Police, firemen, and the insurance adjuster were all amazed I lived. WEAR YOUR SEATBELT!!!

Surgery 1: External fixator on my ankle/lower leg and my left elbow popped back into place.

It looks way worse than it was. It was SOOOO heavy to move my leg!! Ha! When it was wrapped up in the ace bandage it was so intimidating and scary, but this picture assured me I would be ok. Just so you know, those pins (as they call them) go through my heel and the others are screwed into my bones. It's gross, trust me, but worth it. Lets not forget about the "safety glass" that I'm STILL pulling out of my arms and hands!!!

Surgery 2: Fixing my left elbow. My socket had some shards that broke off so they were put back, a plate was screwed in, and an external fixator was put on/in. Also, my ulnar nerve was moved. Think hitting your funny bone times 30. OMG!! Ouch.
See how scary it looks all wrapped up?! Ick!!

This is much later, but it shows it out of all the wrapping.



My first time in the wheel chair where I was pushed to look out of the window. Two fixators makes getting up and out HARD work!!  
Surgery 3: Two days later... My amazing orthopedic surgeon put 3 plates and 24 screws in my ankle and took off the fixator. This was a 7 hour procedure He had to take out all of the shards and do everything else. This left me with a nerve in my left leg which is still odd.
I was released to a rehab center at this point for 2 weeks. Then the real horrible stuff happened. I went to an appointment to see my doctor and he admitted me to the hospital. Dun, dun, DUUUUUUN! As it turned out, one of sutures didn't heal properly and would need some help healing. Basically my stitches didn't close and when he took them out, my plate was exposed; yes, the one on my bone...

Surgery 4: Wound vac added to ankle, elbow loosened a bit to open towards me, and about 80-90 (an estimate) stitches removed. The picture for this one is gruesome, so I will not post it.

Procedure 5 and 6: Wound vac change. My elbow was popping out of the socket when my arm was extended. This meant the ex-fix would stay. I was a perfect candidate for Tommy John surgery. On the 6th one my surgeon decided to put in stitches and pull them all at once. The next day was baaaaaad. Wow.
Procedure 7: Consult with a plastic surgeon for a muscle flap which did not happen. Yay!!

So a few days later, I went home for my birthday!! 7 days later, here I am. I got my 8th procedure today.

Procedure 8: Wound vac change and he loosened my elbow to move out a bit. So bad news came with this procedure. My wound has a bit that is still open and is exposing the plate. I currently have a wound vac on one part of my leg and antibiotic beads in the open part. Also, a bacteria I have kills muscle flaps... Yay me. Now that we're all caught up, we'll talk about me.

There were a LOT of surgeries and procedures plus another rehab after this point. The plates were removed, I did hyperbaric chamber, I had a muscle flap and skin graft (that failed), and TONS of wound vac changes. Basically I had to have my right foot amputated below the knee and we had to put a skin graft on it. It has still not healed all the way, but we're hopeful it will soon. My left arm is finally free, but still weak. My big muscles are still pretty strong, but my tiny muscles will need strengthening. I can almost put my left palm completely face up and can put it all the way face down. My hand can reach my shoulder and my shoulder is still getting stretched out. I can open my arm about 40 degrees, but that will be better soon with my new brace.

Now about me. I knew the car was going to hit me before it did.The first thing I noticed was my left arm wouldn't move. I could also feel the bones in right leg move. My radio console had popped out and I pushed it back in. Then I tried not to bleed on my car. Ha! My car was sooo totaled (see pic above). I was crying and screaming at people to help me and get me out of the car. Next, I started talking to myself and calming myself down. When the firemen pulled me out of the car, I said, "I should've taken that weight loss thing seriously." They all laughed. When I get uncomfortable, I crack jokes. I was rushed to one hospital and they stabilized me. I was then sent to a different hospital that I would have been Care Flited to if it wasn't lightning; as it was, I was sent via ambulance. I know what you're thinking: WOW! Two ambulances in one day?! Yep, sure did.

I take no pain meds and see my ortho about every other week. I get around using a wheelchair and recently got a real sweet one! I try to cope the best I can, but some days I still cry and everyday I hate what happened. I think I finally forgave the girl and have faced the fact that this is my life. However, sometimes it still feels surreal. I think that maybe I will wake up from this nightmare. I can't believe I lost a foot!! It's permanent. Forever. I think when I am more mobile that it won't hit me as hard. We shall see.

 Accomplishments: Using a wheelchair. Using a walker to walker jump. Standing. Sitting on a ball. Driving. using my left arm. Holding a baby. Putting on make-up. Getting dressed by myself. Showering by myself. Running Youth by myself. Pottying at home and in public restrooms. Cooking/baking by myself. Painting. Not beating people or yelling at them when they stare... Leading as normal of a life as I can for now.










And that's life...