On being an Invalid or on Recovering

This past Wednesday I had an abdominal myomectomy. It went very well--the anesthesia was great--I don't remember a thing and my doctor/surgeon tells me that I have very tight ab muscles. I guess that all that belly dancing does pay off! :) If you run a google or blog search for myomectomy, you can find a number of myomectomy recovery blogs--I read a lot of them will preparing for my post-hospital experience. I'm only 4 days post-op, but I seem to be doing well. While this blog will not turn into a recovery blog, I do have some advice.

1) Strength train your arms and legs, you will need your arm and leg muscles to get in and out of bed and to maneuver around (e.g getting in and out of bed, chairs, etc). Push ups and squats--do multiple reps during the day. Before this operation, I never knew if my lower abdominal muscles were working; now I do know when I use them. When transitioning from standing to sitting, there is a point when my abs would like to work a LOT (I'm reminded of this mostly on when I wake up in the morning). Right now to get upright, I concentrate by using my arms (to push myself up) and my thighs.

2) I can use my upper abs, obliques, glutes, psoas. The incision and (internal) stitches are located in the lower abs. When I'm walking or standing, I tilt my butt down in the back, so that my abdominal muscles are not stretched out (they are kind of contracted). It makes it easier and less painful. Posture really does make a difference!

3) I'm wearing an abdominal binder. I have a horizontal incision, just above the hairline. I think that eventually that the scar will be hidden/less visible in fold in the skin. I'm no lightweight, so I do have a bit of a pooch. When I put on the binder, I pull up the pooch with my hand so that the incision is flat and not hidden in the fold. I think that this is helping with the healing--less stress on the incision.

4) I stocked my fridge with yogurt, prunes, sparkling water, OJ. Its easy to open a carton of yogurt and eat it when I'm hungry. Or to have a small glass of juice with an iron pill. My friends are keeping my stocked with fresh fruit. My freezer has lots of frozen dinners and I have my friends and neighbors on speed dial. I also move my cell phone/blackberry chargers to an easy location--I have a landing spot near my front door so I can get stuff charged easily.

5) Hospital stay--I'm glad I bought my ipod, blackberry, cell phone, lip balm, several magazines. I used my ipod to listen to music while falling asleep (I shared a room), blackberry to respond to some work emails, but mostly to read newspaper websites while bored on painkillers, lip balm to moisturize my lips which got amazingly dry, and magazines--the articles were short enough to hold my attention (Vanity Fair, Threads (including several older issues)). In my hospital bag--all the stuff I didn't need: I packed pajamas, granny underwear (1 size larger than normal), lotion, soap, toothbrush, etc, stuff you pack when you travel. When I left, I wore the clothing I wore to the hospital. I did need the granny underwear, but not while in the hospital.

6) See if you can get your prescriptions filled before your surgery. I was able to get my painkiller prescriptions filled before the surgery. I had them placed on a tray, with my regular prescriptions, thermometer, notepad and pen (to note times when I took pills).

7) I can't life anything over 10 lbs. Sigh. I can't wait until my post-surgery visit.

Sewing slow

I'm sewing slowly this week--I did sew a Simplicity 2603 cardi-wrap in red cotton-cotton lycra. The fabric is a bit too heavy for the pattern--the red wrap does not drape very well. 2603 has has a very wide neckline. So in my next version, out of a gray poly-rayon-mystery fabric from Fabrics R Us, I have made the neckline 2 inches narrower.

Reasons for not blogging as much: I'm busy at work. And I've gotten some new furniture--a couch, coffee table and side table. My apartment is looking very grown up, with a style that is beyond graduate student (which I'm more than 10 years beyond). The couch is perfectly placed, across the room from the TV, with the coffee table in easy reach, along with all the remote controls (TV,cable, VCR, DVD player.).

Simplicity 3684 Threads Blouse

When I'm not re-arranging my apartment, I'm working on a new project - Simplicity 3684, the Threads Blouse. This pattern has the different cup sizes so I don't have to do a FBA. I'm using some white stretch poplin (I think that it's poplin) that I got at a BABES meeting (thank you, Georgene!). It's kind of a muslin, as I'm still learning how to sew wovens: I'll have to make a collar, cuffs, and a button placket. The back also features long darts for shaping. My work wardrobe needs more woven shirts. A plain white shirt will fit in nicely and I have several fabric pieces in the my stash that will make great shirts. Are the solid colors? Only a few of them....

Oh, I added a label cloud using these instructions .

Stash Stash Stash STACTCed

Where has summer gone? It's been a long time since I've posted--I missed posting entries in all of June and July. I'm still here. I've done some sewing: mostly fitness stuff and workout clothing. But my next major project is to re-arrange my apartment for two reasons. Here is the main one: my fabric/sewing/notions/patterns stash has grown out of control.

Last summer when I was trying to deal with stuff at work, I would visit estate sales looking for sewing notions and fabrics. I did very well: I got one of those accordion buttonhole measuring tools (I can't find it!) , lots of tracing tools, seam rippers, books, lots bias binding and rick rack and ribbons, loads of buttons, zippers (got an amazing selection from someone who used to work at a sewing/fabric store) and lots of vintage patterns. I also got into the habit of buying patterns at the pattern sales at Joann's and Hancock's. Fabrics--well that stash grew: the bricks and mortar stores/jobbers of Happy Stop in Oakland, Fabrics r Us in San Jose, Fabrix in San Francisco (and Discount Fabrics, and Darlene's in the Mission). And representing the online vendors: Gorgeous Fabrics, Michael's, Fashionista Fabrics, Ressy's coop, Lucy's, and FabricMart. After arranging stuff on the shelving, I was quite overwhelmed when I would enter my apartment. It was time to do something.

In July, I went to Ikea and bought the Anabode chest of drawers. This piece of furniture has been making appearances on a variety of different sewing blogs, literally around the world. After assembling it, I was able to fit in all my modern patterns, but very few of the vintage ones. The Anabode drawers are quite full. Later that month, I scored some discarded shelving from work and I decided to re-arrange my fabric stash, which quite overflowed the shelves. And I realized that I own a LOT of fabric. Now that I can see it on open shelves, I have a pretty good idea of how much I have, and in which colors. It's a lot of fabric. While it's daunting to realize that I have hoarded a lot of stuff. I think that this has gone beyond stashing to hoarding, because I'm not sewing as much as I feel I should. I have achieved Stash Accumulation Beyond Current Time Commitments ( which is abbreviated to "STACTC ". So is that stacked ? ). So no more purchasing until the end of the year. I think that the only exception that I can allow is thread.

The other reason I'm re-arranging stuff is that I'm getting a couch. Its being delivered Saturday morning. I used to have a futon couch for several years after I left grad school. About 5 years ago, I free-cycled it because I was tired of it, and I've been couchless every since. No easy chairs, either. Everything that hasn't been arranged has been shoved into random spaces so that the couch can be moved in. After the couch is here, then I can sort out more stuff and figure out which stuff is going away. It's going to be a fun weekend. :)