This next phase of recovery was possibly going to be the most impactful. Busy, expensive, tiring, painful and exciting too, but RESULTS are what I’m chasing hard! There's never been a truer saying than “Don’t try to run before you can walk”, as right now I couldn't do either. But hopefully before long, I'd be able to do that awkward little half run we all do when crossing a road with oncoming traffic.
All of a sudden I realised I needed a Fabulous Femur Wardrobe! Now I was going to be venturing out in public to get to all these appointments, I was going to have to wear something other than pyjama shorts. The problem was, it was UK wintertime with daily highs of about 5°C, yet I kinda had to wear shorts because nothing else would fit over my enormous leg brace! I can't believe I'd be one of those people you'd see wearing shorts in the middle of winter and think “Wow, they must be a right weirdo!” or “Are they not absolutely freezing?”
I wasn't even a postman! This was stressing me out- the thought of my good leg perishing in the cold and looking like more of a weirdo than I already did, so I decided to improvise… like I did with my homecoming hospital outfit: buy a load of cheap joggers and cut off all the left legs! Genius. Now all I had to worry about was my fat, still-swollen-from-surgery hairy knee poking through my brace. I was really missing seeing my kneecap and wondered why it was still covered with enough fluid to fill Lake Garda.
First up in the rehab programme (alongside chugging a mix of bone broth collagen and vegan collagen), was hyperbaric oxygen therapy! I didn't know what to expect or if I'd even managed to get in and out of the chamber, but after the initial phone consultation with the delightful Catherine, I knew I'd be fine! Like with the one legged joggers. I'd make it work! Getting there in the back of dads car with an achievement in itself. My first time in an actual car since surgery. I carefully reversed myself in, scooting my bum along the back seat, leg outstretched. Wow, now I could travel NOT in an ambulance I could go anywhere, right?!
(Steady on Sophie.)
I managed to hop up the stairs to The Oxygen Suite and was mesmerised by this giant white pod that resembled a Moomin's head. There were no phones or drinks allowed in it obviously, but you could take a book in there or just close your eyes and enjoy an hour and 20 minutes where no one could get to you. Heaven! All I had to do was sit there in this comfy seat, surrounded by fluffy cushions, wearing my little oxygen mask, feeling like an astronaut, breathing in all this pure oxygen while it worked its magic. And believe me when I say it is magic! The list of benefits were endless:
Speeding up wound healing, regenerating new tissue and blood vessels, increasing bone density, reduces swelling and inflammation (bye bye fat knee!) Activates fibroblasts which produce collagen, increases energy, lifts your mood, reduces pain, fights infection, boosts immunity and even reduces some fine lines and wrinkles, making your skin glow. Sign me up buttercup! Can I just live in this pod?! If it's good enough for the England rugby team, pro boxer Jake Paul and the God that is David Beckham, it's good enough for me! And if we could arrange for David Beckham to be in the pod with me too that would be great.
I managed to manoeuvre myself in with the help of Catherine and she put me at ease right away. The chamber inflates quite a lot while you're in it and there's little windows so I could be kept an eye on or speak to Catherine if I needed to. I felt like I was in space and the hissing sound of oxygen pouring in was weirdly relaxing. When the time came for me to emerge, the oxygen began to drop and the pod started to deflate. My ears popped like crazy and it was the nearest thing I’d feel to being on a plane for a while, so I’d kid myself I’d just landed in New York. My femur was loving life right now!
Fast forward a couple of days and a couple of Fillet steaks later (who even am I?!) And it was time to venture to Handforth for my first appointment with physio master- Jeff Ross of Harris and Ross. I knew it was going to be a good day because that morning I received a package addressed to ‘DJ FEMUR’ from none other than everyone's favourite cool chick: racing driver Jade Edwards. That made me smile before I'd even opened it. And I laughed my head off even more once I did...! Thank you Jade!
When I got to physio, I was delighted that they had a lift and I didn't have to hop up any stairs. The doors opened and I was greeted by a lovely receptionist, and walls adorned with signed footballers shirts, and signed photos of racing drivers, Olympians, rugby teams, Westlife members and Gordon Ramsay. If this place could fix Gordon, they could definitely fix me! And just imagine all the broken noses, legs, ankles and collar bones they’d have put back together over the years… My fabulous femur would be light work!
Jeff was awesome and a real expert in his field, so despite me being in full invalid-mode, unable to weight bear and a leg that still wouldn't bend, he did loads with me and had every faith he could get me walking, bending and strong again. Zero doubt in his expert mind! This was the energy I needed right now. Especially as the fear would often creep in and I struggled to imagine ever walking again.
After a rather painful hour and internally swearing more than Gordon, I came out of there with plenty of homework. New exercises to dedicate myself to daily and a huge sense of excitement and gratitude. I knew I was in the best hands, with the right team around me and I’d be back on the grid, wearing my heels before I knew it!
Hopefully all will go to plan. I’d still have to be sensible of course, which isn’t something I’m good at let’s be honest! I will just have to embrace the pain over these next six months and maybe take a paracetamol beforehand. (Note to self: That would have been a good idea.)
Roll on next week when I start weight bearing both in water and on land. That's right folks- I was booked in for hydrotherapy, as part of the physio action plan! Both exciting and scary as I can't actually swim, but hey- the way I was feeling right now I would make damn sure I was walking up and down in that chlorine-filled water like a pro. Just call me 'Jesus'!
What was in the package from JE99 xxx
Hi Sophie, another brilliant episode; thank you. You have left out one major thing though. What was in Jade's 🎁 ?