Update: Recovery on My Own – Coffee – Cooking – Cleaning and More

By Patty L. Fletcher

March 9, 2022

“Oh, it’s the easiest surgery I ever recovered From.”

Those are the words, I heard most before I had my Gallbladder removed yesterday. The problem with those words is, the majority of those who said them had partners, family, or daily caregiver services to assist when they came home. While I on the other hand, have no one on a regular basis to call on should I need help.

I’ve discovered that, the simple act of getting up, performing my routine of having my morning’s necessary, washing face, brushing teeth and hair, and making a pot of coffee is enough to send me back to ‘The Great and Powerful Chair’ for another short nap before I’ve got the strength to drink the coffee I made.

Then, there’s making myself something to eat. I’ve got no microwave, so if I eat anything which needs heated, I must get out a pan, heat whatever it is I want to eat, eat it, and then clear away the dishes for I’ve a tiny apartment so keeping it neat is necessary.

Something else I discovered is that I must be extra careful to remember to bring everything I need to my place before I settle in and I also must be careful of where I sit things because Murfy’s law is, if it can fall to the floor, it will. Let me just say, picking something up off the floor is hell and my rule is, if I don’t need it, it can stay there.

Overall, I’m not doing too badly. Last evening, I made a nest on the loveseat with big pillows behind my head to keep me propped and another large pillow underneath my legs, to keep the pressure off my abdomen. My pain is not hideous, and I stand amazed at the tiny incisions they made and by the fact that I’ve no stitches on the outside of my stomach.

The bandages are nothing more than large band aids and when I asked about showering and changing the bandages, the nurse said I could shower after 48 hours if my strength allowed. She said the band aids were waterproof and breathable so just don’t soap the area, let them air dry before dressing and leave them in place for the doctor to remove.

Of course, there were the usual warnings of, “If you feel any drainage or if anyone tells you there are red splotches showing around the band aids, go to the doctor immediately, don’t lift anything over 10 pounds, and if you must lean down to pick something up, squat don’t bend over.”

They also said, unless I had some major complications, I should be able to have my boys back on the 14^TH and they were thrilled that Blue would need walked because they said walking would be the best thing ever for my recovery.

Recovering all on my own is challenging. There are so many things I do each day that must simply be left until I feel better, or someone comes by to take care of things.

Also, when the boys do come back, although I will be able to take Blue out some, I will not be able to give him his full exercising walks, but I have someone who will come and walk him at least once for me each day and my apartment manager said he would walk him too. In fact, he’s itching to help take care of him because until recently he was a Labrador owner and loves blue to pieces.

There’s also the matter of Eddie’s litterbox. It must be dipped at least once preferably twice each day or Eddie protests by peeing in the floor in front of it. I’ll give him points for doing it in the bathroom rather than somewhere else in the house but still no one has volunteered for that duty so it’s a concern. It’s one thing to squat quickly, pick up Blue’s leavings and take them to the dumpster. It’s another kettle of fish to squat, hold that position until the litterbox is completely dipped, and new litter poured in and then getting that trash out. Litter is heavy. Especially when it is used so this is going to be a great challenge.

I know it’s all going to work out fine but I’m seriously weak as a kitten and Blue and Eddie could whip me with three of their four paws tied behind them and though I miss them terribly I am sure glad I’ve a great veterinarian to care for them until I am able.

Anyhow, I’ve shot my energy writing this and I know it’s not my best writing. I don’t have it in me to polish it up, and so I shall thank you for your continued support and wish you a wonderful day.

May Harmony find You and Blessid Be.

LATEST RELEASE…

Pathway to Freedom Broken and Healed: Book One How a Seeing Eye Dog Retrieved My Life

(Second Edition)

In the first book of her memoir trilogy, Pathway to Freedom Broken and Healed: Book One How a Seeing Eye Dog Retrieved My Life, Patty Fletcher shares how choosing to attend The Seeing Eye guide dog school in Morristown, New Jersey, helped her to gain complete independence. But this decision would reveal glimpses into worlds she had never before known existed.

Once home from The Seeing Eye, Patty soon begins to realize that all is not right in her own world.

Watch your step as you journey down the winding path with Patty and Campbell, for there are many obstacles along the way. Through triumphs and tribulations, through tears and fears, that forever guide remains at her side. King Campbell works tirelessly to keep Patty safe from harm.

REVIEWS…

Author Joan Myles Says…

I dove into the first part of Ms. Fletcher’s memoir expecting to read one more blind person’s account of escaping limitations. And please don’t get me wrong, such accounts are very valuable in expanding the awareness of anyone unfamiliar with the world of disabled individuals and the particular challenges of living without sight in a sighted world. I know these challenges personally, having lost my vision at the age of twelve.

What I found in her writing, however, is a rare and riveting telling of human interaction. Not always kind. Not always honest. Ms. Fletcher paints all the hues of human interaction even as she draws the outlines of her own life experience.

From the book’s opening chapters, readers are instantly drawn into Ms. Fletcher’s heart. We accompany her to The Seeing Eye in pursuit of a guide dog. We join her in moments of self-doubt and triumph. We feel the bitter anguish as she deals with her abusively hot and cold Donny back home in Tennessee.

And all the while, Ms. Fletcher speaks openly, candidly, hopefully.

Powerfully raw at times, the author’s words never shrinks from expressing what needs to be told. By way of her own story, Ms. Fletcher urges readers to pay attention to their own hearts, to protect their own spirits, and to blaze their own trails.

Then:

Author Victoria Zigler Says…

This was a gripping read that was hard to put down. Some of the events were emotionally difficult to read about, especially knowing they were stories of true events, while others I read with delighted interest. But the whole thing was beautifully written, with wonderful descriptions that had me feeling I was right there at the time, and either glad to be a part of the experience or wishing I could step in to stop the inevitable from happening. And the ending was tied up neatly enough that I didn’t feel it ended too abruptly, while still leaving things open for the continuation of the story, I’m desperate to read.

Finally, author Trish Hubschman Says…

Pathway to Freedom Broken and Healed: Book One How a Seeing Eye Dog Retrieved My Life Second Edition, by Patty Fletcher is the author’s own story about courage and determination, as a blind person and a woman, and the intense love and trust between human and dog. When she’s in her 40s, Patty decides to get her first seeing eye dog. She wants to be able to do more on her own and be less dependent on the man she loves. After training, she takes Campbell home. He’s more than just a guide dog. He’s her best friend, her protector, her sidekick. Her relationship with her fiancé is rough, but the one with her dog is perfect. She confides in Campbell, cries to him, and he licks her face, nuzzles her neck, and wags his tail. It’s heartwarming and beautiful, upsetting, and scary too because of the fiancé. Everyone should read this book, blind or sighted. It’s about life and it is incredible. I couldn’t stop reading it. It kept pulling me along. I give it a 5-star review.

See the Reviews and buy the book as well as all the author’s other works during Read an eBook Week from now until March 12 at: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1056347

About Patty L. Fletcher

Patty L. Fletcher lives in Kingsport Tennessee where she works full time as a Writer with the goal of bridging the great chasm which separates the disAbled from the non-disAbled. She is Also a Social Media Marketing Assistant.

To learn more visit: https://pattysworlds.com/