I was itching to get out of the house for something other than a doctor's appointment.
Usually with him being there for 2 hours, we'd take a nice walk... it being March 1 and a sunny, "warm" day (warm being 41 degrees). But I am still using a cane, and my left leg is swollen like a sausage ready to pop in the pan (I would take a picture of my foot but am afraid it would gross everyone on earth out). So any sort of distance walk was out of the question. We opted simply to go to the Cape Ann Brewing Company and watch a hockey game and eat lunch. Fine by me.
It was a very nice time. I got fried scallops, which always made me happy. I had 2 beers, one of which was their summer saison, strawberry rhubarb. It made me happy, longing for the beauties of summer and the fresh fruity tastes that will soon surround us.
I was exhausted after being there for 90 minutes. Who knew sitting on a bar stool could wipe someone out so severely.
When we got home I took a 2 hour nap.
So before anyone asks about the leg swelling, I have been reading about IVC Filters and side effects/complications. Lower extremity swelling is indeed something that people experience. None of the documentation I'm reading though is helpful in recommending how to relieve the discomfort and pain. Right now I'm on the schedule to have the IVC filter removed on March 26th and that day can't come fast enough. My doctor told me that once it is removed the swelling will go away and life will get a lot better. I have already called the specialist twice just to see if the date can be moved up. Maybe someone will cancel their appointment. Maybe someone will ... I dunno. Die? I don't want to wish for something like that to happen. It is so selfish of me. But... I'm selfish right now.
So in the meantime... ouch. My doctor told me to be patient, be as mobile as I can. Get up and walk around. It's hard though when your leg weighs as much as the rest of your entire body.
I keep reminding myself that someone out there has it a whole hell of a lot worse than I do and that this is nothing and I can handle it, so handle it. I see commercials for the Wounded Warriors Project of these young men who come home and their parents have to help them move around the house and they're super brain damaged and it breaks my heart into a million pieces. I see men and women with their legs blown off, so ... mine is going to get better where they won't ever get a leg back. Quit whining and crying. Get up and walk around the dining table twice an hour, and do it.
I hate that I couch my own suffering in comparison with someone else's but often times it is the only thing that helps me get from day to day.
Yesterday the Red Cross called and asked me to sign up for a local blood drive donation. I had to tell her that after receiving a transfusion I'm not eligible for 12 months to the day. I also told her about the blood thinners, and I think I have to be off of those for 7 days before I can donate... the girl on the other end listened to my story and was so sweet and kind. She specified that they should call me next year and updated my file. It broke my heart to refuse but it is what it is.
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