The weeks are flying by! Everyone says time flies when you’ve got a little ‘ un but you don’t realise just how quickly until you have one!
Tuesday afternoons have become my marker for the week, before I know it we’re back at children’s outpatients. A few weeks ago, when everything was a fatigued blur, I said to Tom that Harvey’s castings were the only way I could pinpoint what day of the week it was. And very soon we’ll have our Tuesday afternoons free again!
This is Harvey on week 7. The week we were in clinic with a ‘working’ (functional/normal) pair of feet between us. I was on crutches and reliant on Mum to bathe, carry and push him. Each of our consultants were interested in the other. My rheumotologist was interested in the talipes treatment and his orthopedic doc was interested in my arthritis. Great. Very much looking forward to when neither of us are interesting to anyone involved in healthcare!
We’re trying to help him strengthen his muscles lots prior to going into boots n bars, and he started really kicking his casted leg almost as much as the other, which was great to see as he had been a little reluctant to move it for a while. Also great to see are smiles!!!The best!
Week 8 was a good week. His foot looked straight for the first time and we were really chuffed with his progress which had been a little slow in recent weeks, especially as they took it slowly due to swollen toes. I was also walking around again, happy days! A while ago I never thought I’d be so emotional about feet!
Week 9 and we’re ready for the tenotomy!!! Woohoo! His foot is straight so it now needs the achillies tendon cut in order to allow the heel to drop down. So he’s back into a holding cast to keep the foot in the corrected position and then we’re into hospital Friday morning and first on the surgery list, so all being well home early afternoon. Fingers crossed! Harvey celebrated by really banging his foot down when kicking on the floor, think he enjoys the noise! Exciting times today too as Tom was able to come to the appointment so got to bath Harvey for the first time, such a simple joy which both of them fully enjoyed. No-one gives quite such a good cuddle and playtime as Daddy.
So stage 1 of treatment nearly done. Will be glad to not have the weekly hospital visits anymore. I’m back there again for a check up next month. The arthritis is much better than it was. The timing of it has been rotten and I’m still pissed off I’ve got it. The steroids are keeping the inflammation under control and the pain is mostly gone aside from stiffness in the ankle and morning pain in my hand. As there’s still stiffness I’ve got until my next appointment in a few weeks for the steroids to restore movement in my ankle fully else I have to decide which anti-rheumatic drugs to take to avoid long term damage. Not cool. Without wanting to moan, this arthritis was, for a couple of days, the most painful thing I’ve felt, yep, surpassing labour! Although that’s probably due to not having gas and air at home! Not being able to get to Harvey’s crib at the end of the bed when he was crying, having to have someone pass my baby to me, not being able to hold him with my right hand, was pretty shit. But the feeling of carrying him downstairs again was amazing, it’s the little things we need to fully appreciate more often. Our Mums have been superb and we’re really lucky to have plenty of offers of help, I just need to learn to take those offers up more!
mumsfootnotes 