I didn’t fall

I still ended up stuck on the bathroom floor while we figured out what to do.

Haveing gotten a shower with my nice new hand-me-down shower chair (what a life saver!) the next trick is how to get me out. And how we did it last time is never quite clear. Not using the muscles in my right leg leave it getting progressively weaker, so I can’t just swing it over our high tub wall as I once did. Someone lifts the bad leg out for me and puts it on a step in the appropriate place so we can shift my weight on to it from the good leg and John can help me step out of the tub. Except this time that just didn’t work.

In what ended up feeling like about twelve steps John, Logan and I went from me standing in the tub to sitting on the bathroom floor. John had to lift me to get my good leg out because I could not manuver. I didn’t end up with any scrapes from the tile edges, or at least none showing last night, but I wouldn’t have been surprised if I did. Tub door tracks and glass tile weren’t made for this.

Once I was actually out and couldn’t fall we all caught our breaths and I had water and OJ and we started figuring how to get me off the floor.

I should say, John is a big strong guy. And its a damn good thing he is. I mean strong as in he lifts heavy weights for fun because carrying 100 lbs of feed or 150 lbs of beans across the farm wasn’t enough for him. So the past six months he’s gotten into serious weight lifting — proper technique etc. Ak of which he used hauling my (steroid assisted) fat butt up off the floor to a standing position, so we could pivot me to sit in the walker. At that point, even with the brace on my foot, my knee had decided not to play well with others and I didn’t trust any of my joints to stay in the places I expected.

After all that I walked, holding on to John, and Logan moved the walker. Then I sat. When I tried to stand again to walk to the table, my right knee buckled. I was holding John to stand up with so I just (just) ended up down on one knee holding on to John. He hauled me up to standing and Logan switched the chair for the wheeled walker and I was wheeled to the next room so we could eat.

Logan and I are sleeping downstairs tonight. I’m supposed to wake her to go get papa so I can go to the toilet at some point. The dog and I have been discussing that point for about an hour now. He’d like to go out and I’m not jumping up to let him. I hate the lack of independance, but there’s no way I’m going to try to stand up on my own right now. I wore out too many muscles.

I’m worried this is all too much for an eight year old, even one as tough as mine has been. Logan says she’s almost nine.

I’m expecting physical, occupational therapies and home health care to help with this stuff. The set up folks called Monday or Tuesday and said the rest would be in touch in a few days. It’s not their rush. Not their butt on the bathroom floor.

Today thursday is a marathon MD appt day. And i’ll look at renting a wheelchair cause I’m not up to so much walking today. Insurance is debating with the Dr over whether I need one. After last night, some days, evidently I do.

I’d like it known that I object.