So You’re Gonna Have Surgery

by | Apr 24, 2025 | Ruminations

Caveat

Note, many of these ideas can apply to various situations where one is temporarily limited in movement. Rich has had hand and cataract surgeries. His movements were limited for a time.
My situation was ALIF – low back fusion surgery. There appear to be different levels of this. Below are simply perspectives tactics that I have found helpful.
Take what you find useful. Leave behind anything else.

Above all: Check with your medical team on the efficacy of incorporating any thoughts below. i.e. Primary, surgeon, massage therapist, chiropractor, physical or occupational therapist.

Pre-Surgery:

Get in shape:  Lose weight if appropriate.  If your doctor advises this:  DO IT! Strengthen the muscles you will need to help you move—your legs, arms, and abdomen. Learn to walk in structurally appropriate ways. i.e. Lift toes then step heel-toe. Draw the low belly up. Shoulders back. Chin parallel to ground. If you are using a walker or cane, use it as a guide by gripping it lightly.  Use peripheral vision. Face directly whatever you are doing.  For example.  If you are doing dishes and need something from the countertop, take small steps and face the object you need. This vs. twist and reach for. Practice helps avoid future strain on the affected surgical area.

All this is “code talk” for: Stop shuffling! Stop slouching! Suck your gut in! Stand up straight! Release the death grip on the walker or cane! Pay attention to what is around you.

Practice: standing and sitting up straight.
Practice: upper body strength. Keep shoulders back and arms strong.

Practice: on off chairs, into out of cars.
Practice: weeks ahead: Nose follows toes. Take baby steps vs twist around.  Practice: bending from knees vs waist.  Realize thighs will initially be sore anyway. As desired, use a topical like “bio freeze.”

Practice: help putting on and taking off compression socks. In my case NO bending from waist or bringing knees above hips for several weeks. It’s tricky to do this. You and your helper will get better over time.

Watch and Practice: Credible YouTube videos. Movement, getting into and out of vehicles. (A great tip was to get a heavy plastic bag that is slippery to help you turn more easily.) Getting up and down off chairs. Into and out of bed.  Wrestling with blankets. Using pillows between legs. Bathing. Using toilet/wiping bottom. A flaw with the videos is the occupational or physical therapist is often young, using a bed with no blankets and has not had surgery. You will need to practice ahead to manage well after surgery.

 

Determine the items you will need ahead.

This site is valuable for deciding what and how to get ready.

Many items you need only temporarily, so there is NO need to buy them. Ask friends if they have items to borrow. Find and use the medical tool lending libraries in your area. Label where items come from (friend, medical tool library). Place where you will need them. Grace Episcopal Church in Cedar Rapids, IA, has an amazing medical tool lending library. Say “thanks” by making a contribution and donating items when you are done.

Some items might be Walkers. Reachers. Canes. Wipes. Wedges for semi-reclining. Grippers for tub safety. Bath stools. Beds and mattresses. Small plastic box to put items in that you need when resting. (lip balm, cheater glasses. phone, hand lotion. Pen/paper. Book.)

Buy disposable items you will need:

Examples are bathing and child body wipes. Clothes easy to put on and off. (i.e. wide legged pants and button-down shirts.) Use Goodwill or other resale shops to save money. Then, donate back when you no longer need these.

Declutter.

Remove unused items and trip hazards. (rugs, objects, pet toys) Get ice and heat packs ready. Check with doctor for when to start using. To avoid caffeine headache, wean off caffeine. Drink healthy liquids and use the restroom. (hot/warm water or tea. Juices. Milk)

Buy and Plug in night lights

Locate the strategic places to help with navigation.

Arrange food for several weeks.

A “Meal Train” type system helps!  Schedule for every few days.  Most people bring more food than for one meal. Also, you may have less appetite for a few weeks so one meal may go a ways. We found extending this courtesy longer than we initially thought, helped. If someone gives a gift card through an online site, ask them to alert you so you can find it.  Look in spam. Otherwise, it will get lost.

Keep a list of people who offer to and have helped. Send notes of thanks. Ecards, real cards, texts.

Gather “entertainment” items:

Realize you may be disinterested initially. When people offer items ask if they want them back or not. If so, be sure they label them so you can return them. Small puzzles, word-type puzzles, books (audio/hard copy).

