Well I had my knee surgery exactly three weeks ago. The doctor put a new ACL in my knee and was able to repair my miniscus. I was told by the doctor a week before surgery that he typically can’t repair the miniscus, but that he would only be able to cut out the torn cartilage. However he was able to fix it which is great in the long run! Unfortunately, it’s not so great in the short run. I have now been using crutches for three weeks and have three more weeks to go. Grr. If you have ever been on crutches, you understand how much more difficult your life really is.
The surgery itself went very smoothly. The worst part is the first week after surgery. I was of course prescribed paid meds that made me CRAZY and very sleepy. I wanted to get off of them as soon as possible. It’s freaky to me how much medication can affect you negatively. The worst part was about three days after surgery when I was getting off the pain meds. I still felt sleepy, but I also felt very sad and depressed. Like unreasonably depressed. It also didn’t help that the swelling in my knee from surgery was still so bad that I really couldn’t move around very well. Add not being able to move to the fact that I was becoming more and more cognitive while getting off the meds. I felt so TRAPPED inside my house, on my couch, and left in my own head all day. Fortunately, my family really helped me out during this time. No one left me alone for an unreasonable amount of time, but the short times that I was alone were really tough!
One week after surgery, I was in a wedding in Sedona. Yes, I actually crutched down the aisle. I even managed to dance on one leg!
That same week, I went back to teaching on crutches. I was DREADING this, but to my pleasant surprise, it wasn’t too bad! My students genuinely missed me during my absence and told me how happy they were to have me back! They were all so sweet in that they wanted to help me since I couldn’t walk or really carry anything on my own. I didn’t realize how blessed I was this year to have kids with such amazing hearts. They still shared a few laughs watching me sometimes jump around on one leg and just STUGGLE with EVERYTHING, but in the end, they always told me, “sit down Miss and let us help you.”
This past weekend, I traveled to Oklahoma! I went to see another friend get married. I was again feeling dread toward the experience in the airport on crutches! I was soo embarrassed about having to use the wheelchair service. But you can always find the positives out of the negatives in life. First of all, once I got over my embarassment, I realized that it was actually fun to get rolled around the airport on a wheelchair! Also, on one of my connection flights, my boarding pass wouldn’t go through. It said that I was on standby! Not gonna lie, this made me really cranky. Mostly because I was super embarrassed to be sitting in wheelchair, with everyone watching me as they boarded the plane, and having to wait for them to figure out a seat for me on the overbooked flight. But then a gentleman who felt bad for me gave up his first class seat for me! It was my first time to ever travel first class, and it was definitely the best plane ride ever!
So all and all I’m doing alright. God is really taking care of me. Three more weeks to go on crutches. Please pray for an extra speedy recovery for me with my knee. I have my ten day training camp in Georgia in a couple weeks for my trip, and yes I will still be on crutches unless God heals me sooner. I really believe He can if He wants.
Also, an update on fundraising: As you can see from above, I am VERY behind on my funds. June 3rd is the ABSOLUTE latest they are giving me to meet the $5000 deadline. Whatever doesn’t get raised by that point I will have to cover on my own. Right now, I will have to put in 1800 of my own money! I am definitely willing to do it! But ideally that money can go towards some other things I need for my trip like a backpack and sleeping bag and my student loans I have been working so hard to pay off. Once I get off crutches, I have a couple of fundraiser ideas that I will plan over the summer. However both ideas I am thinking of are really impossible to do while on crutches! I will announce those ideas soon, but that is how I am planning on raising the next $5000 before leaving in August.
Finally, in regard to the funds, you are of course in no way obligated to help me! However, don’t feel like you can give too little! Even a $10 dollar donation will give me encouragement about my trip that God is calling me on. Also, don’t forget to leave encouraging comments below on this blog post and future ones when I am actually on my trip. Occasionally, thinking about the trip gets very discouraging, and your words really bring a smile to my face.
Love you all!
