12 Weeks Post Op Full Rotator Cuff Repair

It's been 3 weeks since my last post--that in itself is indication that my recovery from full rotator cuff repair has gotten smoother. 

This past Wednesday marked weeks 12 post op which is a big marker--the completion of phase I of rehab post surgery.  Now I begin to do more intensive stretching exercises since the tendon has had several weeks to begin re-attaching to the bone.  Also I'm beginning to strengthen the surrounding muscles more now.  The shoulder isn't considered fully healed for 9-12 months post surgery, but I'm well on my way.

9 weeks post op was a huge milestone and 11 weeks post op was also a very big deal. Starting at 11 weeks, I was FINALLY, CONSISTENTLY able to sleep solidly every night.  Boy that was a looooooong time in coming.  This is a very big deal.  Lack of sleep is a significant factor in our overall health and I was really feeling the repercussions those previous 10 weeks of not getting any kind of decent, consistent sleep.

I'm also able to open and close most doors with my operative arm now--I'm still very careful with difficult to open doors--for example at work one of the restroom doors is ridiculously hard to open and I won't use my operative arm for that.  I'm carrying small objects like water bottles or cereal bowls with my operative arm but nothing really heavy.  I can close the car door with little discomfort and driving is also more comfortable now.

Last weekend I took my first hike--only 3 miles and not a difficult trail, but that too, was a big deal because that's the first time I've had the stamina for a hike.

The shoulder continues to be achy, especially after PT and the weight bearing/resistance training days every other day, but that will continue for some months yet.  But the discomfort now is NOTHING compared to what I've been through and I am sooooo relieved and thankful!

The return of my stamina is coinciding well with the fact that I become a college student once again in another week, embarking on my dual journey of training to become a personal trainer and my long term goal of progressing toward a Kinesiology undergrad for use as a physical therapy tech down the road.  I'm a bit nervous and stressed---I already have problems finding enough time to do the things I need to do, now I need to add in time to study and do homework on top of everything else. But there's not much choice.  I can't continue on my current career path and the only way to create an alternative is to re-train.

The big question mark for me in pursuing a kinesiology degree is the high math requirement.  It's a long story, but a crummy elementary school teacher I had pretty much traumatized me for life concerning my ability to do math (I still remember the look of disgust on her face when I came up to her asking for help.  I don't remember the exact verbiage of what she said to me, but what my young impressionable mind heard was to the effect of "Are you so stupid that you can't get subtraction?").  There is no doubt that math is one of my weaker subjects. I don't debate that.  But the real question is, will I let one lousy teacher ruin my academic pursuit or will I dig in and overcome huge doubts about my abilities in that area and persevere?

I may not be able to handle the high math requirement.  But I am surely defeated if I don't try.  And I won't give that bimbo the satisfaction.  I've let her stymie me for too many decades already.

Of course all these developments shove my writing under the mat--again.  There simply aren't enough hours in the day.  I do continue to do research for my current series of novels, though I'm doing no actual writing.  I once jokingly said I can write one book a decade.  The one book that is closest to publication I began working on in 2005---so it WILL soon be a decade.  We'll see what happens in 2015. 8-)

Life is crazy, and even though I pray for direction sometimes I wonder if I'm on the right track.  But I need to trust that God will keep opening and closing doors according to His plan for me and He'll get me where I need to go. 8-)