I had my rotator cuff surgery last week with Dr. Kier Ecklund and today’s day 5. Just had my first post-op appointment this morning and it appears that the surgery incision sites are healing well with no visible inflammation or redness. I watched the Arthrex videos (the brand of screws/anchors used to retighten my tendons) and still in a state of disbelief at the marvel of modern technology. If you are interested, here’re the arthroscopy repair vids for supraspinatus, subscapularis and the bicep tenodesis. I’m still a firm believer of diet, exercise and sleep (and the not-so occasional apple) to avoid doctor visits, but still. This is just a quick summary of the surgery day and the aftermath.

Rotator Cuff Surgery: D-Day

As I mentioned in the last blog, I went into the surgery in a fasting state (with three prior days of 24h water-only fasting). Felt a little dejavú at the surgery center – last I was here was for my ankle surgery with Dr. Jesse Yurgelon. My wife Kammy was with me as they checked me in, did the prelim checks, confirmations. Resting heart rate of 45 had to be double checked! Told the docs I was an endurance athlete. I opted for the nerve block, which they inject 2cm under the skin with the aid of an ultrasound so nothing gets pinched.

As they rolled me off into the operating room and before the anesthesia kicked in, vaguely remember telling the nurse I’m looking forward to rock climb again. And then the 😴 hit – black out. Woke up in the recovery room pretty groggy, and Kammy & my 22yo Navin both came to pick me up. The nurses got me out of there in a hurry. When we spoke to Dr. Harvey Chong the night before, we had so many questions. But the general feedback was, ice, rest in whatever position that’s comfortable, take the anti-inflammatories and have hydrocodone ready if the pain is unbearable. And yeah, make it to the post-op when more will be divulged! 🙂 Ok then.

Rotator Cuff Surgery – First Few Days

My plan was to continue my 24h fasting for the next few days, to let the body focus on healing. To keep myself distracted and entertained, decided to sketch my progress on Procreate! But basically, ice every hour, Tylenol & Advil every 6 hours (staggered), walk if possible, basic elbow flexion/extension, hydrate and just hang out. I slept pretty decent the first night, with the help of all the meds they pumped into me. Second night, there was discomfort but no stabbing pain. Third and fourth nights were better! Never really needed the hydrocodone as the pain/discomfort was very manageable.

By day 4, I was walking 5+ miles, felt comfortable taking the sling off to let my arm breathe, walk the dog (with leash on right hand) take a careful shower and even do simple house chores. I’m also writing this blog instead of using Apple dictation! Progress!

Rotator Cuff Surgery – Post Op at Day 5

I had my first (of three) post-op appointments today, and Simone & Will helped me remove the dressing, clean the surgical incision area and put new waterproof ones. The shoulder was certainly bruised from the five arthroscopy incisions & the one where they reanchored the bicep tendon, but not inflamed! Will confirmed my suspicion that over 4-6 months the tendons will grow and reattach to the bone! With 4 screws on my shoulder and two on my ankle, I’m like an Arthrex model now! Not that I want to be one.

Overall I’m feeling very optimistic right now. The sutures come off next week and I’ll be able to use a stationary bike. My gut and athletic body awareness tells me I’ll be able to do gentle treadmill runs not soon after. And PT starts in earnest too – and my house, with all the prior running & other injuries over the years, is setup for rehab already! 🙂

Threading the needle through mobility, strength, atrophy and healing is a tricky one, but hoping I can pull that off methodically and systematically. Onward and upward. Looking forward to running some hills in the not too far future! Happy trails!