Verdict is in

Saw the doc today with results form the MRI. It's definitely a tear of the rotator cuff. A full 2cm. Given a small area a guess that's pretty impressive. Impressive from just a small fall as well. I wish that was more impressive. Like being tackled by rugby or something. having surgery because you slipped on ice just makes you feel old :(

The actual muscle torn is the Supraspinatus. Kind of nice having the internet around to research all of this stuff, and not just relying on the poster in the doctors office. The more you read about the shoulder, the more impressive it seems. The whole rotator cuff system is designed to control the ball socket that is your shoulder. From an engineering point of view, lifting your arms up given almost no leverage is pretty cool. The series of 4 muscles around the ball joint, and form a 'cuff' around the joint. That's what allows you to lift your arm up.

With this muscle torn, I pretty much can't raise my arm up past desk level - that's where the rotator muscles takes over to continue moving your arm. The other 3 muscles in the group are fine and intact, which is why I have regained a lot of other shoulder-based movement.

So surgery is on the docket (no date yet). He'll stitch the tendon back together orthoscopically. he says my shoulder is also a 'snug fit', so he'll 'clean up' anything else in there that needs attention. I love those medical terms. There are also a lot of other words on the MRI report I still have to look up. :)

Healing may be a bit better than some of the gloom-and-doom on some internet pages. Doc made it sound like I'll have basic mobility pretty quick. I have nightmare scenarios of not being able to function with a second hand for weeks, but Doc says I should have minimal use pretty quick. So I can at least waste time on the computer while healing. But still some PT afterward, and several months before full movement is regained.

This week will be scheduling surgery. Being cut open isn't high on the list of fun activities, but it'll be nice to move forward with this. Plus the doc promised to get me some pics of surgery. That'll be fun to share.

Red line fun continues

Another joyous day on the Red line today. The train pulled into Broadway smelling of break linings. You know this can't be good. But off we went. By the time we hit Park street, the whole train just smelled of smoke (althoguh nothing was actually smoking). After sitting with open doors for 3-4 minutes we were finally tossed off and had to wait for the disabled car to turn.

This time there actually was a red line car right behind us - and not that full at all. So our wait at park wasn't very long. Only bad part was the kid who decided to stand in the doorway even though a full platform of people were trying to get on. Welcome to Boston.

Rough Red line week

Since my rough commute Wednesday morning, the red line has been delayed once by a 'police action', and 8 times due to disabled trains. And it hasn't even been that cold this week.

The arm continues

Got an MRI on my shoulder today. Should get a call form the doc in a few days and see how things look. I can move my arm a lot more than I could a few weeks ago, but still can't raise it above shoulder height. After reading a bit about Rotary Cuff surgery, it doesn't look like a fun recovery.

The MRI itself was interesting. I've had CT scans before - you're pretty much in a big donut. Apparently MRIs are a lot longer (as you can see in the pic). It doesn't look bad when you're outside of it. But once you're slid in, it gets very small. and very long. Your hands are at your sides - and you pretty much couldn't scratch your nose if you had to. yipes. The best you can do is to close your eyes and relax. Classical music on the headphones helped a bit. Actually the loud hum of the machine was very helpful - like a meditative sound generator. I think I fell asleep for a short time. Just don'r open your eyes... :)

Red Line Woes

Another terrible commute on the red line today. Between when I left home and when I got to the T station, there was some break down, and the whole Northbound line was "running with delays". Of course after waiting 15 odd minutes for service to resume service was packed. Had to wait for 3 packed trains to go by until one was empty enough to actually get into. Then we spend half the time in tunnels, well, because there were three trains in front of us attending to packed South and Downtown stations. Great way to turn a 7 minute ride until a 40 minute journey.

I signed up for "Alerts" - so I get an email every time the red line has some delays. There seems to be at least one every day. There were 3 today alone. Between signal problems and mechanical breakdowns, is the red line jsut falling apart??

Maintaining your sanity

The Monday night dart league started last night. I have to say I enjoyed being out with the gang. I've been staying home more often with the cold weather and my arm. Work is chaos right now, and there are major issues going on right now with the Neighborhood Association and the Community Garden. Safe to say, I'm going out of my mind at the moment :)

So it was great to put all of that aside and head out for some fun. We had fun, and didn't get pounded too bad (loss 3-4). I could keep my left arm at my side and still throw decent (without hurting myself), so I was happy that I could play, and happy to have a few stress-free hours.