Friday 24th to Thursday 30th November

I will now start to update you on what has been happening!

I had my first assessment appointment with a physiotherapist to attend. It’s so much more complicated and stressful when you’re having to rely on lifts and the timings of the local volunteer bus service to get around. Anyway once I got there the physio confirmed the calf muscle tear, said I had very badly injured my leg and because I hadn’t been able to put any weight on my leg for so long, which is completely normal in people with this injury, would have lots of hard work to do 😖 I would need urgent physio. She would refer me for NHS physio but the problem was that with the waiting list you are never sure when you will be seen, sometimes as long as four months she thought and she said there was no way I could wait for that long to start any treatment. She strongly recommended that I have a couple of private sessions while I was waiting. She gave me an exercise to do to stretch the calf muscle, showed me how I should be walking properly on my crutches and showed me a way of going up and down the stairs (which I had to do in the middle of the doctor’s surgery!) to save me having to go on my bum and hurting my arms and shoulders. Trying to get my balance to come down the stairs while just using the crutches was difficult and scary and it was all quite exhausting.

The weekend was spent not doing much. But it was a curry Saturday which is always a good thing 😀

I also had a bit of a fun but scary wheelchair ride to my sister’s house with Robyn pushing me, she wasn’t really in any kind of control 🤪 but it was nice to get out of the house for a bit.

In the middle of the following week I had my first private physio session. Oh my goodness me. Normally one of my favourite things in the world to have is a leg massage – this one was horrendous. She told me that in the end it would actually be helping my leg a lot, helping the scar tissue to all lie in the same direction which is how they should be, rather than all higgledy piggledy. Despite the tremendous pain 😩 she put me through, I liked the physio lady. I felt that she explained everything to me very clearly, she knew just how much she was hurting me and was very understanding. I do think that she helped me a lot. She then used an ultrasound machine over my leg, which she explained was helping to rejuvenate the cells and get them working again. This was also extremely painful, especially over my ankle area which apparently shouldn’t have been the case. At the end of the session she then said that she had some doubt as to whether I had maybe chipped or cracked the ankle bone slightly and wanted me to arrange to go for an X-ray. I was to put no weight on my leg again until I knew that it wasn’t broken.

I felt completely wrecked and exhausted. I managed to get myself to Nero’s for a much needed relax and a latte coffee treat and to try and get my head together and think how I was going to actually get to have an X-ray. After some phone calls I found out that I had to have a form from a doctor before I could get an X-ray, I couldn’t just turn up. Oh blimey. Time to get myself back to the bus stop so that I could get a lift home.

So the next day I had to get a lift up to the doctor’s surgery early to be in with any chance of seeing a doctor. They managed to fit me in, thank goodness I know some of the receptionists well! I got the X-ray form. I then had to wait for the volunteer bus to arrive so that I could get back into town, I also then had to wait around in town until it was time for the bus that would get me to Banbury and then I had to get off at the bus station and wait for the bus that would take me to the hospital! All of this is made so much more difficult with the fact that I’m on crutches and not allowed to put my foot down. And getting your purse out of your bag to get the bus fare and whatever else you need is all so much more difficult. Anyway I did it. A bit of an adventure.

When I finally got to A&E I was eventually seen by a doctor and then waited for the X-ray. The radiographer wasn’t the most sympathetic of people, telling me to try and get my foot in this certain position which it just couldn’t get in! Anyway the X-ray was taken. Back to the doctor – and some good news. They couldn’t see any chip or crack in the bone.

I didn’t have to do a repeat performance of the buses for the way back, Leah was working in A&E that afternoon. In fact she didn’t feel well herself and was leaving work early but thankfully she waited for me to be finished so that I was able to get a much more comfortable lift home.

Obviously still no walking was able to be done towards my 1000 mile challenge ☹️

Thursday 23rd November

I think I told you that I was a bit gobsmacked for being nominated for one of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham Best in Care Awards. Then I was even more surprised to find out that I had been shortlisted to become one of the three finalists in my category. This meant that I was invited to attend the Awards Ceremony in Birmingham, which was taking place tonight.

I was able to get two extra tickets so that Robyn and Leah could attend with me. Thank goodness I did as I was having to hobble around on my crutches, still not feeling brilliant and obviously couldn’t drive myself there.

I hadn’t been to anything like this before so it was a little nerve wracking wondering what was going to happen.

We found the venue, after a little difficulty! We were given a programme for the evening – and I was in it!

We were also given vouchers for two free drinks each 🍷 Off we went to find a seat so that we could be near the front.

There were 12 separate awards in total including Behind the Scenes Award, Chief Nurse Award, Brighter Futures Award and Team of the Year. A real variety.

