Well, I had a nice long talk with Jackie just now. Glad it was a good time. You never know if you'll catch someone groggy or sleeping or in the middle of tests...

I wanted to know if her knee looked like Frankenstein's.  She said a little... and then she counted the staples (which would be double if there were actual stitches). 

I asked if the scar was straight on top, curved or on the side. She said "The scar is kind of off. Looking straight down on it, it goes a little to the left, then back to center again". The swelling has gone down today. It wasn't very swollen to begin with and the leg  isn't all black and blue, which amazes us both.  I think that's a very good sign.  She managed to take a few pictures of it too. Wonder if we'll see any once she gets back home and can post again.

A friend came by with DVD's, and like Zoetawny said she watched Juno. Only problem is, there is no apparent remote for the DVD, so when the nurses inevitably interrupted in the middle to do silly things like take blood and her temp, she could not pause it. @@   And when it was over, she had to call the nurses in to take it out and return her set to normal TV.  I was chomping on the bit to hang up and call the nurses station and ask them to bring one in from another room, or help her look for it, but Jackie insisted I didn't.  DANG I shouldn't have asked her and just done it!  But I of course want to respect what makes her feel comfortable, so I asked.  Frustrated!!! 

Said pal also brought her cookies, which is always a good thing, but even more now,  as after 4 days that hospital food is starting to pale. From the sound of things, it started out without poor marks. Even the ice cream isn't making up for it.  Haagendaas it's not.  Maybe it's like ice milk. I told her if she gets to go to the rehab place near her house, she could order in from her neighborhood faves.  

As of yesterday, the blood clot was apparently getting a little better.  When I hung up at 1:30 PM EST she was still waiting for her doctor's partner (who was in on the surgery) to come by. Bet they'll wait til her primary doc sees her Monday AM to determine if she's ready to make the move.  

It seems even better now that she's going to a rehab facility, since she hasn't been able to do anything in these first several days. It's so critical to move in the first 24-48 hours after an operation like this, but she can't due to the clot.  I just hope they will give her extra attention so she can catch up.  After going through all this, you do want to get that 90 degree bend back and that takes commitment.  

So now, our Jackie quiz question: Guess how many staples Jackie has on the outside of her knee. The incision is about 8 inches long.  The person(s) who gets it right will have their name posted on the next blog entry! Thrilling prize, I know, but for now, that's all I got, lol.

Many thanks to Zoetawny for today's graphic!

Jackie Watch, Day Three

I've got news.  Is it good news or bad news,  you ask.  A little of both, and the bad news isn't horrible. I'm to make sure you all know that (so says Jackie). 

She may be delayed a day or two in moving on from the hospital because of a little blood clot they found.  The doctor said it's NOT the kind that can travel to dangerous places. He said it's not great but not the end of the world. They have her on blood thinners right now and the only consequence is that she could not go for PT today.  However, I was relieved to hear she had indeed stood up yesterday.  She said it was excruciating, even full of pain meds and the nerve block!  But, no surprise there when you think of what just happened to that poor leg of hers!

Apparently she does not have that little wheelie thing on the knee to keep it in motion (a CPM machine ). The doc said she could wiggle her feet and get up and down to sit. I asked if she was at least getting in a chair to eat but she said she is just in bed, and sits herself up by using the electric rise.  Hmmm...  I thought it was crucial to move in these first days, and that nurses would be in there helping her up, but maybe not til the clot clears. She gets the feeling from them it will clear in a day so let's rally our thoughts and prayers toward that being the case!

The good news is, it looks like Jackie may be able to go to a rehab facility that is literally a block from her apartment. Even if she has to stay there for 2 weeks at least psychologically she will feel like she is home, and will probably be able to order some favorite take out from her local haunts. I'm so hoping they can arrange that for her!

I told her you all were asking about her and writing in. She DID receive several e-mails, and you still have half a day to send one to her if you were thinking about it (see last post). 

We agreed she'd call me when she knows the rehab address, if she gets moved somehow before we talk again. It may not be until Monday. Until then, she's found her way to Animal Planet and was making the rounds on cable, trying to figure out which channel was what.  She brought along Step on a Crack by James Patterson to read. And she has made some notes in her journal, even though she was pretty drugged up.  I told her it will be funny to read back on it once she's free of meds and see what she's got.  

Sending an e-mail to Ms. J

The first morning with the new knee dawns!  Jackie may have been very sore this AM. Even colds seem to be worse in the morning and late at night.  But by now she's had to have had breakfast and maybe lunch, and I bet they've gotten her up to walk a few paces.  

If you'd like to send her an e-mail, as Zoetwany mentioned, they only deliver them to patients Monday-Friday. Since Jackie will most likely be leaving the hospital over the weekend --and she's not sure they have e-mail in rehab -- we have today and tomorrow if we'd like to send her an e-hello.  

