Today was a … challenge. I had an appointment at the wound clinic to have the staples from my incision removed and what not. After the dozen or so staples were removed, the nurse noticed something. Mainly, that one of my staples had been rubbed to the point that it opened up a hole. Yep. A nice little hole that lead straight down to my existing tunnel. So, the tunnel that I’ve been trying to heal, has a second hole to the outside. I will take this opportunity to point out that I didn’t have this second hole in my stomach before I got the wound vac. Last week, I only had one hole. Today I have two. I know that I skipped that day of Medical School, and correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think that is how healing is supposed to work. I kind of expected the number of holes to decrease, not increase. If this keeps up, by Valentine’s Day I’ll look like a Tom and Jerry Cartoon.
That’s more than a little …frustrating, when you consider what a royal pain this stinking wound vac is. On the plus side; with a couple of colored scarves tied together I could do a really neat party trick right now. Not much of a plus side I know. I’m into this thing for a bit over a week and I’m worse off than before it started.
I’ve alluded to previously, how much it hurts to have my wound dressing changed in general. The wound vac dressing is all that and more. So much more. It’s a completely exquisite experience that I wouldn’t wish on anyone. Well, Surgical Harpies excluded. The internals of the Wound Vac get changed every three days. Or, I should say can’t stay in any longer than three days. Whichever you prefer. How this all is working out should surprise exactly no one at this point.
I got everything changed out on Wednesday, right on schedule. Thursday, I go to the Wound Clinic to have my staples removed. With the location of the staples, and the wound; the wound vac “covering” had to be removed to pull the staples. Once the seal is broken, everything has to be replaced; you can’t just throw new plastic covering on it. Yes. I asked. So, two days in a row I have to go through this. For those of you playing the home game; what’s three days from Thursday? If you said the Sunday before Christmas, you’d be right. The next time I can get to the Wound Clinic or my Home Nurse can get to me is … Tuesday. Wednesday to Tuesday is how many days? More than three… That’s WAAAAAAYYY to long to leave the packing in place. So, I get to have everything replaced on Friday. That’s three days in a row of exquisite pain having the wound vac changed. For the record, Friday to Tuesday is OK in this case. Apparently, Christmas Day doesn’t count. Yes. I asked.
Yeah…
I don’t understand it either at this point. I just don’t understand. So… I go back to what I know:
- Suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character, and character, hope. Romans 5:3-5. Suffering: Check. Check. And… Check. Fairly confident I’ve got this covered. Perseverance: Um… Check? I’m still persevering. Character: I’m most definitely a character from what I’m told. There’s probably a Widget I can add for an online poll and pie chart the results. Check. Hope: This is the one that I’m still working on.
- Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged for the Lord your God is with you where ever you go. Joshua 2:9.
- He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion. Philippians 1:6.
I know these things. I know them in my head; I just need to work on knowing them in my heart. It seems that I’m off by about twelve inches.
The Story So Far 