My category, Charity Supporter of the Year, was coming up in the first half of the ceremony.

I didn’t win 😐! The man that did has been connected with the charity for more than ten years, so I guess I still have got a few more years of charity work to do yet!

I managed to hobble onto the stage to have my photo taken with the other finalists from the first half!

There was an interval where they laid on a lovely buffet and then back to giving out more awards.

A nice evening and yet another different experience for me.

Sorry for the late Happy New Year wishes. I have been unwell since 2018 started!

But lets hope that it turns out to be a good year for all of us 🤞

Happy Christmas everyone 🎅

My Christmas cake, made for me by my brother-in-law John and decorated by my sister Lynda 😍

(By the way, I will be back with a full update shortly, annoyingly this Christmas lark seems to take up all my spare time ☹️)

Monday 13th to Wednesday 22nd November

And so begins a very horrible time.

A torn muscle = extreme pain 24 hours a day 😢 There was just no escape. Every single night I was woken up with the pain.

I was virtually housebound. As I could barely get around, obviously I was not able to leave the house unless someone was available and willing to take me. Everyone was at work most of the time, then busy doing other things.

I had some long and lonely days.

Frustrating days too when you have things that you need to do which are building up around you but you are just not able to do them. And places to go but you are just not able to get there!

One day I even tried crawling into the kitchen on my hands and knees so that I could try and make myself a cup of tea. I wasn’t successful ☹️

I had to go up and down the stairs on my bum. This is quite hard, you have to use your arms and shoulders to pull yourself up, so then after a while they start to really hurt too.

At times I tried to keep myself occupied by doing jobs around the house but every movement hurt so it all took rather a long time.

I was lucky enough to be taken out a few times.

I managed to borrow a wheelchair from a friend’s mum and one day Robyn and Leah took me into Banbury. It’s so very frustrating having to be pushed around in shops, you see something you want to go and look at but you have to just sit and wait as you are relying on someone else to get you over there. It does make you realise just what you take for granted when your usually able to do it all yourself.

During this time I had a previously booked doctors appointment, so Dr Fisher had a look at my leg too and told me that I would definitely need some physio, could I please ring and get an appointment with them. I really wasn’t sure how that was going to be possible because no one can come anywhere near my leg at the minute, let alone touch it and move it about!

Dr Fisher also told me that he had finally heard from my consultant (have been waiting for ages) and that over a few days I was to finally start reducing the noresthisterone (hormone) tablets that I have been taking and then stop them completely, which I did. As a result of this I have been bleeding all the time again 😡 but hopefully this will settle down 🤞

As a result of being so run down I imagine, I also had more outbreaks of my Shingles related virus.

Just more things to have to cope with 😖

After 12 days I finally started to notice that the excruciating 24 hour pain was easing. (There really had been no improvement in my leg whatsoever until then 😩) I still had a whole lot of pain and I still couldn’t walk, but I was starting to be able to move my leg about a little more.

Now I would be able to start having the recommended physio I imagine.

Friday 10th to Sunday 12th November

Urm, I can’t walk to get anywhere. I have excruciating pain. Obviously going to work this Friday was completely out of the question.

If I had some crutches would I at least be able to get off the sofa and kind of get about the house?

I rang the doctors’ surgery but they don’t keep any. The only way you can get them is through A&E. ‘Why didn’t they give you any when you were there yesterday?’ I have no idea!

Leah happened to have the day off so she drove us to the A&E Department in Banbury where she works. But you have to go through the whole procedure of booking in as a patient and waiting to be seen by a doctor, you can’t just ‘go and get some’.

So I came away from my second visit to A&E with some crutches.

The pain was SO intense, any slightest movement was excruciating (there was no relief even when I was resting) but at least I would actually be able to get myself to the toilet! The simple things!

In the evening I had a Riverside party to go to.

The weekend was spent doing not much. Unfortunately I didn’t have much say in that matter.

Gary did make a curry on Saturday night which is always a good thing 😋

And he drove me down to the town centre on Sunday morning so that I could watch the Remembrance Parade. We were very lucky to find a good parking space but typically we got the timings wrong and were sat waiting for an awful long time! And to make matters worse I wasn’t even able to get out of the car and walk to Nero’s to get myself a coffee! 😡

Thursday 9th November

I went to the JR Hospital to volunteer as normal.

I went for a walk into Headington as normal.

I stopped at the pelican crossing and waited for the green man. I took a step. My very first thought was that something extremely heavy had somehow fallen out of my backpack and hit the back of my leg with such force! I had extreme pain. It felt like something had exploded inside of my leg. I kind of hobbled to the other side of the road while all the cars were waiting for me. Thankfully there was a wall which I leant against. I didn’t know what on earth I was going to do. I was almost a mile away from the hospital where I had walked from.