The direct link to the e-mail page at Somerset is: 

http://www.somersetmedicalcenter.com/body.cfm?id=483

For some reason I had to hand copy that so if it doesn't work, Jackie listed the link to Somerset a few posts back.  Click on Patient Information in the center of the home page.  A menu will pop down. At the bottom you'll see "send gift or e-mail".  Click that and it will take you to the gift page... and on the right there's a link to "e-mail a patient".  Zoetawny said you don't need to know her room number, but you do need to put in her full name. If anyone doesn't know that, and doesn't want to look it up, just drop me a line at NwYrkRock@aol.com.

I guess you can also send a gift from the hospital shop (cookies?  ice cream (she likes chocolate)? flowers? magazines?), and that can be done through the same link or via phone: 908-685-2200, ext. 3362. 

I may wait til tomorrow to check on her... today might be a tough one.  My husband had this done last summer and I was with him 24/7 (the 3 nights in the hospital, then attended to him in those first two weeks once we were home).  I'm trying to go off what he went through to imagine where Jackie is at physically and mentally. The good news is that today is half over. Once she gets past day 3 it's all uphill!

Let Them Know I Lived

Well, I got through to her room, but it rang and rang.  Do I keep holding on wondering if she is struggling to reach for it, or calling a nurse to help get it, or is she hearing it at a distance in a deep sleep, wishing it would go away (like a GNAT!)? Maybe she's justs up for the first time in the ladies room and my ring is  making her nervous (well, probably not if the drugs are good, lol)...  or is she not even in the room? They do make you walk a little in the hall the first day.

After a dozen rings I hung up and talked them into letting me speak to the nurses station on her floor.  That was the ticket.  Apparently Jackie was not able to reach the phone so the nurse moved it closer.  A shot of adrenaline went through me as I waited to be transferred, because that meant she was OK!  YAY!!!

Jackie sounded very quiet, and she said she was foggy.  She had her dinner there waiting and was a trouper taking time to talk to me when she had to have been hurting. She was waiting for pain meds to come. There was ice cream on the tray, so I suggested that as a fall back.  :-)

She said she did have a nerve block and it wasn't pretty. I asked if her leg was all bandaged up or in one of those mechanical rotation devices (it's like a little ferris wheel for your knee to keep it moving at all times).  I smiled to myself as she said, "Let's see, let me lift up the sheet here and take a look."  I pictured her doing this.  She said "Well, there's bandages, Ew.  More bandages... and more bandages...  Ew, Ew."  Mind you, this was not delivered in a girlish squeal, but in full-on deadpan mode. Apparently she remains funny under any circumstances. They may take her knee, but they cannot damage her spirit!  

She added "My leg doesn't look humungous.  That surprises me."  It surprised me too. On the other leg there is one of those blood pressure thingys... it wraps around the leg from ankle to knee and inflates every few minutes to keep everything flowing. With pride (and perhaps a smirk... if only they had TV phones!) she told me, "I still have perfect blood pressure."

I asked if she had a TV.  "Yes," she said, brightening. "42 inches!"  A flat screen I asked?  "Yes, though I couldn't see it before. It took 5 hours for the nurses to bring my bag, and my bag had my glasses in it, so I could not see it all this time."  Ug, I just wished one of us lived closer and could be there right now.  We would have created a brouhaha if that's what it took to get it!

She accidentally pushed a button while readjusting the covers and I could hear that a nurse immediately appeared. Jackie apologized, saying it was a mistake. We both chuckled after, wondering where that kind of service was during the previous 5 hours.

I knew she needed to go but I made sure to tell her that everyone had written in today and was waiting for the next report with bated breath.  That all send their love and good wishes. Zoetawny, I let her know that you had tried to call her earlier as well.  Her response to all that and her last words before we hung up was, "Let them know I lived!"

I will call her again tomorrow.

THE BIG DAY!

Hello All - Sydney here, cub reporter on all things Jackie.

For anyone who might not know, today is the long awaited day of Jackie's knee surgery. I know just how many of you care and have her on your mind, as I do, and want details. Jackie's own post is just below this so please be sure to read it. I was hesitant to write so quickly as I didn't want to crunch it, but I also know how many of you are like me, wondering what's going on with her RIGHT NOW, this minute.

Jackie was due to arrive at the hospital by 6 AM today... She told me that she was going to do a final post before she left and all last night I kept checking. I looked one last time before I went to bed --1AM EST-- and still saw nothing so I was hoping she was asleep. If she was going to BE at the hospital by 6 she probably had to get up by around 4:00 or 4:30AM, depending on how long it takes to get ready and how far it is to get there.... and she ended up posting at 3:30AM! More evidence that she is indeed superwoman (soon to be the bionic woman). I have to admit, I'm not sure I'd be able to sleep much either.

Her surgery was scheduled for 7:30 AM so she'd be in there for about an hour. Let's all send her extra big love as she finishes up and comes out of anesthesia.

I will call her early this evening to see how she is, and post that here, so please check back.