Here's what I learned this week:
1) A fabulously decorated knee brace will take you places, my friends
As Dr. M. hummed and hawed over my chart, debating whether or not I was ready to begin rehab, I proudly showed him my brace covered in tequila, sweat, sand, and inspirational sayings. Although he appeared perplexed by the tropical fish swimming happily along the side of the brace, I could tell that deep down inside, he was impressed.
"Well, I guess it's time to start phase two," he stated. "Rehab will take about 4 months," he continued.
"It'll take me 2," I replied confidently.
"Well, I've never seen anyone cover their brace in stickers before, so I wouldn't be surprised."
Yes! Mission accomplished. Dr. M. is impressed. I'm completely convinced that, if given the opportunity, Dr. M would rate me as his most compliant and motivated patient ever. Ever. If he could grade me, I'm positive he would deliver an A+ (or perhaps a 4.0 if he adheres to US College requirements).
2) You CAN push yourself too far
Once I had the go-ahead to weight-bear and begin therapy, Dr. M. assured me that there would be much pain as my muscles learned how to operate properly and my new cartilage settled into its role. He also assured me that, at this point, I could not destroy what had been done (unless I placed a lot of force on it). He said, "Go for it!"
He obviously does not know me well. Oh I went for it. 6 hours after he uttered those words, I was cockily strutting down the hall with no crutches. The pain was almost unbearable and the concentration it took to prevent my right leg from buckling was intense; however, I instantly observed a shift in my friends/co-workers facial expressions that pushed me further - that look of pity was gone. They were impressed. Boo-Ya! Watch me! Watch this! Unfortunately, once my knee exploded to the size of a bowling ball (5 pin, not 10 pin, thank god), it was apparent that I was pushing myself too fast, too soon. After a good chat with my Physiotherapist (cue sappy music and a Danny Tanner hug) it became apparent that I was really only impeding my progress if I worked myself to the point of excruciating pain and swelling. Lesson learned.
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| mmmmm.... |
I thought I was a pinot gal, but I changed my mind. I prefer Sauvignon Blanc. It's crisper. It's fresher. My taste is maturing (I've come a long way from my days of ordering the "vodka special." ) That's all.
4) I understand the purpose and steps needed to properly meditate!
Yay! This is my big accomplishment of the week! I received a comment on my blog encouraging me to contact a young woman in Prince Albert by the name of Cherish to help with my meditation goal. I checked out Cherish's website and immediately felt like she could help me. Not only is she a yoga instructor, a Registered Massage Therapist, and a doula, but she has years and years of meditation experience. Upon contacting her for advice, she generously offered to come to my house and show this young grasshopper the ways. Although I was very excited to meet and learn from Cherish, I was a little nervous that I would have a tough time relating to her. I'm not gonna lie, I pictured a hippy-ish looking lady wreaking of incense whilst speaking in Haiku. Cherish is nothing like that.
Cherish sat down with some notes, inquired about my meditation difficulties, answered all of my questions, and offered me a step-by-step process to succeed with the meditation. She was calm, cool, and completely down to earth. She made me feel at ease. My kind of girl!
Cherish explained that there are many different schools of thought regarding meditation - it's easy to get lost in the worlds of chakras, chanting, and religion behind the meditation. She sees meditation as a tool to discipline the mind so that you are able to live in the moment. Ding! Ding! Ding! This is the purpose - the basis behind my entire year - seize the day! Epiphany! (Oprah would define this as un "uh huh" moment).
She explained that the mind becomes so full of dialogue - reenacting scenes from our past (usually the unpleasant ones - why the h would we want to revisit those bad feelings?), worrying about the future (silly! We have no way of knowing what tomorrow will bring!) and rehashing conversations with others (should I have said that? What did he mean when he said that?). With our brain so full of useless chatter, we fail to observe that which is surrounding us - The air feels and smells so humid today! Look at the contrast of that awesome canola field with the bright blue sky! I love the feel of my husband's bristles after a haircut. This is the sweetest watermelon I have ever tasted!
Meditation allows you to open your mind to embrace the here and now. Does that make sense to you? It makes perfect sense to me! Part of seizing the day is fully attending to what you are seeing, tasting, touching, hearing, and smelling - in that moment. That's certainly a goal that I want to accomplish.
So now that I know why I want to meditate, I just need to practice. I'm currently striving to sit and breathe for up to 5 minutes without my mind "wandering." It's ok if my mind ponders something in that moment ("I have a bum itch. ooooh - there, all good"), as long as I readjust and focus back on my breathing and counting.
I've been meditating for 4-5 minutes every day and I've begun to crave it. I feel fantastic afterwards and I'm beginning to notice myself attending to more things in my environment. I walked (well...crutched) into a patient's room today and was struck by the smell of fresh roses at her bedside. As I breathed in the fragrant scent, I wondered if I would have noticed this smell a few weeks ago or if I would have entered the room with swallowing assessment protocol on my mind - all business. That being said, I also was acutely aware of baby Sutter's stinky bum today (BFF Janna's sweet little boy) - so heightened senses are not always a good thing!
Thank you so much, Cherish, for your tips and guidance - much appreciated!
In other news, I am happy to announce that I am now an independent bather. Yep, you heard correctly. I am showering by myself. Assist of zero. This is very good news for my and Ev's marriage. 2 weeks ago, he "forgot" me in the shower. After desperately screeching his name repeatedly with no response, I actually scooted myself out of the shower and across the cold tile floor on my bottom. My naked bottom. It sucked. The situation prompted me to use Lawyer's brilliant line (which should definitely be on a T-shirt): "I love you...but right now, I hate your face."
Yea! Glad you are feeling better. I had meniscus surgery before so I know how much being dependent on other people sucks, though it sounds like you have it much worse than I did. Knees are a bitch.
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