Sorry for the lack of updates, things have definitely hard the last few weeks, so I’ll try to bring you all up to speed:

Tissue Viability

So I saw the Community Tissue Viability nurse as planned, slightly delayed. She suspected a wound infection, which a swab confirmed so I have had a course of antibiotics. This has reduced the amount of exudate from the wound, which means packing stays in and can do its job! It was probed today and has reduced from 6 to 4.5 cms in depth – so things are going in the right direction!

Hospital

Since my last post I have been back to see the hospital team too, who supported the Community Tissue Viability nurse’s plan for daily wound packing. They also explained the confusion over the wound ‘doing really well’ which I mentioned in my last post. Whilst I though this meant it was healing super quick, it actually meant that the wound bed was getting to a point where it would start to grow, having stopped. Makes sense, and I got an apology for the confusion too. One of my biggest frustrations with this whole process is that I can’t see what is going on, at least not without the use of several mirrors and lamps…

Occupational Health

I mentioned last time an upcoming occupational health appointment. This went really well, and I have subsequently met with my boss and we have a plan for me to return to work, working from home initially a week tomorrow. This has really motivated me to get those few things done that I have been meaning to do, and I am feeling much better in myself. I also took some time to go back to Board Games Club last week and played the excellent Shakespeare.

What Next?

Well, we are not there yet. Still having daily dressing changes, and there are still several weeks to go. I need to up my exercise – walking only, but I am planning what else I can do to try and lose this recovery belly I have developed. I need to reach out to some friends and make plans to see them, and have a trip back home in a few weeks for the 10th birthday of the open mic poetry and drama night I co-founded too. It is time to start living again, knowing it will be hard, I will be tired – but this is the last corner and there is light at the end.