Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Living with intention

It's amazing how its so easy to take health for granted.  I have spent many hours since my accident looking at my good right hand, flexing it, watching the muscles and tendons moving easily underneath the skin. Appreciating all the wonders of a healthy hand. My full time job lately has been getting better. After meeting with my physical therapist, I'm doing a set stretching regime followed by massage and skin manipulation for ten minutes every hour. It was almost horrifying to see how little I was able to bend my fingers when I started and to see how much my skin had fused to the tissues underneath due to scar tissue. Every time I move my fingers all the skin moves with it! But I've been working through the yuck factor and being diligent. I am already seeing improvement. 
It's been tough avoiding using my left hand. It is mind blowing how many things you can't do with just one hand. You... can't... twist... anything... bottle tops, medicine caps, salt and pepper grinders, or even door knobs. How often does anyone pass through a door without carrying at least one thing? So that uses up your one hand allotment. That has been the most frustrating part, never being able to open doors! It takes twice as long to go to the bathroom since its harder to button or zip pants. You can't cut up food. Poor Kevin has to cut up steak for all of us lately! 
But being one handed forces you to think through every step of every action you intend. Making a bowl of cereal? Figure out the maximum number of trips you will have to make back and forth between the table and refrigerator to get the bowl, spoon, cereal, milk etc...multiply that number by 4 and plan on that number being the necessary number of trips needed to make that one bowl of cereal. I can't complain since walking back and forth is the only real exercise I get these days! But it has done wonders at slowing me down, making me think through my actions, living life with intent. I have to think about what I am doing to not only prevent myself from inadvertently trying to use my left hand but also to keep me sane as I try to help out around the house as much as I'm able.
This period of my life will definitely be remembered as a time of inconvenience and discomfort, but I'm  hoping the life lessons I've learned from this will stay with me when I'm back and running. I hope I can continue to live life with intent and appreciate my health and I hope everyone who reads this can take a moment to be thankful for their health and to think about slowing down, even for a moment, to appreciate everything they are able to do. We are all very blessed.

2 comments:

  1. Emily, I went through a very similar experience when I broke my ankle back in December. Couldn't put weight on it for 3 months. Hobbled with a walker (no hands to carry things!) or in a wheel chair. Slowed me way down and EVERYTHING took forever. I'm almost back 100% -- that took much longer than I had hoped. And patience is a tough lesson. But good. Keep healing - prayers for full recovery.

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  2. I can only imagine the toll it all takes, especially for someone as capable and active as you are. It's a great credit to you that you're handling your recovery with so much strength and optimism; everyone else is saying it too, but I really have never met many people with the kind of grit you have. I'm wishing you a deep and quick recovery.

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