Bah! Humbug!!

This has been THE WORST holiday season ever! Flat on my back in bed, in more pain that I could have ever imagined, and nothing to listen to but foghorns and cat fights, instead of sleigh bells and carols! Not to mention rain, rain, rain, rain, rain, rain, etc.

A couple of weeks ago, I thought I'd be slick and schedule some major dental work for last Monday... you know, get it over with before the holidays... make my smile beautiful for happy holiday photos, yada, yada. That was the first disaster. Midway through the five root canal/four filling/peridontal treatment procedures, the work was aborted because the dentist found more than he'd bargained for. Since I'd been under anesthesia for almost five hours, he did a quick patch up and set me up to come back in two days to finish everything. Home I went, under the influence of loopy-making pain killers, and, sometime in the middle of the night, on my way to the loo, I fell down and smashed my hip. I spent the next twelve hours in the emergency room, in and out of a purple haze of pain and morphine. Four x-rays and a CT scan later, it was, thankfully, determined there were no fractures. I had, however, sustained a massive contusion, and bruising and swelling were roiling up by the minute. And PAIN! Ach! It was indescribable! Since there were no fractures, I was, of course, deemed "fit for release" and sent home, whereupon the real fun began.

Let me tell you, if I didn't know it before (actually I did), at this point I can totally verify I'm married to a Saint. My DH gets squeemish when I sustain a cat scratch that draws a little blood, so he was totally unprepared for what lay ahead this time. To his immense credit, he's weathered it all beyond any expectations I could have had. I'll leave it to you to imagine the details of caring for someone who couldn't move without screaming, couldn't carry on a rational conversation, and pleaded for another pain pill every ten minutes. He lovingly prepared soups for me, applied ice packs every two hours, propped me up with pillows, endured my howls and cries, cared for nineteen cats, fed the outdoor birds, did laundry, washed dishes, went shopping, picked up my prescriptions, and on, and on.

I'm happy to report, I'm feeling better today. I'm a long way from walking, but can now navigate my crutches with a decent amount of grace, can put about 2% of my weight on my injured leg, and can go for over 8 hours between pain pills. I was able to get to the computer for the first time since last Monday, to be greeted by nearly 300 e-mails! A daunting lot, but I plowed through all of them. I received lots of good wishes from FaceBook friends, for which I'm very grateful, along with the usual array of tasteless jokes from my crazy chiropractor - all of which made me feel even better... proving how important laughter is in the healing process.

I'm beginning to feel the effects of being vertical, so I'm back to my cozy bed now, made even cozier by a large assortment of furry rocks snuggling all around me.


I hope deliciously happy holidays were enjoyed by all!