Thursday, December 3, 2009

Howdy! I just got back from hearing Annika sing in her school Christmas concert tonight. I missed her Spring concert last year because I was in the hospital so I really wanted to try and make it. After struggling to assemble the dumb wheelchair in the parking lot, Doug and I managed to get me to the auditorium. She said we embarrassed her because we were smiling so big in the front row (handicapped seating). So sweet.

Speaking of sweet--some wonderful people in our church felt badly that we all missed out on a "normal" Thanksgiving day. So, they all pitched in and made awesome food for us. I'm telling you--I think we are going to milk this ankle injury thing for all it's worth!

Well, I went to Dr. C yesterday and am now armed with all my X-rays. Ready to pretend that you are a radiologist??

First, I want to introduce you to my new bionic foot (insert cool Bionic Man music here).

I wasn't quite catching the angle of the screws from the side shot, so I made up this one from the front:

Next, I wanted to see how my ankle slowly went downhill, so I made up this slide:

It is so amazing that even though my talus was shattered at the beginning (in the first picture), look at that awesome space of cartilage above the talus! That just slowly gets smaller and smaller as it dies over the following months. Sad to me.

Finally, I was looking at my X-rays and thought I was just seeing things . . . was that my fibula cut off like a dagger in my leg??? So, I called Dr. Carbonell just to see if I was going crazy. Yep--it's gone. He cut the dumb thing off.

I almost feel like I should have kept it and given it a burial or something. Turns out, your fibula is a non-weight bearing bone. It is designed to help your foot/ankle manipulate uneven surfaces. Now that my ankle is fused I don't need it anymore. Best of all--everyone always suspected that the fibula might be harboring some bacteria because it had that metal plate on it for so long. No fibula--(hopefully) no infection.

Looking over all these images just makes me so sure of what I need to pray for . . . UNION. I would covet your prayers that the cadaver bone, and my smooshed up leftover talus, and shaved off tibia all grow together in a healthy chunk of ankle. If they don't, I am seriously looking at amputation.

Pray for union.

Pray for union.

Pray for union (or for more patience to endure what else might come next).

OK--now that all of you are ready to head the radiology department of a hospital near you, I am going to bed.

Love to you all!

Anne