Yesterday I got up quite early, drove myself to fairfax, and had surgery on my foot.

It was done at my podiatrist’s office, so, very much outpatient, and I was also very much conscious. I took a valium the night before surgery, another when I arrived at the office, and a final one halfway through the prep. The staff seemed to think that I would likely sleep through the procedure, but that doesn’t appear to be my body’s modis operandis – Yes, when I am anxious in the face of possible pain, I like to talk! Incessantly! And to somewhat comic relief, I think! Always the entertainer, that’s me! I kept comparing the effects of the valium by how many drinks it would have taken to bring about the same affects! Blabber blabber, that was me, and I kept it up right through the surgery. The doctor realized that this was my way of not focusing on what he was doing, and started asking me questions on whatever I was talking about, and I informed him that I knew what he was up to! But that’s ok, as it was fine with me.

The worst part was the at the very beginning, when he gave the local anesthetic, and it felt like the injection filled the entire area to about the size of a grapefruit. I couldn’t see though, so that’s probably an exageration. I can’t remember exactly all he said he did, but here’s what I think was done in there – the issues have all been at my 2nd toe joint, and the bones in that joint have slowly squared off, instead of being nice and round like bones are supposed to be when they meet, so he rounded off the bones (which I totally felt, it had a nails on a chalkboard sort of feeling, or actually, like when your dentist scrapes plaque from your teeth. Except he was FILING DOWN MY BONES!) so they would move in the joint better. Not only did the bones need rounded off, but they were also trying to fuse together, or “bridge” which even I sense would be a Bad Thing. I also had a tendon (or was it a ligament?) that needed repair, and a tear in one of the plates that needed stitching.

Overall, it didn’t take long, and I was very comfortable through the entire thing. I blabbered on and on about everything in the world, while the doctor asked leading questions to get me to continue — “I’m on to you, bub!” I think I let out a few times, but I did manage to get him to talk some, about his daughter who’s heading off to college, and life in general.

After it was all over, James arrived (he had to get the kids off to school) in time to hear the post op orders, and then we headed home. The doctor and his staff seemed to think I would sleep most of the day, but I was chipper and wide awake – I think most of the effects of the valium wore off about an hour after I got home, but it took the local longer.

I took my first vicodin around 11 or 12, thinking that it would be better to have it kick in BEFORE I started to feel any pain, and I braced myself for that loopy giddy feeling I remember from percocet after both of my c-sections, but really didn’t feel much of that. By 3, I was feeling a dull ache in my foot and if I dared move, it snarled and roared at me at a much higher pain level, so I called the office and talked to the doctor. James made an emergency run to pick up the prescription and then to target, and brought home some percocet, which I’m happy to say, did the trick quite nicely.

Today has been fairly uneventful, except for a small bout of naseau this morning right when I woke up — apparently, my body needs food WITH the percocet, or I get queasy. James dutifully brought me some bread and butter, and after nomming on that, I felt much better.

It’s been a nice 2 days though – I had ordered some plastic storage boxes to use for jump rings that arrived yesterday, so I was happy as a pig in mud labeling, dumping, checking, relabeling again, and I am so tickled with my new jump ring storage system. That pencil box with zip lock baggies was getting HEAVY and CROWDED, so this was a timely change.

I made some jewelry, played on my new laptop, dozed, watched tv, and dozed some more. I even managed to work for a few hours these past 2 days! Tomorrow will be some more of the same – Ethan and Jocelyn both have games to play, and then the school is having a fun fair they are very excited about, so I’ll be at home blissfully alone to do my own thing. I may have some visitors, as we have some friends in town with TWIN BABIES! I know that feeling of being at someone else’s not-baby-proofed-enough house though, and I won’t really be able to get up and run after babies-making-their-bid-for-FREEDOM! Hopefully they’ll love to be held, and their parents won’t be too alarmed at the massive Nerf Gun arsenal Ethan is currently maintaining on the coffee table.

So that’s the story of surgery! After dealing with a bum foot for about a year now, it will be nice to finally be back to normal *knock on wood*.

-amy waves hi to her foot doc, in case he actually came looking for that domain she mentioned during surgery