(no subject)
The last few days' recovery has been hard. I've developed sciatica in my legs, either from the wacky pretzel-thing they do with your body during surgery or from sitting/sleeping in the recliner - or both - even though I've been taking walks and watering my gardens and otherwise trying to keep moving throughout the day.
The sciatica is part and pain and part incredible sensitivity that makes me feel like crawling out of my skin. At its worst it was so bad that even resting my leg on a pillow felt like wrapping it in sandpaper from the inside out. Walking is good, in theory, but in practice it makes the discomfort worse at night. I'm not sleeping well, and my circadians are all out of whack.
The trouble is, because of the surgeries, I'm not allowed to do the core exercises that help keep the sciatica from overwhelming me. I cheated the other night and did some yogic leg stretches - what can it hurt to touch my toes, I thought? Well, hmm. I felt something pop when I tried to get back up, and now I'm having some minor issues erm, down there. The ob-gyn moved my post-op up a week, which is good, but it's still a week away. I'm supposed to just keep an eye on everything and hope that the symptoms I'm experiencing are all just normal "your body is in shock" things.
With my sleep schedule thrown off and my ability to move around impeded, I'm starting to feel very, very - well, fat.
And tired.
We started homeschool yesterday, me doing my best to bring structure back and get us all back to normal. School went very well, I got a lot done (mostly phone calls) - I even cooked side dishes to go with our takeout leftovers AND I baked an apple pancake for dessert. But I was freakin' exhausted by the time the Kinglet went to bed, so much so that I couldn't finish a critique for my friend Joanne that is shamefully late already.
I know I can't expect to have MORE energy after surgery than I did before - which wasn't so great to start with. But I do want to keep trying, because if my life becomes any more sedentary I doubt my body would be able to manufacture the energy needed to heal itself - let alone get back to the ME that was before I got sick. Which was now such a handful of years ago I've lost track exactly when. *thinks* Hmm. 2007. December, 2007.
Five years, going on. Holy Mother, I've been sick for five years.
Anyway.
I had a phone interview yesterday with the director of a private school where we'd like the Kinglet to go. This one is designed for bright kids with special problems, so we think it would be a good fit. The lady was enthusiastic about the Kinglet's test scores, although she cautioned that smart kids can often be more challenging to incorporate in a classroom. I'm hoping they mean challenging in the sense that "we're up for a challenge" as opposed to "we can't devote extra time to him". I felt like she was suggesting both at different points in the conversation, for different reasons. Overall I took away the sense that they have to be very careful and selective not just for test scores and diagnosis codes but also in creating a workable classroom dynamic - which is grand, and I get it. But I've heard that before and it makes me wonder what happens to all the "special" kids that don't fit a dynamic. They go back to public school, I guess - and if they don't fit there, they get closeted away to special ed. Or otherwise marginalized and stigmatized.
I'm trying not to think that way.
In any case, I left the interview with a positive feeling. They are going to arrange a meeting with us and the teachers to get to know the Kinglet and allow more Q&A in both directions. If it goes well they seem willing to make a space for him. After that we'll have to talk about the financial aspect, which I honestly don't know how to deal with, but first things first.
Maybe they'll love him so much they'll give him a full scholarship.
Maybe I have a rich uncle somewhere willing to invest in the Kinglet's future.
Maybe something.
Anyway. Is where we are.
The sciatica is part and pain and part incredible sensitivity that makes me feel like crawling out of my skin. At its worst it was so bad that even resting my leg on a pillow felt like wrapping it in sandpaper from the inside out. Walking is good, in theory, but in practice it makes the discomfort worse at night. I'm not sleeping well, and my circadians are all out of whack.
The trouble is, because of the surgeries, I'm not allowed to do the core exercises that help keep the sciatica from overwhelming me. I cheated the other night and did some yogic leg stretches - what can it hurt to touch my toes, I thought? Well, hmm. I felt something pop when I tried to get back up, and now I'm having some minor issues erm, down there. The ob-gyn moved my post-op up a week, which is good, but it's still a week away. I'm supposed to just keep an eye on everything and hope that the symptoms I'm experiencing are all just normal "your body is in shock" things.
With my sleep schedule thrown off and my ability to move around impeded, I'm starting to feel very, very - well, fat.
And tired.
We started homeschool yesterday, me doing my best to bring structure back and get us all back to normal. School went very well, I got a lot done (mostly phone calls) - I even cooked side dishes to go with our takeout leftovers AND I baked an apple pancake for dessert. But I was freakin' exhausted by the time the Kinglet went to bed, so much so that I couldn't finish a critique for my friend Joanne that is shamefully late already.
I know I can't expect to have MORE energy after surgery than I did before - which wasn't so great to start with. But I do want to keep trying, because if my life becomes any more sedentary I doubt my body would be able to manufacture the energy needed to heal itself - let alone get back to the ME that was before I got sick. Which was now such a handful of years ago I've lost track exactly when. *thinks* Hmm. 2007. December, 2007.
Five years, going on. Holy Mother, I've been sick for five years.
Anyway.
I had a phone interview yesterday with the director of a private school where we'd like the Kinglet to go. This one is designed for bright kids with special problems, so we think it would be a good fit. The lady was enthusiastic about the Kinglet's test scores, although she cautioned that smart kids can often be more challenging to incorporate in a classroom. I'm hoping they mean challenging in the sense that "we're up for a challenge" as opposed to "we can't devote extra time to him". I felt like she was suggesting both at different points in the conversation, for different reasons. Overall I took away the sense that they have to be very careful and selective not just for test scores and diagnosis codes but also in creating a workable classroom dynamic - which is grand, and I get it. But I've heard that before and it makes me wonder what happens to all the "special" kids that don't fit a dynamic. They go back to public school, I guess - and if they don't fit there, they get closeted away to special ed. Or otherwise marginalized and stigmatized.
I'm trying not to think that way.
In any case, I left the interview with a positive feeling. They are going to arrange a meeting with us and the teachers to get to know the Kinglet and allow more Q&A in both directions. If it goes well they seem willing to make a space for him. After that we'll have to talk about the financial aspect, which I honestly don't know how to deal with, but first things first.
Maybe they'll love him so much they'll give him a full scholarship.
Maybe I have a rich uncle somewhere willing to invest in the Kinglet's future.
Maybe something.
Anyway. Is where we are.