VAC on

The home health care nurse came this afternoon and installed the VAC on my arm. She cut a piece of black sponge and fitted it to the wound and taped it on with sticky tape to create a seal.  Then, she cut a little hole and stuck the end of a 5 foot tube in the sponge.  The tube fits into a little pump, with a reservoir attachment.  When she turned on the pump, it started sucking, and the sponge flattened.  totally bizarre.  Ben, having said yesterday he wanted to see the wound, demurred today, and I honestly see why.  It looks like this:

The pump/reservoir fits in a pouch. It weighs maybe 3 pounds.  They make it wearable, as a shoulder bag or fanny pack, which looks like this:

I'm supposed to wear it 24/7, and the doc said a couple weeks.  It promotes healing.  When my tissue is healed enough, then I can get the skin graft surgery.

So, a 24/7 tether for 3 weeks that I need to remember not to catch on anything.  It makes a bubbling sound, like water boiling.  It smells like plastic.  I burst into tears when the nurse left.

She kindly offered that I can put it on the floor next to the bed when I sleep, and plug it in overnight so that it recharges.  Obviously, I will need to rethink the whole rolling over in bed activity to avoid a headline:  Boulder woman strangles in healing machine. 

I'm having a hard time thinking about how this will work professionally.  Notwithstanding the 'keep it on always' admonition, I can unplug it to remove sleeves, or take a shower.  It's cumbersome enough, though, I may stop wearing my Fitbit for a couple weeks.  And, the cast they sent me home with from Houston will need a re-fit tomorrow when I see the OT (I hope, because it's unwearable now).