Two Weeks Post-Op

It's been exactly two weeks since surgery. My follow-up appointment was five days ago and the doctor let me go right into the brace instead of a hard cast (the photo above was taken before this, so it's the dressing from the surgery, not the brace you see).

I'm so relieved since it's a lot lighter, cooler and removable, which means I can wear it in the water, take it off to shower and wash it after a run. the scars are pretty deep -- I have one down the palm of my hand and another zig-zaging lengthwise down the inside of my wrist. Looks like the surgeon sneezed. I have a few basic wrist exercises to do 3-4 times a day, but I start seeing a hand therapist tomorrow so I can really begin rehab.

Four days after surgery, I was back in the gym running on the treadmill. As the blood started to flow and my heart rate increased, the wrist began throbbing a bit. After one mile, I thought maybe I'd better ease back into this slowly so I stopped and did some leg exercises. The next day, I did 2 miles on the treadmill and rode the spin bike for a half hour. I noticed that the throbbing is the same whether I'm running or spinning, so it's not so much the motion or jostling of my arm as it is the increased blood flow to the injured area. To me, if the sensation is the same running as it on the bike, there's no reason I shouldn't be running.

At my follow up, I told the doctor I was already running. He was shocked. "Sorry, but this is what I do!" I said to him. He said I need to see him again in two weeks and no running until then, but I can ride the spin bike if I want. I asked why I can't run yet and his response was because nobody else has ever started to run this soon after surgery and "I don't think you want to be the test subject." I thought about this as I left his office, got on the subway, made my way back to the gym and ran 5 miles.