March 20, 2013, Sandra walked into the Tasty Buddha restaurant, under her own steam: no chair, no walker, and had a 'normal' lunch. HURRAH!
A week later, the lower extremity surgeon said, take off your braces, I don't want you using them any more. Sandra was ECSTATIC (hence my "Forrest Gump" title quote). They weigh about 6 pounds, and she couldn't even try to walk normally because the hinges of one would catch the other when she tried a normal step, resulting in an awkward, rolling gait. She's hardly walking "normally" without them, its more like creeping; but there is no walker or wheelchair to maneuver, FINALLY. She's been walking around the house carefully and ever so sloooowwwllllyyy, getting steadier all the time.
The same surgeon also prescribed physical therapy at the surgery center, six weeks of twice a week sessions, involving a lot of strengthening exercises - and to stretch the left knee/leg, because it's still stiff, swollen, and painful, and doesn't bend as well as the right knee does.
It's hard to believe that it has been less than a month since her last - and hopefully final - surgery, to fix the broken bones in her right wrist. She got the cast off and started physical therapy on it within two weeks of surgery, I was amazed. Oh, and she has yet another plate, to stabilize the right hand. That makes three now - well, two plus the rod in her thigh. Traveling on a plane will be really fun now, TSA will probably freak out.
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