Green means GO in more ways than one

Yesterday I earned my green arm band. It signifies to the staff that I am allowed to walk around in my room without assistance. I still can't leave the room without staff or family but green means FREEDOM! I can't tell you after 13 days how good it feels to be allowed to get up and get things across the room, or take myself to the bathroom, sit in the recliner, etc. 

And speaking of green means go, my catheter came out yesterday morning and I peed as naturally as the day I was born. This was a massive relief as a urologist at the hospital was concerned there may be some damage on the spinal cord from surgery that would have required me to self catheterize myself for quite some time. So THANK YOU to everyone that prayed with me for success. It worked and God is good. 

I'm getting stronger everyday, my appetite is returning and I am ready to go home. As I type they are having my care meeting involving two doctors, the therapists and nursing. The recommendation from all is that I am ready for discharge. One more day ya'll. Tomorrow night if all goes according to plans I will be home sleeping in my own bed with my fur babies and my hubby. I am SO excited. I have been horrible homesick here even though my family has been so good about coming and visiting me. There is NO PLACE LIKE HOME!!

Our plans went a bit haywire, we planned for me to be in the hospital for 7-10 days and then home with Ed for a week and a half before he goes back to work. Well that time ended up being spent here in the Rehab Hospital vs home. So.....Ed goes back to work tomorrow. Luckily for me Erica doesn't usually leave for work till Mid morning and Ed gets home fairly early so there should be only four or five hours that I am alone each day. I will be relaxing, reading and binge watching things on Netflix.

Therapy here is hard work. You have three hours of intense therapy daily and they work you the entire three hours. I have been a total rockstar and working my butt off for days to prove to them that I can go home. It's exhausting and I did not want to come here at all but I have to say it's probably been the best thing I could have done. I don't think that I would have gained this much strength already if I had gone straight home. So once again I have realized that God's the one in charge here and I need to let him lead me in the right direction.

My pain level is getting better. I have started to back off the narcotics with a bit more time between doses. I will still need something for the next few weeks I am sure but it feels good to know that my pain levels are decreasing as I get stronger. And as I am anxious to fill that wine glass that my girlfriend at work gave me I will have to be off the narcotics before I can have a glass of wine with my family.

the glass says 11 oz p.o. qid prn

which in medical jargon means 

11 ounces by mouth  four times

per day as needed! 

LOL

I had a visitor from work yesterday. Mary Boning, also known as the best darn baker around. She not only broke up my boring unoccupied part of my day she brought me a plateful of my most favorite oatmeal raisin cookies. She is such a sweetheart and I am so grateful she came.

So thats it. Hopefully my next update will come from home and I will be one happy lady.