My heart is pounding a little faster...

and my leg is already starting to ache.

Some of you may know that I would be the perfect shoe model. If I had coordination, that is. You see, my right foot turns out quite far to the right - thus allowing you to see the front of the shoe on my left foot, while also seeing the side of the right shoe. Brilliant right? Think of it as half duck footed.

Anyway, we started to notice the problem about 14 years ago when my knee started to hurt. I was diagnosed with external tibial torsion and told that I would eventually need a knee replacement and to hold out as long as I could. My knee and hip have hurt every day since then. Pregnancy was a joy.

I'll spare you some of the boring details about a summer filled with tests, referrals and MRI's, and just tell you that they've made some advancements and I don't need a knee replacement. (Yay!) They just need to cut my tibia (shin bone), turn it, and put it back together. Unfortunately, the only doctor with experience is a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. So... I spent my day at Primary Children's Hospital with my new doctor, Dr. Klatt.

It was perhaps the most uncomfortable time I've ever spent in a waiting room. On one side of me was a beautiful clubfooted baby. On the other, an 8 year old who fell off the monkey bars and broke his arm. Kids everywhere. And me, the 28 year old partially duck footed woman hobbling into the children's hospital. I lost count how many times I was asked if I was Stacy's guardian. Not to mention they were running 45 minutes behind schedule.

But, Dr. Klatt was really very nice and I felt comfortable right away. He reviewed the MRI's and x-rays I brought with me, and did a few tests himself. He found that not only is my right tibia twisted, but so is my left. And my right femur (thigh bone). He said that if I were a child he would break both bones in my right leg now, but suggested we start with just the shin bone for now.

He is going to make an incision in the front of my shin, drill holes in my bone and break it the rest of the way through with a chisel. Pretty medieval right? The bone will be turned, a long metal rod will be put in from an incision by my knee, and screws will be placed by my knee and ankle. I'll spend 3 days in the hospital and can't put much weight on my leg for several weeks. Obviously, I'm too old for surgery at Primary Children's, so we'll probably have it at the Orthopedic Center down the road. I'll find out the schedule tomorrow.

The good news is, this diagnosis is MUCH better than what my referring doctor had braced me for. Dr. Klatt thinks I can return to work in 2-3 weeks if I want. And, there is a chance this surgery will alleviate the pain I've been having enough that I may not need the other two bones broken. (Cross your fingers!) Hopefully I'll be able to run without crying for the first time. Ever!

While I was walking to my car after the appointment, I had a bit of an inner dialogue:

• 3 days in the hospital?! What am I going to do? If I get woken up every 15 minutes and asked if I need something to help me sleep I'll walk myself home, thank you very much!
• Maybe I'll have to take the computer and blog to entertain myself. I can see the post now: "8:38 - moody nurse is back. HELP!
• I'm surprised there's a problem with my femur, no one mentioned that before. Maybe I don't really need that bone broken? Or maybe I do and I should just get it done now? Who wants another surgery, really?
• He said he'd do the surgery with an epidural; that went okay when I had the kids. WAIT! I was AWAKE when I had the kids! I hope he doesn't want me awake! I CAN'T HANDLE HEARING MY OWN BONE BREAK!

About then, I started to panic. A lot. And I know I wont be able to sleep tonight. When they call me tomorrow to schedule, there are definitely going to be some questions! Until then, I'm going to be pacing. In my own little partially duckfooted way.