Injuries and pain meds

[Dragon Lady]

My body mysteriously and unexplainably got (what we think is) an inflamed rotator cuff and/or impeded (maybe? I don't remember medical jargon) ligaments. Which has left my right arm in extreme pain with very little mobility. I went to the doctor yesterday where he gave me an injection with litocain and an anti-inflammatory. Normally I would be against just taking pain meds, because I'm the kind of girl who wants to fix the problem, not just cover the symptoms, but he presented it as a diagnostic tool (without even knowing my stance on the matter). Where we didn't know exactly what was wrong, if an anti-inflammatory makes it feel better, then we know to treat the inflammation. If it doesn't, then we know to look at other things. He also emphasized that, "Even though you'll feel great, DO NOT OVERDO IT! WE HAVEN'T FIXED ANYTHING YET!"

Anyway. My point. Yesterday after that visit and today have been bliss. I've been able to drive my car, cook freezer meals, take care of children, etc., with very minor pain. I'm pretty sure it's still the pain-killer portion of it in effect. My range of motion has increased dramatically before I feel pain.

I'm totally torn about this. On the one hand, it is *amazing* to be able to move and do things without wanting to cry. I am so grateful. But on the other hand, I have this fear that I am actually going to end up injuring it more. I purposely have chosen not to listen to the pain that my body is sending me to warn me not to make things worse. So I'm moving it more and more often, completely unconsciously, than I would have without the injection. When all this wears off on Friday (and then I have the weekend before I can do anything more about it), am I going to be in even more pain because I've increased the injury?

I am completely torn on my feelings about pain meds right now.

And… I feel like I should ask a question. Except, this isn't the Board. It's just my random chatter/thoughts. So there.

[Whistler]

awww pain is hard to deal with! Maybe you can do some physical therapy while you take pain medication and get to the point where you don't need medicine anymore? :-/

[Dragon Lady]

Well, I'd survive without pain meds. I did it for a day and a half. And I plan on doing PT if it still hurts this weekend. It's just an interesting quandary during the 3 days of the injection's effectiveness.

But it's super bad timing as I'm trying to do all my canning/freezing before the frost hits in full, then pulling out my garden, then putting something like 10-15 cubic yards of mulch in my backyard. All without my right arm. Funtimes.

[Whistler]

This is the part where a visiting teacher is really handy

[Dragon Lady]

Haha. I think I'd take my home teachers first. Yes, I'm sexist that way. At least for the moving mulch. Because that's really my biggest concern. Yellow can help with the gardening stuff if I need. But the heavy labor he can't do on his own. One of my VTers is old and the other is ridiculously busy and super tiny in stature. Granted, one of my HTers is in process of moving, so I probably wouldn't bug him. But the other one is totally fair game! And actually, my last HTer, from before my ward split, is totally fair game, too. Hah! It wouldn't be the first time we called on him for something.

[Portia]

Haha. I think I'd take my home teachers first. Yes, I'm sexist that way. :) At least for the moving mulch. Because that's really my biggest concern. [Yellow] can help with the gardening stuff if I need. But the heavy labor he can't do on his own. One of my VTers is old and the other is ridiculously busy and super tiny in stature. Granted, one of my HTers is in process of moving, so I probably wouldn't bug him. But the other one is totally fair game! And actually, my last HTer, from before my ward split, is totally fair game, too. Hah! It wouldn't be the first time we called on him for something.

You didn't use pseudonyms. If you care.

[vorpal blade]

...then putting something like 10-15 cubic yards of mulch in my backyard. All without my right arm. Funtimes.

Let's see. A large wheelbarrow holds about 6 cubic feet of stuff. A cubic yard would be 27 cubic feet. Hence it takes 27/6 wheelbarrow loads per cubic yard. You need to move 45 to 67.5 wheelbarrow loads of mulch. That could be tiring. I recently moved by wheelbarrow about half that much compost and I thought it was a lot. I was going to offer to help...but I don't live in your state.

[Dragon Lady]

Portia, thanks! I fixed it, but your quote of my mistake still stands. Clearly I don't speak in nyms anymore...