No foolin', my stitches are out!
No April Fools jokes here. It's just a convenient time for a hand update.
I got my stitches out yesterday, which is luxurious. On the plus side, it feels better to have them out and to be able to do a few specific things that have been off limits for far too long, like washing my hands and doing dishes. Now that I have the compression bandage off, my index finger is very swollen, which still limits the usefulness of that hand, but I can use it a bit more than I could before.
After a few more days of letting the puncture wounds and incision close up, I am to start doing self-massage of that knuckle to promote the return of normal blood flow and start softening the scar tissue. No idea yet what the prognosis in terms of regaining full flexibility of the digit, but that's something I can work on.
There's still a lot of weirdly specific numbness. Some of that may change over the next few weeks with the help of self-massage, but ultimately I am to go get nerve conduction tests to determine if there is nerve impingement in my hand, around my C5 vertebra, or both. I plan to do that around mid-May - I have to wait a few weeks anyway, so I may as well wait until after SEAF. Those tests will be looking for things like carpal tunnel or other RSI problems in my hand and/or neck.
The other reason to wait until after SEAF is that I plan to seek out specific local recommendations for PT, massage therapy, and chiropractics, and the people I plan to talk to are also neck-deep in SEAF. :P
So, getting better, and I've got a plan for moving forward. Still no idea what's ultimately wrong or how to best treat it, but we're getting there. In a few days, I'll be able to return to my regular habits of yoga and exercise, which I think will go a long way toward improving things. Ideally, I'd like to get a diagnosis and have a treatment plan that avoids further surgery in favor of PT, massage, and better body mechanics. To that end, returning to yoga and exercise will help a lot, I think.
(It's amazing how much yoga, exercise, and stretching involves being able to use both hands. That's something I did not anticipate in all of the planning and prep I did before surgery. If I need surgery again, I'll probably be scheduling time with people to do assisted stretching and massage.)
I got my stitches out yesterday, which is luxurious. On the plus side, it feels better to have them out and to be able to do a few specific things that have been off limits for far too long, like washing my hands and doing dishes. Now that I have the compression bandage off, my index finger is very swollen, which still limits the usefulness of that hand, but I can use it a bit more than I could before.
After a few more days of letting the puncture wounds and incision close up, I am to start doing self-massage of that knuckle to promote the return of normal blood flow and start softening the scar tissue. No idea yet what the prognosis in terms of regaining full flexibility of the digit, but that's something I can work on.
There's still a lot of weirdly specific numbness. Some of that may change over the next few weeks with the help of self-massage, but ultimately I am to go get nerve conduction tests to determine if there is nerve impingement in my hand, around my C5 vertebra, or both. I plan to do that around mid-May - I have to wait a few weeks anyway, so I may as well wait until after SEAF. Those tests will be looking for things like carpal tunnel or other RSI problems in my hand and/or neck.
The other reason to wait until after SEAF is that I plan to seek out specific local recommendations for PT, massage therapy, and chiropractics, and the people I plan to talk to are also neck-deep in SEAF. :P
So, getting better, and I've got a plan for moving forward. Still no idea what's ultimately wrong or how to best treat it, but we're getting there. In a few days, I'll be able to return to my regular habits of yoga and exercise, which I think will go a long way toward improving things. Ideally, I'd like to get a diagnosis and have a treatment plan that avoids further surgery in favor of PT, massage, and better body mechanics. To that end, returning to yoga and exercise will help a lot, I think.
(It's amazing how much yoga, exercise, and stretching involves being able to use both hands. That's something I did not anticipate in all of the planning and prep I did before surgery. If I need surgery again, I'll probably be scheduling time with people to do assisted stretching and massage.)