Through the Wringer.....

Last Monday my Dad bravely had a total knee replacement and had to stay in the hospital until Thursday. Prior to the surgery the knee was bone on bone, causing damage and severe pain. He was a pretty good sport about it all. Being the little worrier that I am, I was concerned about everything. He had some good nurses during the day but I can't say that I cared for the night-shift nurses. Luckily, Dad had some pretty good drugs to keep him comfortable and pain free-most of the time. I'm going to be honest, there were some pretty rough days....and still plenty more ahead while he recovers. We found out the Dad is definitely a light-weight when it comes to narcotics- he would never make it as a druggie! A few things that he learned about being in the hospital were that you do not go there to get sleep, the food is enough to make you want to get better and get out of the hospital and the gowns are drafty. By the time he got out of the hospital on Thursday he was SO ready to go home.Once home my dad was under strict rules and regulations regarding exercising his knee and keeping it mobile. He has to give himself injections of Lovenox (a blood thinner) in his stomach to lessen the chance of developing a blood clot. He is having to watch his blood sugar very closely now because he was recently diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. Boy...when it rains it pours. He also is not able to drive for six weeks and has to walk with a cane. Since he is so used to being independent he is struggling with being dependent on other people. I think that it is good for him since he is always doing things for other people. He will have to have physical therapy for a minimum of three months to ensure that the knee heals properly and to ensure that he gets maximum use out of it.
Yesterday Rob and I took dinner to my Dad and his wife. Rob also made my Dad Amish Friendship Bread all by himself. He was so proud of himself (as was I) and my Dad and Janet really appreciated it. I thought it was really cute actually-not very good for my Dad's diabetes, but it is the thought that counts right? I also got to see my Dad's knee for the first time since he got out of the hospital. I was quite shocked at how bad it looked since I had last seen it. After surgery it bled a lot and so now it is bruised quite badly. He says that as long as he takes his pain medicine on a schedule he can stay on top of his pain. If not, it gets away from him and he is in severe pain. He is doing all of his exercises and what the doctor told him even though it causes him a lot of pain and weakness. I am just glad that he finally had the surgery because his knee has been bothering him for a long time. He is a lot braver than I would be!