Gross Picture / Stupid Award / Hip Replacement Recovery

Okay, I have to confess that on Tuesday I did the most stupid thing a human can do with dry ice. It came in a cooler in a Christmas present of fabulous food for Christmas dinner. I have been requiring huge amounts of ice for the ice packs on my hip, so using the dry ice seemed like a good idea, wrapped well. Well . . . We thought it was wrapped well. Several minutes after the pack was on my thigh, the numbness seemed to be greater than normal ice numbness. When I removed the pack I had a patch of frostbite with the skin so hard you could knock on it like wood. All the feeling was gone, and my skin was as white as snow. Bob ran back and forth from the bathroom with warm towels and the white skin warmed up in about 10 minutes. I was left with an oval of very red skin that was numb, but felt like cactus needles around the edges. Big ouchies.

Within an hour my skin was starting to blister. I called the nurse on call and she told me to call the Dr. in the morning if there were any changes. And there were changes. The small blisters were now one BIG blister. I got an appointment for Thursday afternoon. By then it was the size of a baseball. Disgusting, freaky and filled with yellow who knows what. He said to just let it be, and that it would begin to leak on its own. A natural part of the healing process. . . Gross. Nasty. Something from a horror movie!!!

So, Friday night I took a picture of it. Today, it has begun to leak. Thank God for industrail medical bandaging. I will change the dressing later tonight after I summon up the courage to look at it again. I feel better because the pressure has subsided and my leg doesn't feel as tight as it did. It certainly as been a hurdle in my recovery.

So, yes, I have received the award for the stupidest thing to do during hip replacement recovery. Stay tuned.