Make a document of how you like things done.

Ask people to help keep the house tidy. Include the location of cleaning items, bedding, laundry, temperature control, food, dishes/pots/pans. Contacts.

Ask another person, as well as your caregiver, to come to pre-surgery visits with you. The flood of information is overwhelming. These people can listen and understand more than you can.

Personal Care Just Before Surgery

Either wash or have you hair washed and styled immediately before surgery. I could run a brush through my hair and felt half decent for several days. Then I could use the dry wash product on my hair a few times before i was ready to tackle washing hair in the shower.  Also, clip your toenails and fingernails right before.  I was not to bend beyond 90 degrees – sitting L shape – for at least eight weeks.  Toenails can grow really long in that time!

Practice:

When we are more present and aware, we can be more mindful, do meditation, and feel appreciations. Take a few minutes each day to say, Thank you. Breathe deeply. Smile. Release muscles. I programmed HeartMath’s Inner Balance on my phone to chime three times a day. I would pause and breathe in regenerative feelings like calm and appreciation. I’d smile as I remembered how good the sun felt on my face when sitting in the nook; the sound of robins returning; our chickens laying fresh eggs; the song birds at the feeder; a fun note from a friend; a friend’s kindness.

You have prepared yourself and those close to you. Know all will be well.

Labyrinths 2024

by | Jan 9, 2025 | Labyrinths, Reflections/Profiles, Ruminations

Winter and Spring

Each January I post about visiting labyrinths during the years. Below are Labyrints 2024 that we visited.

January kicked off the year with a fun and moderately mild weather visit to a childhood friend and her family who now live in Wisconsin. We walked in Wauwatosa’s Hartung Park, where the community has installed an engaging labyrinth for all ages to enjoy. Watch as this youngster romped along the path looking for the icicle fairies who feed the Voogans. These are imaginary creatures, tall as a house, who live in the park.

Prairiewoods Spirituality Center in Hiawatha, IA, hosted a series of cross-quarter date labyrinth walks. The first, known in various cultures as Imbolc,  St. Bridgit’s Day, or Candlemas, marks the halfway point between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox.

Early April we trekked to Arkansas for the total eclipse and to catch up with Veriditas and Outdoor Writer friends. The paved labyrinth at Hendrix College is special to Twylla Alexander who hosts special walks with her family in the holiday season.

Spring to Summer

One of my joys is to periodically help host handheld labyrinth walks through Veriditas. Each Friday since March 2020, Veriditas has hosted free walks.  As many as 100+ have attended worldwide from at least four different continents. Remember this involves navigating time zones and considering seasonal differences in the Southern and Northern Hemispheres!

December 2023 when I guided a “finger” walk, the North Polar Bear who comes out annually with the Father Christmas stories, jumped up and created quite a stir!  Viewers grabbed their Teddy Bears and other “stuffies” and joined in the chaos.  I could hardly contain anyone! Soooooo, North Polar Bear set the idea of play in the labyrinth.

This gave rise to the yoga class participants from the Nassif Community Cancer Center coming to the Phoenix Harmony Labyrinth. We’ve walked before and enjoyed a potluck. This year they gamely joined in what is known as the Appleton Dance which works well on a dual-entry five-circuit labyrinth. Laughter and clapping drifted over the yard.

Sometimes a pilgrim quietly arrives. In high summer, a Gazette reporter slowly walked the path, took photos, and sat on the bench in the shade of the birch.

Evening is always a pleasant time to walk, especially with a setting moon to frame the trees. I do miss the sounds of insects which have been diminishing over the years as loss of habitat and increase in sprays take their toll. Insects are critical for earth and human health.

Autumn to Winter

People use wheelchairs and feet to move through the indoor labyirnth.

Indoor labyrinth

Our minister, the Reverend Carin Bringelson creates unique services engaging a variety of congregants. One September service featured several stops where members engaged in physical activity. This included a three-circuit processional walk that a friend, Tom, helped lay down on the Ely Room floor.  We invited people to walk once to get the feel and then again more thoughtfully.  People enjoyed the experience and shared their takes on the various stops after service.

 

Finding labyrinths 2024 was slower this year because of different types of activities.

