Lady Cat Lady

Let’s get right into it, shall we?

For those I haven’t already told: I need a total reverse shoulder replacement.

A few of you already know pieces of this, but I finally have enough information to give a proper update. Here’s what’s going on with my shoulder and what happens next.

I had three shoulder surgeries back in the early 2000s, and apparently surgically repaired rotator cuffs don’t always hold up long-term. Mine has officially failed for good. The ortho dude called it a “complete, massive, full-thickness tear.” My supraspinatus and infraspinatus are absolute toast; there’s a gap more than five centimeters wide between where they are and where they’re supposed to be. Go big or go home, I guess.

This is probably a degenerative issue that finally gave up after I fell on vacation. My rotator cuff basically said, “Nope, not doing this,” and here we are.

Right now, I have what they call pseudo-paralysis. My right, dominant arm has essentially quit. I can barely move it on its own, though I can lift it if I use my other arm to do the heavy work. Typing has become a whole logistical challenge; the laptop has to be flat on my lap or it’s no dice.

I’ve seen two surgeons now, and they both agree this is the only way forward. They’re going to cut my shoulder open, cut off the top part of my arm, scrape down the scapula, getting rid of all that nasty arthritis. Then pop in some metal and plastic, and I’ll be using my deltoid to move my arm instead of the ruined cuff. It’s going to take a hell of a lot of physical therapy to get back to normal, but on the bright side, the surgeon I chose studied directly under the man who invented the procedure. That actually makes me feel really good about the plan.

Insurance and cardiologist have already approved the procedure. The actual surgery is October 2nd barring any change from the doctor’s side of things.. They are fast. He’s new to the practice, so he still has plenty of space in his schedule, which works out great for me.

Those of you whom I have contact information for, I’ll contact you when I’m home and settled in. This is an outpatient procedure.

Everyone else, please don’t expect to see anything from me in this blog for at least the first month, maybe more. My right arm will be completely immobilized, I won’t be able to even start passive physical therapy for a month, let alone active motion which will take longer. I’m a two handed typist, one handed pecking will just frustrate the crap out of me.

Happy Tuesday, and may your joints be kinder to you than mine are to me!