I wrote a post on July 8 about my upcoming heart surgery. At that time I thought it would probably be on July 22. Alas, as I posted on July 18, I injured my leg while lifting a heavy object at home. My surgeon didn’t want me dealing with two traumas at once. At first he put the surgery off to July 29, then, when I had little if any healing happening, but it off indefinitely, with us to touch base every two or three weeks. We did that early this week, and agreed I’m still not healed enough to set a surgery date.

But actually, I have another trauma from another freak home accident. I reinjured my left shoulder on (I think) July 18. I reached my arms up to make a big stretch, and something big popped in my upper arm or shoulder. I both felt and heard the pop. This was the same shoulder that I injured when walking Nuisance, my son-in-law’s big dog. It never quite healed, even going through physical therapy. But, anyway, this pop happened. That day, while having blood drawn to recheck some enzymes that were high after my first accident, the guy that drew my blood put a tourniquet right over the place where the pop was. Iin a few days, my whole upper arm was one big subdural hematoma the kept growing for days.

For that second injury, and for the first, I went to an orthopedic doctor. He took some more x-rays, gave me a steroid shot in the groin, told me to take it easy, and not start the exercises the people at the orthopedic ER gave me. And come back in 2 to 3 weeks. His thoughts are that I have a badly torn rotator cuff, whereas the urgent care doc thought it was a torn deltoid muscle. Whatever it is, a second subdural hematoma had appeared (still growing), and I have almost no use of my left arm. Provided I can get it on a keyboard I can type, but have almost no range of motion, no strength. When my arm is still there’s no pain, but try to move it more than a couple of inches….

We are now in that period. I go to see him on 8/22. Meanwhile my regular doctor ordered an MRI of my left shoulder, currently scheduled for 8/26. Hopefully that will give some answers. I suspect an MRI of my right hip/leg/groin is also in my future.

As is my heart valve replacement surgery. Sometime. I suspect the earliest it can be is Sept 30. I say that because I am experiencing a little healing in my leg. The pain is not so intense. And I can now get my leg in positions where there’s no pain while at rest. I can cross my legs, with either one on top, and not have pain in my groin or thigh. The day is coming, I believe, when the healing will be enough for me to lie flat on a bed or stand fully upright without the pain coming. I’m not quite there yet, but that day is coming.

If there’s any good news through all of this, I’ve lost 12 pounds in just 24 days. I attribute it to being unable to easily access snacks in the house, or buy some at the grocery store. That puts me within 13 pounds of my target weight. Also, that puts my total loss from my peak weight (in 2006) of 102 pounds.