12/30/25: Sling Free

My day-12 post-operative appointment went pretty much as expected. The X-ray showed the hardware in my shoulder—and wow, there’s a lot of it. Two plates and twelve screws. The dressing came off, and to my surprise, 33 staples came out with it. The doctor moved my shoulder around a bit, everything looked good, and for now, so am I. That said, there’s still a long road of healing ahead.

The protocol is conservative for a reason. The bone still has to heal. Blood supply needs to re-establish itself. New bone cells have to form. There’s still a chance things don’t heal properly, which could mean another surgery—something I’d very much like to avoid.

For the next four weeks, movement is limited: 50 degrees of flexion and abduction, 10 degrees of internal and external rotation. Still no weight-bearing, and no lifting anything heavier than a pound. But the best news?

“Wean from the sling.”

Now, the definition of wean is “to detach from a source of dependence.” No mention of speed or timeline—so to me, that sounded pretty subjective. My wife disagreed. She pointed out that there’s an implied rate of detachment. Regardless, I was elated. Day one: three hours out of the sling. Day two: the entire day out.

So now you know my definition of “wean.”

In fairness, my wife was right. Detaching too quickly comes with consequences—more soreness, fatigue, and a bit of restlessness. I’ve been fully weaned off pain medication for a while now, so there’s no safety net there.

Thankfully, my overly enthusiastic weaning experiment didn’t come with any major repercussions. And honestly? It feels incredibly good to be sling-free.