The Follow Up

John broke his ankle on Thursday night.  On Monday morning we went to see the Orthopedic Surgeon to get an assessment for the healing process.  It was rather quickly apparent that John's situation was not going to remedy itself with a cast and 6-8 weeks of time.  John needed surgery.  The doctor said he would make the arrangements for Thursday or Friday. 

Wow!  John was a bit stunned.  I was saddened.  I had hoped we would skip this step and now there was no getting around the reality of the necessity.  Time was short and there were many details to arrange. 

The next few days were filled with phone calls, paperwork, and prayers.  Too quickly, Friday was upon us and John and I were leaving the house before dawn.  When we arrived at the hospital, it was still dark and the hospital was largely empty.  Thankfully Covid did not keep me from being present with John during his care this time.  I was allowed to accompany him as though it were a business as usual day.  We checked in at the admission desk, he went thorough prep, dressing, and testing, I was able to visit him just before anesthesia was administered where the Doctor, told us what to expect and showed us the first real full look at the damage. 

When we went to the consultation we peeked at the damage, but this time with the splint fully off we saw the entirety of the leg and it was gnarly!  The swelling was so intense that the skin actually began to separate in layers and forming blisters to accommodate the swelling.  Some of those blisters were also filled with blood because of the bruising.  It was quite a shocking sight!  We discussed with the Doctor the possible implications of the blisters during surgery and what may be necessary to make stitching possible and reliable.

This was pretty much the same view we were able to see during the consultation.  Though you can see that blisters did form, it doesn't look horrendous.

But without the splint on, the full view of the blisters almost hurt to even look at.  You can also see the bruising on his heel at the point of impact.

These blisters were the worst, which makes sense when you consider that these bones were the most broken--partly shattered even.

After our discussion, I went to the waiting room as John went into surgery.  I waited four hours for the surgeon to pin John's ankle back together. 

My waiting room view

John's new hardware for life.

Then after three hours in recovery, we were able to leave for home. 

This splint doesn't look much different than the first one he had, but the internal status is much different.  He'll have this splint for 6-8 weeks before we move on to the next phase of healng

Though he was still out of sorts, John was amiable as we left the hospital.  I have to compliment the staff--they were all really wonderful.  John doesn't remember all of our conversations but overall he did well in transitioning from hospital to home

We had taken the second step in the journey towards healing John's ankle. The pain John has endured so far has been immense.  This has truly been the toughest physical endurance test John has withstood thus far in his life.  We have been told that he will require six months to a year to return to regular ambulatory status.  There is much work ahead.  We are tired.  But we are hopeful.  God has brought us this far, and we trust He will continue to lead us forward. 

Ice, elevation, and rest pretty define John's life right now

We are thankful for the older boys who are stepping up to help around the house, for the kids being willing to adapt, for the many who are covering us in prayer, and for those who have been generous thus far.  With such a long road ahead, the stresses of interrupted sleep and the the juggling of regular life with healing tasks, we are stretched and needing grace as much as we are needing to give it.  Only by God's grace will we complete this stretch of the journey ahead.