Monday, January 4, 2010

Socks -- An Unexpected Benefit


He has always worn Gold Toe brand support hose.  They are a pretty premium men's sock, and they are made to provide some pretty intense compression.  They are advertised for the treatment of varicose veins, edema, and post surgical circulatory support. 

In the bad old days, before His bypass surgery, when He still weighed something over 300 pounds, when moving and bending were just too physically taxing for Him to attempt -- He'd pull those moster socks off and toss them in the hamper; always inside out.  ALWAYS.  It was just too difficult for Him to work them off His legs and off His feet without turning them completely inside out. 

We'd do the laundry, and then there remained the chore of turning all those compression socks back inside out so they could be mated and put away.  I know I never thought much about it.  It just was the way it was. 

Last weekend, wading through a pile of laundry, I got about 3/4 of the way through the pile of socks when it hit me -- they were all RIGHT SIDE OUT!  Wow!  Turns out that, having lost 142 pounds, taking off His socks is no longer a huge ordeal.  He can easily slide them down and pull them off, and they almost always end up right side out. 

I know it seems like a small thing.  It is a small thing, but it is one more small and unexpected benefit from all the changes that we've been through.