only 4 houses away from home....and fell and broke my left ankle!
I was on leave from work for almost a month and had to stay off my foot and
could not put any weight on it for two months!
My doctor went back and forth about whether or not I would need
to have surgery, even ordering an expensive cat scan to help decide
for sure if that was what would be best in my case.
Thankfully, it turned out I did not need surgery!
I finally was able to start putting weight on my foot, do some light walking,
with the assistance of my granny walker and start physical therapy.
OK, but this is a music related blog, right? (Yes, it is.)
So what does my broken ankle and my recovery have to do with music?
Keep your shirt on, I'm getting to that...
It's pretty incredible how many everyday mundane tasks we take for granted.
When you're not able to walk around on your own, stand on two feet,
lift or carry things, it really limits what you are physically able to do.
(Which is probably why most of my time during the healing process
was spent sleeping, reading and using my tablet.)
I'm a pretty independent person, so it was difficult having to rely on others
for help with meals, rides, washing my hair, bringing things to me, etc.
I felt pretty useless.
So when I finally got the "all clear" to be able to use my foot again,
I realized that I would soon be able to do things I hadn't been able to do
for about two months! A world of possibilities!
Like taking a shower...
Even though I was now finally able to stand on both feet,
the thought of trying to get in and out of the bathtub,
I'm not going to lie, was pretty terrifying to me.
But I was tired of sponge baths and washing my hair in the kitchen sink!
So I took the plunge and carefully stepped into the tub.
I turned on the water and as the water sprayed all over me, I giggled.
Finally being able to take a shower, something most people do every day,
made me burst out in giggles of joy!
(I was probably giggling for a good 3-4 minutes, too!)
As I realized my reaction, a thought came to my mind,
actually more than just a thought, but a song...
one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite singers.
[See I told you this was a music related post!]
This time, I'll be sailing
No more bailing boats for me
I'll be out there on the sea
Just my confidence and me
And I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
But I'll learn to get by
On little victories
This time, I'll have no fear
I'll be standing strong and tall
Turn my back towards them all
And I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
And I'll learn to get by
On the little victories
And if the world decides to catch up with me
Still little victories
Little Victories by Matt Nathanson
To read another blog post about Matt Nathanson, a hurt foot and Little Victories, click here.
Being able to take a shower for the first time in almost two months
was a little victory for me! (A big, little victory, actually.)
So every time I was able to do something that I wasn't able to do,
I made sure to recognize them as little victories.
By doing this, I feel like I was not only able to realize how far I've come
in my recovery, but also how much others had really done for me and
how many little things we take for granted every day...
that perhaps we shouldn't.
It also helped me to try to overcome the fears I had, to stand strong and tall,
and to believe in myself and remember that I could do hard things and
that just because I fell once, didn't necessarily mean I was going to fall again.
Here's a list of some of my Little Victories:
So yeah, I still have a way to go before I'm fully recovered, but I know
I'll learn to get by on little victories.
with the assistance of my granny walker and start physical therapy.
OK, but this is a music related blog, right? (Yes, it is.)
So what does my broken ankle and my recovery have to do with music?
Keep your shirt on, I'm getting to that...
It's pretty incredible how many everyday mundane tasks we take for granted.
When you're not able to walk around on your own, stand on two feet,
lift or carry things, it really limits what you are physically able to do.
(Which is probably why most of my time during the healing process
was spent sleeping, reading and using my tablet.)
I'm a pretty independent person, so it was difficult having to rely on others
for help with meals, rides, washing my hair, bringing things to me, etc.
I felt pretty useless.
So when I finally got the "all clear" to be able to use my foot again,
I realized that I would soon be able to do things I hadn't been able to do
for about two months! A world of possibilities!
Like taking a shower...
Even though I was now finally able to stand on both feet,
the thought of trying to get in and out of the bathtub,
I'm not going to lie, was pretty terrifying to me.
But I was tired of sponge baths and washing my hair in the kitchen sink!
So I took the plunge and carefully stepped into the tub.
I turned on the water and as the water sprayed all over me, I giggled.
Finally being able to take a shower, something most people do every day,
made me burst out in giggles of joy!
(I was probably giggling for a good 3-4 minutes, too!)
As I realized my reaction, a thought came to my mind,
actually more than just a thought, but a song...
one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite singers.
[See I told you this was a music related post!]
This time, I'll be sailing
No more bailing boats for me
I'll be out there on the sea
Just my confidence and me
And I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
But I'll learn to get by
On little victories
This time, I'll have no fear
I'll be standing strong and tall
Turn my back towards them all
And I'll be awful sometimes
Weakened to my knees
And I'll learn to get by
On the little victories
And if the world decides to catch up with me
Still little victories
Little Victories by Matt Nathanson
To read another blog post about Matt Nathanson, a hurt foot and Little Victories, click here.
Being able to take a shower for the first time in almost two months
was a little victory for me! (A big, little victory, actually.)
So every time I was able to do something that I wasn't able to do,
I made sure to recognize them as little victories.
By doing this, I feel like I was not only able to realize how far I've come
in my recovery, but also how much others had really done for me and
how many little things we take for granted every day...
that perhaps we shouldn't.
It also helped me to try to overcome the fears I had, to stand strong and tall,
and to believe in myself and remember that I could do hard things and
that just because I fell once, didn't necessarily mean I was going to fall again.
Here's a list of some of my Little Victories:
- Standing up from a seated position without leaning on something to get up.
- Being able to move my foot around to help loosen it up.
- Wearing jeans for the first time in two months.
- Sleeping with nothing on my leg/foot. (No cast or boot!)
- Wearing shoes on both feet.
- Finally using a present I got for Christmas. (Micro Pedi Nano)
- Doing my own laundry.
- Making my own dinner.
- Washing my own dishes.
- Stopped hopping with the walker and actually walked with it.
- Walking longer distances, indoors and outdoors.
- Putting groceries away.
- Opening the heavy glass door coming in/out of the office by myself.
- Taking a few steps for the first time without using the walker (HUGE little victory)
- Picking up my three year old nephew.
- No more pirouettes to get to the toilet.
- Going grocery shopping without using the electric scooter.
- Walking up and down stairs.
- Walking around the house all day without using the walker. (!!!)
So yeah, I still have a way to go before I'm fully recovered, but I know
I'll learn to get by on little victories.
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