Then:
Now:
July 27, 2010
Childhood Friends
Shae got a visit from her long time friend, Shira. The two of them have been friends for years, and first met when they were on the same swim team when they were 8 years old. They are now both 15 and are still really great friends.
Then:
Now:
Then:
Now:
July 26, 2010
Sutures Removed
Today, Shae finally got her sutures removed. She was excited the entire morning, and couldn't wait to get them out. We went to see our Miami Orthopedic Doctor, Dr. Gorin, and he took out her sutures. Dr. Gorin has been so good to us and has helped us with all of our family injuries and has taken great care of us.
Now that the stiches are out, Shae can soon start applying tissue oil and/or ScarGuard MD to her incission area. The scarguard is like a clear nail polish that you paint over the incission area and it keeps the scar from staying flat so that it doesn't rise or discolor. It works incredibly well.
Dr. Gorin and Shae
Removing the Stiches with these Tools
Before and After:
Now that the stiches are out, Shae can soon start applying tissue oil and/or ScarGuard MD to her incission area. The scarguard is like a clear nail polish that you paint over the incission area and it keeps the scar from staying flat so that it doesn't rise or discolor. It works incredibly well.
Dr. Gorin and Shae
Removing the Stiches with these Tools
Before and After:
21 Days later and she Survived!
Day 21 after surgery is seriously the world's greatest day. Shae is officially done with her CPM, foot pumps, anti-rotational straps, brace, and she can get her stiches removed today. She also is getting closer and closer to coming off of her crutches and today she walked small distances around the house with only one crutch. We have to take it slow so that she doesn't develop a limp.
But She did it, and she survived 3 weeks with foot pumps, anti-rotational straps and boots, the CPM, brace, and crutches.
But She did it, and she survived 3 weeks with foot pumps, anti-rotational straps and boots, the CPM, brace, and crutches.
Therapy with Tropical Storm Bonnie
Sunday morning Shae woke up and did her circumduction and range of motion, and then got mad at me when I made her get in the pool to do pool therapy. Shae had only wanted to go to the mall to try get the new iPhone, but there was a huge storm coming and I knew that if she didn't do her pool therapy in the morning then she wasn't going to get it done today.
It is hard though when it comes to rehab because it feels like it is endless and that all you ever do is physical therapy. And when you are young and have had surgery during summer vacation, you have some days where you are just frustrated that you can't just get up and go out and instead have to do physical therapy 6-7 times during the week. But, with time and patience Shae will be back to normal and will feel even better then before, now that she has a fixed and healthy hip.
So, after nagging Shae to do pool therapy and convincing her that we could all get a suntan, she finally got in the water and just my luck, after being in the water for about 15 minutes, it started to rain and she was not happy. The rain was cold and hard and it was not enjoyable to be in the water.
However, after finishing pool rehab, Shae finally got to go to the mall to get her phone and she got to enjoy the rest of her sunday because her therapy was all done for the day.
At the mall getting her new iPhone
It is hard though when it comes to rehab because it feels like it is endless and that all you ever do is physical therapy. And when you are young and have had surgery during summer vacation, you have some days where you are just frustrated that you can't just get up and go out and instead have to do physical therapy 6-7 times during the week. But, with time and patience Shae will be back to normal and will feel even better then before, now that she has a fixed and healthy hip.
So, after nagging Shae to do pool therapy and convincing her that we could all get a suntan, she finally got in the water and just my luck, after being in the water for about 15 minutes, it started to rain and she was not happy. The rain was cold and hard and it was not enjoyable to be in the water.
However, after finishing pool rehab, Shae finally got to go to the mall to get her phone and she got to enjoy the rest of her sunday because her therapy was all done for the day.
At the mall getting her new iPhone
July 24, 2010
Just a spoonful of sugar, makes the medicine go down
So today is Saturday and yesterday and today, Shae has been full with visitors. But today, Shae woke up, did her range of motion and circumduction with my mom and then she got in the pool for pool therapy. She did her usual aqua jogging, walking, circumduction, and kicking, and finished just in time before her friends arrived for a visit.
The best medicine for a patient is definitely sweets, and Shae's friends brought cupcakes and cookies to make the pain go away. She also got magazines, flowers and a balloon. Her friends Frankie, Sarah, Karina, and Eric came over to spend the afternoon with Shae. They hung out in her room and then of course made their way to the pool later in the day.
And yesterday, Shae's friend Madison came with a bunch of movies and she got to see Shae do physical therapy.
The best medicine for a patient is definitely sweets, and Shae's friends brought cupcakes and cookies to make the pain go away. She also got magazines, flowers and a balloon. Her friends Frankie, Sarah, Karina, and Eric came over to spend the afternoon with Shae. They hung out in her room and then of course made their way to the pool later in the day.
And yesterday, Shae's friend Madison came with a bunch of movies and she got to see Shae do physical therapy.
Ups and Downs
Shae had a rough day today while dealing with the pain and discomfort of weight shifting, walking in the pool, and increased physical therapy. She held it together pretty well but I could see that she was frustrated. I called Howard Head to talk to one of the physical therapists, to just double check that everything Shae was feeling is normal. They told me what to alter and overall they said that what Shae is experiencing is normal. The hip takes some time to heal and we just have to be patient.
With that said, I found this motivational story that my mom had given me a couple of years ago and I thought that it fit perfectly for Shae's recovery.
Butterfly
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.
Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther.
Then the man decided to help the butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.
The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.
Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It was never able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. And we could never fly.
With that said, I found this motivational story that my mom had given me a couple of years ago and I thought that it fit perfectly for Shae's recovery.
Butterfly
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.
Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther.
Then the man decided to help the butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.
The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.
Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It was never able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. And we could never fly.
Learning to Walk Again
Shae is getting closer and closer to Day 21, when she is supposed to start coming off of crutches. So in order to prepare her and her hip for walking, we started to do weight shifting during her therapy sessions. She stands next to the therapy table and sets her feet apart and shifts her weight from one foot to the other. Then she does the same thing but now with one leg in front of the other. It doesn't feel very comfortable, and Shae complained of feeling tightness and pressure in her hip. But it does take some time and patience to get used to the new movement.
When you learn how to walk again when you are coming off the crutches, it is really important to engage the glut when you place your foot on the ground. I would always remind myself that every time my heel touched the ground, I had to have an engaged glut. This can sometimes make the pain go away or will at least make it easier to deal with, and it helps to support the hip.
Weight Shifting
When you learn how to walk again when you are coming off the crutches, it is really important to engage the glut when you place your foot on the ground. I would always remind myself that every time my heel touched the ground, I had to have an engaged glut. This can sometimes make the pain go away or will at least make it easier to deal with, and it helps to support the hip.
Weight Shifting
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