So I made it the first weekend at home without going back to the hospital! Chris was my sole caregiver, but he was able to get some breaks when friends would visit. I had several friends visit throughout the weekend and I honestly don’t remember much about those visits. I have a vague recollection that they were over and of some of the events of the weekend, but mostly I have no clue what happened.

One of my best friends, months before my surgery, offered to come help take care of me post-op. She brought her family down for my last hip surgery too and visited for a few days. She was a wonderful caretaker and it was just nice to hang with my buddy. So this time she had her husband plan his work schedule around my surgery. I mean who does that?! It was the most selfless and caring act ever and I could not be more appreciative to her and her whole family. They made a whole trip out of it too. They got a hotel close to my house and she’d stay there overnight and come be with me first thing in the morning and stay until dinner time or so at night. Her husband took their two kids for adventures around San Diego during the days. She came for the days that Chris was at work and stayed until the day my dad could come. Heather, I love you and am forever grateful for your help and for our friendship!

October 23rd was my first Monday home from the hospital. It was my third day home. I was 7 days post-op. It was the day Heather was arriving. It was about 0700AM and Chris was still home and about to head to work. I got out of bed and got myself to the bathroom. Chris was in the kitchen. I was washing my hands and the next thing I remember was being on the ground. Chris came running but had a hard time getting in because I was behind the door and my legs were somehow partially up the vanity. I think I passed out again and then came to to Chris kind of shaking me and yelling my name. He was asking what I was doing and I had no clue. I passed out again and then “woke up” back in bed. Chris told me that as he was helping me off the bathroom floor, I went totally limp and he was trying to get me to pay attention. We can only assume that I passed out a couple times. But it was a big fall and I was in a lot of pain! I was so scared that I damaged something or broke a screw. Chris immediately texted my surgeon, who with the last surgery, gave me his cell phone number. They were able to fit me in for a visit that same afternoon and he’d get x-rays to make sure nothing was damaged. Heather came shortly after my fall and took me to that appointment. I was still so out of it and we can only guess that I was having bouts of low blood pressure. That dizziness and out of it feeling lasted through my first month post-op.

The x-rays looked good and the screws were still intact. Dr. Santore asked that I start weaning off some of the medications that I was on as he thought I was maybe oversedated. I was on lower dosages of narcotics then I’d been on in the past and the concoction of meds was the same mix I’d been on before too. I was able to stop the muscle relaxer with success and to lower my nerve pain medication. Then I just started weaning my narcotic as much as I could tolerate. Although, the feelings I had stuck around even once I was off all meds and that’s why we now think I had BP fluctuations.