I messaged both Robyn and Leah, I don’t know what I thought they were going to do as they were both at work and not finishing until much later in the evening! I thought ‘I’m just going to have to try to walk back’. So that’s what I did, I hobbled back through the streets for nearly a mile, slowly and very painfully.

While I was hobbling I was trying to decide whether I should just get on the Park & Ride bus back to my car, I wasn’t sure that I would be able to drive it but it was a bit closer to home for someone to pick me up. Or whether I should get myself to the A&E department to get my leg checked out while I was already up at the hospital.

I eventually decided to go and get it checked. I was a bit hot and bothered! and my face and neck were red and burning up by the time I got there.

I must just show you what I suddenly noticed was facing me while I was sat in the waiting room.

I had to painfully hobble to the room where they triage you and then back to my seat, then painfully hobble again through to the next department and cubicle where I was seen.

I was shaking when I got on the bed and was being examined. I was given a blanket and told that I probably had a bit of shock. I’m not bloody surprised after what I had to do to get there!

I had torn my calf muscle 😰

I was just sent off with the advice to ice pack it regularly and keep it raised to help with the swelling and take painkillers (I am only allowed to take paracetamol) and that it could take a few weeks to get better 🤔

Another painful hobbling session back to the main hospital reception so I could try and gather my thoughts and decide how I was going to get home. I now knew that I was not able to drive my car!

I then found out that Gary had been working in Oxford so he came and picked me up and took me home.

I was in a LOT of pain and very upset 😢

I still had the problem of my car being left in the Park & Ride car park in Kidlington and that the parking ticket would run out at just gone 9pm. After a lot of thinking and messaging around I finally managed to solve the problem. My brother George would get a lift with Gary and then he would drive my car back home 🚗

What a horrible day 😫

Monday 6th to Wednesday 8th November

The first Monday in November and what a lovely day it was!

I really enjoyed my sunny afternoon walk. It was reasonably warm for the time of year.

Shame about my calf muscle, it was still so very sore 😏

Just work on Tuesday, same on Wednesday plus a little walk with Jackie and Alfie 🐶 and a nice cuppa tea ☕️

While I was at work one of my customers said to me ‘I’ve seen your story in the newspaper’. Oh yes, I’ve been in the Chippy News recently. ‘No, there’s a big picture of you in the Cotswold Journal’. So I managed to get hold of a copy and had a look. Where on earth had they got my story from, I hadn’t sent anything to them. This was completely unexpected. After a bit of investigating I found that apparently the QE Hospital in Birmingham had sent my story to them!

Do you remember that I posted a link on here about a man that was walking miles with a sandwich board looking for a kidney for his wife. Well she got one! 😁

Now her husband says he is still going to go out walking with his sign to promote organ donation and the need for donors. Have a read 👀

Sunday 5th November

So today was the day …

Gary drove myself, Robyn and Leah up to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham and we all walked my 1000th mile together 😁 (thanks so much to all three of you for coming to walk with me) around the outside of the hospital where my life was saved.

Off we go … (with Gary walking behind taking the photo!)

Yay, I did it 👣

And two months early too, as my year doesn’t actually end until the beginning of January 2018. I wonder how many more miles I can do 🤔

What a difference. The first picture is how I needed to leave the hospital in April 2015. I could barely walk. The second picture is 2 years and 7 months later and I’ve just done a 1000 mile walking challenge 👍

Thank you to my donors and their families 😍

Then lunch in a nearby Frankie & Benny’s!

Tuesday 31st October to Saturday 4th November

Not much going on in these few days. I didn’t even get to go and watch any firework displays that were going on at the end of the week 🙁

As a result of having my flu jab last week I had a bit of a cold and a bad headache etc and I also had the Shingles related virus that I get when I am a bit run down and stressed so I just wasn’t feeling quite 100%

Obviously it wasn’t a good plan for me to go and volunteer this week in the hospital

Many many more baby fish had been found swimming around in Leah’s tank during this week. In the end she counted 44 tiny baby fish 😱 What on earth was she going to do with them all, there was no room in the tank for all of these! Thankfully the fish department in a nearby garden centre agreed to take them so when Leah had a day off from work we took 42 of them over (Leah had decided to keep two of the new tiny babies for herself). It felt a little sad to leave them there, I hope their all be okay!

Robyn told me that I had been back at work for 2 years on 3rd November. I didn’t realise!

Oh by the way, I’m in our local paper the Chipping Norton News again! 😁