In Sept 08 the surgeon reconstructed the nerve. It would take about 3-6 months to grow back as nerves grow approximately 1 mm per day. I could expect pain as it grew back.

And I did have increased pain to about an 8 - still full body. I went back to the same hand PT who worked with me. In mid-October I got too aggressive and had 6 tears in which I believe I damaged the nerve again. We also noticed that I now had frozen shoulder because I would not use that hand so we started PT for that as well.

Since I was in pain all the time, it took a few months to see any results. I would do hand exercises and shoulder exercise. It was painful and I cried allot. But after a few months (about 6), I noticed that sometimes the shoulder exercises would not increase the pain and sometimes they would. And probably 3 months later moving the shoulder usually did not give me extra pain.

I also had began walking again after the surgery and the curious thing is I had been walking 3 hours daily before surgery and after surgery I could hardly walk any distance and I walked very slowly. How could this be when I had been walking 3 hours a day at a brisk pace? Over time (many months), I could walk at a quicker pace and for about 45 minutes.

Interestingly enough, the pain went very, very gradually from an 8 in Sept 08 to a 1 in June of 09 (took 9 months). The pain had left my feet, legs, head, arms, back and resided in my hips and would flare up in my chest.

The hand was a different story. I think I had reinjured the nerve. So moving the hand still caused pain. Even with all the therapy, I still was stiff and swollen along the arm, neck & face.

I tried a second surgery in June 09 to see if I could get rid of the last of the pain.