Dorothy Pohorelow

It has been 15 weeks since my fall.  The hip is healing nicely and PT is going well with another 4 weeks still ahead of me.  I am lucky that as a disabled vet the VA  or Tricare has covered everything.  But some of the amounts are staggering. The ambulance ride was over $2,000. The home health nurse visits were $120 per visit and the home therapy visits were $150 a visit and I started with 3 visits a week then went down to 2 a week before I was discharged from Home Health and moved to the VA for my PT. The surgery and hospital stay was over $5,000.   And there have been follow up visits with Ortho to monitor how the hip is healing.   That single fall  could have sent us into bankruptcy!

The weeks of limited mobility have affected my stamina so I need to add walking to my regular exercises for PT.  For other vets that may end up in a similar situation.  You can get the docs to order mobility aids from the VA such as walkers or canes and can get shower seats and toilet chairs if needed.  You can also ask for a fall detection watch or pendent if you feel the need for one.

Michael Cox wrote:You might like to find the "Back to Eden" video on youtube. It's a long one of a guy who uses woodchips and has good results.

In my climate it was problematic - it ended up being a slug paradise. In a drier climate it would likely be less problematic. Avoid turning them into the soil.

In the "Back to Eden" video he says repeatedly that "it's all just wood chips"... but at the same time he actually pre-composts a large amount of chips in his extensive chicken run. The chickens scratch them up and add nutrients before he uses them.

IF the climate is too dry they are a problem.  They simply sit on top of the earth and don't decompose as there is not enough moisture to sustain the microbes needed...  If you were watering every day like they were a garden it may help but just dumping them on a large area and waiting is problematic.

Thekla McDaniels wrote:Wow, Dorothy!  I am glad for the luck you had on that day, glad you made it this far!

Did you get a hip replacement?


Hoping for a speedy and complete recovery for you.

No rebuilding or replacement needed.  The break while very painful was a simple break of the femur head off the femur with very little displacement.  All they had to do was screw me back together... So very lucky there. Another stroke of luck was as a disabled Vet the VA is picking up the total cost of the emergency and rehab treatment or so I have been told.  The home heath care nurse visits were I am told $120 per visit, the PT therapist is even more and for at least the next couple of weeks they will be coming by 3 times a week.

Biggest challenges for now are my 1938 house is not designed for people with walkers.  There is no ramp in front so I need to learn how to do steps before I can go home or we need to get a ramp built.  My small "mid century modest" has of course a small bathroom, with a deep cast iron step over tub... and the toilet is very close to the wall so it will be a tight fit for the potty chair...  Currently on the table is the possibility or removing that lovely tub and transforming the nook into a small walk in shower.  
Like others have mentioned already that ramp has been on our minds but never happened... the thought of turning the tub area into a shower is new but feels like the right choice as it will be months before I have full mobility again and my husband has back issues making using the tub more and more difficult.  

My phones both land line and cell were just out of reach on tables...  One friend suggested I think about an Apple watch which allows calls from the watch...  it is something I may need to look into.  What was and still is terrifying for me was how I became so completely helpless so quickly. I managed to flip from my side to my back but there was no way I was moving anywhere...

Last week I got reminded how quickly our status can change especially for us older women.   One of the terriers managed to trip me and I came down hard on my left hip.   At that point I could very well have been in one of those "help I have fallen and can't get up" commercials.  No phones or means of communicating my plight to anyone not right there.  My husband did eventually come up from the basement as he heard the thud but then it was him wandering in and out and trying to get me to stand up on my own for a good ten minutes before I got him to realize that I needed an ambulance.  
Great EMT and nurses but I am a hard stick and they could not find a vein for pain meds so ended up doing a nasal injection of one to help me tolerate being lifted and carried to the ambulance.  THAT was pure agony....
X-rays of hip to ankle, and a CT scan to be sure I had not injured my head.   Then back for new CT scan of my hip area as it was indeed broken.  Admitted to the hospital that Friday night and surgery was done to repair it on Saturday morning.  Thank goodness it was one of the easiest to repair hip breaks but of course there will still be long weeks of rehab before I am back to normal.  So almost all the planting plans and quail raising plans are out the window until I am fit...  
A friend with a ramp and wheelchair accessible bath told me I was staying here for now while they get my house set up with the accommodations I will need for a while yet.

I am thankful for all the really wonderful folks who are helping me during this time but one of my biggest fears is what if Toli had not been home and what if I had not gotten him to call the ambulance....  What happens if I fall again?  What are you solutions for the possible need to reach outside help when alone and unable to reach a phone or other communication device....

Just a quick FYI  xylitol aka birch sugar is deadly to dogs even in small amounts.

Grow bags or buckets with good potting soil which you can take with you when you move. There are a large number of developed for container growing veggies out there.  What makes it even nicer is you can move the containers around as you learn the best locations for them.

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:This could be challenging in one regard. I think that the metal lids used for glass canning jars have an inside coating that appears to be plastic. Thoughts?

But the rubberized seal never touches the food.  It forms a seal with the glass jar.

I found out that I get better germination with seed that is at least a year old... And the plants seem hardier the the few I would get with fresh seeds.

You can swap quail eggs for chicken eggs at a 3 to 1 up to a 5 to 1 ratio depending on size.  They have a slightly different taste and different proteins and nutritional values then chicken eggs. That difference is well worth investigating.   A dozen quail eggs makes a lovely omelet.  Or fluffy scrambled eggs.  AND our dogs love the extras or frozen/cracked eggs.   Also be aware that as with any novel food try small amounts first...

Duck eggs have a tougher egg white.  Good for fried egg sandwiches but not so good for plain fried eggs as they tend to be a bit "tough".  They are wonderful for baking as they hold even the lightest cake together better then chicken eggs.  And yes you swap 1 for 1.

Haven't tried the others in you photo.