Surviving Shoulder Surgery: The Phases
The way I see it, shoulder surgery is a collection of mostly long-lasting phases.
The pre-phase is ouch, diagnostics and diagnosis. This phase also includes the mental anguish of knowing you have to go through the rest of the phases.
Phase 1 is surgery. This is the shortest phase. In this phase you redefine sleeplessness, much more than you thought possible before surgery when you weren't getting any sleep anyway. This phase also consists of realizing that you can't do anything for yourself and you struggle with personal hygiene and basic life functions.
Phase 2 is starting to move your arm/shoulder. This is where you start passive range of motion. Small daily or weekly changes allow you to figure out how to do basic life functions and you celebrate ridiculous things like figuring out how to twist a towel on your head after someone else washes your hair. And that's a good day. This phase seems to last a lifetime.
Phase 3 is physical therapy. I am currently in this phase. I am starting to sleep a few hours per night but only with medication. I go to physical therapy three times per week and Tung tries to kill me. He is really nice but he tries to snap my arm off. I'm convinced. It hurts so bad that I break out in a sweat...sometimes when he simply approaches me. He did warn me this would be the worst part. That didn't help. Twice I have put my hair in a pony tail by kneeling on the bathroom floor and propping my right elbow up on the vanity top. It doesn't matter that it was all lopsided and loose. It only matters that I did it, despite the fact that I wouldn't be seen in public with it like that. I am starting to stretch my previous boundaries but I am still very much limited.
Phase 4 is post-physical therapy. This phase is going back to work and struggling to be normal and do normal activities. This is going to be a long, frustrating phase as shoulder surgery takes 9-12 months of rehab to achieve fairly normal motion. I am frightened of this stage because my career is so active. We will see how it goes!
The pre-phase is ouch, diagnostics and diagnosis. This phase also includes the mental anguish of knowing you have to go through the rest of the phases.
Phase 1 is surgery. This is the shortest phase. In this phase you redefine sleeplessness, much more than you thought possible before surgery when you weren't getting any sleep anyway. This phase also consists of realizing that you can't do anything for yourself and you struggle with personal hygiene and basic life functions.
Phase 2 is starting to move your arm/shoulder. This is where you start passive range of motion. Small daily or weekly changes allow you to figure out how to do basic life functions and you celebrate ridiculous things like figuring out how to twist a towel on your head after someone else washes your hair. And that's a good day. This phase seems to last a lifetime.
Phase 3 is physical therapy. I am currently in this phase. I am starting to sleep a few hours per night but only with medication. I go to physical therapy three times per week and Tung tries to kill me. He is really nice but he tries to snap my arm off. I'm convinced. It hurts so bad that I break out in a sweat...sometimes when he simply approaches me. He did warn me this would be the worst part. That didn't help. Twice I have put my hair in a pony tail by kneeling on the bathroom floor and propping my right elbow up on the vanity top. It doesn't matter that it was all lopsided and loose. It only matters that I did it, despite the fact that I wouldn't be seen in public with it like that. I am starting to stretch my previous boundaries but I am still very much limited.
Phase 4 is post-physical therapy. This phase is going back to work and struggling to be normal and do normal activities. This is going to be a long, frustrating phase as shoulder surgery takes 9-12 months of rehab to achieve fairly normal motion. I am frightened of this stage because my career is so active. We will see how it goes!
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