Your days in the halo can seem long and never-ending, but they will go by faster if you try to keep yourself somewhat occupied. Unfortunately, you will be very limited in what you can actually do, or what you are allowed to do. If you normally work and/or are an active person, it may be even more difficult to adjust to your new (but temporary), situation. No doubt for the first several weeks you will feel the need to rest most of the day. You will likely take lots of naps to make up for lost sleep at night. This is a very good thing and will allow your body to begin the healing process. After a while though you may start to find the days a bit long.
Some people might enjoy watching some television to pass the time during the day. I didn`t. I have never liked to watch daytime television - especially soaps. There is something about daytime tv that I find...depressing, for some reason. I don`t know what it is. Perhaps there is a childhood association there with being sick and at home for the day. I much prefer to raise the window blinds, let the sun shine in, turn on the radio, and listen to music. This helps me to feel somewhat in touch with what is going on with the outside world. To each his own though.
My days of halo tended to be separated into different segments. In the mornings, I would have my coffee and read and/or send e-mails, trying to stay in touch with friends, family, and to some extent, work. Keep in mind this is several weeks into my recuperation. I would then have breakfast after which I would wash up and get dressed. Although I couldn`t do anything close to heavy housework, after a few weeks I was able to make the bed, sort of, and pick up a bit (usually with my feet, hee, hee). The nurse who did the daily cleaning of my pins always came just before lunch. This ate up about half an hour and was always a welcome diversion.
Afternoons were longer. I couldn`t read comfortably so I didn`t do much of that. Sometimes people would call and I`d chat for a while. As I talked on the telephone I would walk, and walk, throughout my (relatively large)house. Up and down the stairs, and around and around...Those were the times when I couldn`t get comfortable no matter what I tried, so I just walked. I think it helped to alleviate some of my anxiety and pent up energy. There was no way I could walk outside. My driveway (which is somewhere under the snow in the picture above..) was sheer ice most of the time and the cold on my metal pins would have given me an instant brain freeze... Speaking of brain freeze, it will happen if you expose yourself to very cold temperatures. It doesn`t feel good, so avoid it at all costs. I learned the hard way. Yowch.
In the late afternoon I would often take a short nap. It always revived me and I was good to go until bedtime. You have to be a bit careful with naps though. If you sleep too much during the day, especially later in your recovery, you might have trouble sleeping at night.
The evenings were spent sitting in front of the fireplace, usually watching television with my husband and just generally resting. Friends of mine gave me dvds as gifts to help pass the time. As a result, I have become utterly and completely addicted to House :) Thanks alot C. I spent many hours burning through back to back episodes while my husband watched his hockey games. As I said, I`m not normally a big television watcher, but now I can`t seem to get enough of that show. If you are one of the few who haven`t yet seen this one, I highly recommend it. It`s relatively intelligent and it`s lots of fun. Expect to get hooked though.
There will come a time when you will want/need to get out of the house. Hopefully, you will have someone who can drive you. Our normal routine is to do our errands and grocery shopping on Saturdays. It took many weeks before I ventured out, but after a while, I joined him on these excursions. It`s amazing how wiped out you can get simply following someone around in a store when you are carrying an extra 14 pounds or so, mostly on your head.. And, getting in and out of the car is no party either. The only way I could do this was to squat before getting in to avoid hitting my halo on the top of the car. They tell you to push your bottom in first and then follow with your halo. I couldn`t do this because I couldn`t bend forward without pain. So I squatted and slid in -- slowly. Not the most attractive looking gesture, but it worked for me.
Expect to get stared at when you go out. If you`re in line, say at a big box store, you can be sure that everyone in line is looking at you. For one thing, they have nothing better to do. And, they are trying to figure out what that thing on your head is. You can`t blame them, it`s not a common sight. Some will stare openly, while others will be sneaky about it. But they will all stare. Some of the more curious will actually come and ask you questions. The most common for me was, how do you sleep? Just tell them you sleep standing up and enjoy the reaction...:)I was able to ignore the staring for a certain amount of time, and then it would get to be a bit much. I never held it against anyone though. It`s just natural curiosity.
My outings were very short. One or two hours on the week-end was my maximum since as soon as I became fatigued the halo would begin to feel heavier on my shoulders. It was always nice to get out though and if you are able to, I recommend it. As you deal with these challenges, keep in mind that soon your days of halo will be nothing but a distant memory.
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