In September, Rich and I visited Lincoln, NE. Part of our adventure before his bicycle ride was finding labyrinths.  It was mostly futile.  One was a pretty walking area but not a labyrinth.  The other was tucked away from where anyone would choose to walk and behind an area of construction.  The path leading to a pretty paved labyrinth was overgrown and uninviting.  Needs love. One we simply could not find.

A similar experience in Charles City, IA, which did have a lovely paved labyrinth next to the river revealed that is was gone. To everything, there is a season.

October found me in northern California outside Yosemite at a labyrinth conference. The Gathering’s theme was “Awe and Inspiration.”  Indeed the day tour into Yosemite, although brief, yielded a sense of the grandeur of this sacred place so loved by John Muir and before him, the Indigenous people who lived there.

We are not always filled with Awe and Inspiration, so what do we do when things are tough? We walk through “Ordinary” time. Not meaning dull, but time of preparation. Although connected to the liturgical sense, we all experience “Ordinary” time and Awe and Inspiration. That was the theme of my talk.  How inspiring to hear people’s experiences and how they use the labyrinth to help them keep balance and return to a sense of appreciation and inspiration.

I’ve captured images of our trip below.

Finally, we approach winter with our final yard task of the year. Burning the prairie and the labyrinth!  My favorite activity.  Now, I can walk the path, note the ashen borders, and know that come spring the Phoenix Harmony Labyrinth will emerge even more robust than ever.

Burning and winter quiet.

Cataract Surgery Success

by | Oct 17, 2024 | Ruminations

Routine Visit Leads to Cataract Surgery

A midsummer routine checkup by my ophthalmologist, Dr. Brian Privett, changed my vision – for the better.

Rich as a boy with glasses

Wearing thick glasses was a way of life.

During most of my life, I have suffered from extreme myopia. I could see things inches in front of my eyes clearly but anything further away was only a blur. I wore thick glasses for years.

That changed nearly 20 years ago when I had PRK eye surgery. Similar to the better-known Lasik, a skilled eye surgeon and amazing technology altered my corneas. The impact was dramatic. For the first time, I could see distant objects clearly without glasses. And, I had peripheral vision not possible with my old glasses.

My vision remained outstanding, except for increasingly needing reading glasses for close work. This is a condition called presbyopia that virtually everyone experiences as they age.

Cataracts

Rich with glasses

Thick glasses

During my recent summer visit, Dr. Privett noted that my vision, although good, was somewhat diminished by growing cataracts. Most everyone also experiences them as they age. Cataracts are a stealth condition. They grow so slowly that it’s hard to detect a loss of vision. All I was aware of was increasing difficulty driving at night. Oncoming headlights and streetlights were surrounded by fog.

I wasn’t overly bothered and could have delayed cataract surgery, but during the visit Dr. Privett said, “Your cataracts aren’t too bad, but they will get worse and sooner or later you’ll need to have them removed and a new lens inserted. Having surgery sooner is a wise strategy as you’ll have more years to enjoy good vision and it’s often better to do surgery when a person is younger,”.

Decisions

That sparked an instant decision. I immediately scheduled surgery. Dr. Privett removed the cataract from my right eye and inserted a Vivity lens on July 31. He did the same procedure on my left eye a week later. Then followed about a month of eye drops.

It’s taken time to get accustomed to my “new” eyes. Perhaps the most striking experience was driving through Cedar Rapids on a dark night about a month after surgery. I was astounded at how clear the lights were. My night vision was excellent.

Adjustments

Cataract surgery isn’t perfect.  I still need close-up reading glasses and my eyes are light sensitive. So, I carry and use readers and sunglasses depending on where I am and what I’m doing. In early October I ordered new glasses that include progressive lenses that should enable me to read and transitions that darken when I’m out in the sun and lighten inside the house. I’m expecting my new glasses to provide outstanding vision in many situations.

Camping without glasses

Enjoying life without glasses.

Modern eye surgery is miraculous and is the result of excellent medical research, advanced technology, and skilled surgeons like Dr. Privett. I encourage everyone to get periodic vision examinations and to follow the advice of their ophthalmologist.

Information

Many websites provide cataract information. One of my favorites is the Mayo Clinic.  Dr. Privett and other ophthalmologists are affiliated with the Iowa Eye Center.  The American Academy of Ophthalmology website helps people living anywhere to find a skilled eye physician near where they live.