Adjusting Back to Life

Exactly 2 weeks post-discharge.

Looking back, I have been away for a grand total of 68 days (40 + 28). The second leg felt so much longer than the first despite it being shorter in reality! It was like living in an old folks' home zzz... Hospitals should look into grouping younger patients together.

The 2 long months were honestly destructive on my face. Pimples everywhere, huge at that! (Not really everywhere, but it's everywhere by my standard) I resumed exfoliating weekly in The Hope Killer Hospital, but looks like the clay mask IS still essential! Boohoo 我错了! Sorry for ever doubting the effectiveness of wallet-friendly skincare! My pores were gaping. Lots of gunk to squeeze. How long was the damage repair going to take? Most importantly, CAN IT BE REPAIRED? :((

It's a weekend everyday! Sleep till 自然醒, which is 11am :D Before getting out of bed, Father helped me with my bed exercise. Do it first, because I won't be going back to bed soon!

Had lunch, which was something Mother prepared for me at dawn before she left for work. Similar to what I had in the hospital lah. Father just had to cook the noodles. Nice lah, but getting really, really boring...

And our dear neighbor from next door actually complained about the chopping noise Mother made while cooking in the morning! So intolerant. Ignore him lah, it will stop when it's over 100 days post-op, which is pretty soon, on 6 Jan, which is before CNY!! Prawnnnssss!!

Slacked at my computer. Surf net, listened to songs, blogged, played Zuma. No bed rest needed. Didn't need the TLSO either. It might be the power of love (for the computer).

Being home-bound must be extremely boring for Father though.

In the evening, I squeezed in another round of bed exercise.

Wore my new pyjamas to sleep. I have no idea what kind of super dense cotton those were made of, but I was damn hot! The cloth looks thin, but was secretly air-impermeable!!! I was soon sweating. Complicated with the inability to flip myself and the less-than-ideal position of the fan. Hot as hell!

I swore never to wear them again. Luckily I fended off Mother's offer to buy more of them. She said I should be wearing something long and needed to be front-buttoned. There are many clothes that fit the bill, but why must they be pyjamas? Actually, I don't think I even need front-buttoned tops anymore. Since I could sit unaided, theoretically, I should be able to go back to my old clothes. I think she's just finding a convenient reason to stop me from wearing my sleeveless tops. Well, my bed is so bloody hot, I should be wearing less! Mother wouldn't believe what I told her about those pyjamas, until she tried them herself...

Banished the thought of drinking lactulose for fun (it's extremely sweet). I passed it to my sister.

To help me flip, Father suggested to tie a belt to the side of my bed instead of installing some ladder-like thing. It worked! Low-cost solution woohoo!

My Ergorest Forearm Rest (Blue) was delivered. Cost me $128.40. It's being distributed by Building Metal Enterprise Pte Ltd. The company name was rather unexpected. Indeed, this product in particular sticks out like a sore thumb among the products they carry.

Unfortunately, the Ergorest Forearm Rest alone wasn't enough for my spoon to reach my mouth. And my arm kept sliding off. So Father used a wooden plank to elevate my table top and velcro to hold my arm in place. To solve the issue of being unable to access my mouse, the spare wireless mouse found its place. As for the keyboard, I shall make do without it. So troublesome ley, such an elaborate setup for meals!

I finally filled in the feedback form for The Hope Killer Hospital. A scorching feedback, by my standards. Do they receive less funding or something? Looking at my interim bill, I'm paying the same as No Use Hospital for a much lower standard of care!

Life is so much better at home. On hindsight, I should not have gone to a step-down hospital. Or at least, don't stay there for so long. Staying there didn't help me regain the actions I usually needed at home. I have definitely recovered much of my home functions in these 2 weeks simply because I had the chance to practice them. Still having problems especially regarding toileting.

No Use Hospital mailed me the bill for the visit to Dr. L.

Damage:
Consultation Services (SC - RV) $85.00 -> PRICE INCREASED! HE DEFINITELY GOT PROMOTED.
X-ray
 Lumbar Spine (Flexion And Ext) $55.00
 Spine Scolisis -AP & Lateral $110.00

Subsidy -$117.00
Out of pocket $133.00

Comparing the X-ray order with the bill, seemed like the X-ray of Thoracic Spice, Flexion & Ext were not done. So there was still some limitation due to the pose. Unless they are shown differently on the bill and a layman like me wouldn't realize.