Sisyphean Flap Fix

I had the pedicle flap procedure on December 28. It detached on January 9. Why it detached is anyone’s guess. The doctor is not taking responsibility, so that leaves me. I was as careful as I could be but it just came loose. I could suspect a faulty first flap fusion, but I have no proof.

He reattached it on January 10. More needles, stitches and stinging pain. I heard him tell the nurse to schedule me for surgery on January 19th.

On Tuesday this week the nurse called to check on me. I asked her what would happen on Thursday. She said the doctor would remove the flap and suture the wounds, then two weeks later remove the final stitches and restore me to my normal good looking self. She also told me I could start riding after a day or two. Finally!

Today is the 19th. The nurse had me down for a 30 minute surgery. That is what she heard the doctor order on January 10. That is what I heard on January 10. That is what it said on the medical record. But the doctor claims that is not what he said.

When I saw him today he said there had been a ‘miscommunication.’ Today was just an exam and I need another week of healing.

Confronted by this depressing news, I questioned him about the previous detachment. He said it had never happened before. I told him I was incredibly careful, much more gentle than the nurse when she cleaned me up. He said he couldn’t speak to what I had or had not done. The clear implication was that it was my fault.

Later the nurse told me it had happened before, once. But she said it so quietly and reluctantly that I’m sensing a conspiracy.

So either I am incredibly ham-handed, incredibly unlucky, or something else is going on. Also either the nurse and I both misheard the doctor or are both deaf dolts, or he did in fact schedule a surgery instead of an exam.

So after getting so excited about returning to a kind of normal life, I have to live with this flap for another week. No exercise, no cycling. I have to be cautions about colds so I don’t see people, and I’m even limiting driving since if the air bag deployed it would f… up the flap. Another week of bandages and Vaseline and an itching eye.

I did my last road ride on December 26. I did four trainer sessions in early January. My return is now delayed to January 28 at the earliest. Want to bet? Take the over…