I am scheduled to have my pins removed from my toes this Friday and then I’ll get to start walking on the cast boot on the same day I go back to work next week (Jan 28th). After that, it should be about another month before I can wear a normal shoe so we’re looking at about 5-6 weeks longer before I can drive.
I guess it’s nice to have something to look forward to, huh? LOL
![car_clipart_3[1]](http://lh6.ggpht.com/_g8fnXd101sQ/S1TT_Yr0WyI/AAAAAAAAANI/-nYq6LHgiPU/s1600-h/car_clipart_3%5B1%5D%5B9%5D.jpg "car_clipart_3[1]")
At this point I’m just excited for any little bit of human contact I can get. Last week my mom made a surprise trip up to see me (she lives 80 miles away). She spent the day with me and brought me two of her special homemade chocolate pies! That was a pretty big highlight for me. Otherwise, I just sit here with my phone next to me…jumping on it anytime it happens to ring! LOL. It’s also an exciting time of day when my husband gets home from work. I’m sure he’ll be happy when I’m able to take over the cooking again. The poor guy has to work all day and then come home and make dinner.
I think we’ll all be happy when this is all over and our life is back to normal again. :)
hiya,
ReplyDeleteI hope you are doing ok, I see you are getting very bored! I am not looking forward to being off work again and in a cast again, but i'm glad I am half way there! It feels like I haven't been able to do anything for such a long time. Even when I had the boot on I couldnt do much because it was tiring to walk in and gave me a bad back, I think because it was so much higher on one side it put pressure on my back!
I have my boot off now and im in normal shoes. I can't walk very fast and my ankle is very weak and stiff, but as I am walking more I can feel it improving. I have to be careful, especially when going up and down the stairs, if I land wrong on my foot I get a sudden pain in my ankle at the front, it goes away immediately but I worry about twisting it or doing something wrong! I would say the main problem is my ankle which is really weak at the back where the achilles tendon is, I can't stand on my tip toes at all, there is just no strength there. My big toe feels strange when I walk, not painful, but a bit weird, does this sound familiar?
I am going for a pre-op next Wednesday and the op needs to be within 6 weeks of the pre-op so I think my next op should be within the next 6 weeks! I am just waiting for a call with a date. I am feeling impatient, I just want it to be now!
I have been referred for physio, I am just waiting for them to contact to let me know when I can start. I still think I should have done physio on the run up to having my boot off so I may suggest that next time around!
I feel like my life has been on hold and still is really as I am still not able to do as much as before. but I am glad that i'm getting there slowly but surely!
Speak soon
Laura
I can totally empathize with you, I also feel like I haven't gotten to do anything for a really long time. I'm looking forward to the day when I can drive and be totally independant again.
ReplyDeleteYes, I did have a LOT of ankle pain when I first started exercising my foot without the boot on. I also had a little trouble with the big toe being very stiff due to the screw in it. But the physical therapist would massage my foot and stretch everything out before I started exercising so it always felt better after I'd been to PT. It all got better over time. It just takes work and patience. Even now, I have a little stiffness when I first wake up in the morning. But I think that has to do with the fact that I haven't been able to work it much because I've been laying around recovering from my second surgery. I would expect that to go
away after I'm back on both feet and using my feet all day, every day.
Try to keep your spirits up! Talk back at ya soon.
Dana
hiya,
ReplyDeleteI had my first physio yesterday. She gave me some exercises to do and said I need to walk a little to get my foot moving but also to keep resting my foot as much as possible. This was because my foot was really swollen yesterday, probably the worst it hs been for while. The stiffness is getting better but it is very stiff in the morning but gets better as I start moving. The worst thing this last week has been a pain that I have had on the outer side of my foot, i'm not sure if it is the tendon or muscle or something else. It is really tender to touch the area and it hurts as soon as I put weight on my foot. The more I walk on it the worse the pain gets and the worse the swelling gets. Did you have anything similar to this? The physio hoped it is just post op pain and will get better with time. I really hope so it is getting a little unbearable as I need to walk to get the strength back, but I can't walk on it because it's so painful, it's a bit of catch 22.
Im still waitng for my date for op number 2!
Speak soon
Laura
Did she work with you in the gym? My therapist worked with me on the treadmill, exercise bike and various other pieces of equipment as well as some one-on-one exercises where he tied an elastic around my waist and pulled against me while I tried to walk away. He also would massage my foot to warm it up before we began each session. That seemed to help alot.
ReplyDeleteI did have some issues with pain on the outside of my foot (right where the outside of the sole of your foot touches the ground). The therapist told me that he thought I was trying to stop my foot from rolling when I walked (which I was)and that I shouldn't do that because the foot is supposed to roll to the outside just a bit as you walk. He showed me that when you put the heel down and then transfer weight to the ball of your foot as you walk forward the foot does roll a little and that is natural. After I stopped trying to prevent my foot from rolling the pain got better and eventually went away. Possibly you are having this same issue??
The swelling will keep happening for up to a year from the surgery date. I still have a little swelling in my first foot when I walk but it's not nearly like it once was. It just gets a little puffy but it goes down very quickly once I sit down. That's the reason they tell you to keep wearing tennis shoes for the first year. No cute shoes until after the first year. LOL
But if your foot keeps hurting so badly that it's making it difficult for you to walk, I would call the doctor. Better to be safe than sorry. Good luck! Keep me posted on your progress!
Talk at ya soon,
Dana
Hi Dana,
ReplyDeleteI was just reading your latest post, I know exactly what you mean about having to rely on others. I am so used to driving myself to work and back and everywhere else, but ive had to rely on my parents, who have been very good by taking me to work and back. I work about 25 minutes away from home so without them I wouldnt be able to get there. All my friends have been very good as well, especially the people I work with, they have all really looked after me!
I haven't done any work in the gym yet, but I will ask next week if that is an option. It sounds as though it has made a difference for you! The physio girl just asked to rest and elevate my foot as muh as possible this week and we will see how it is next week. If it's no better or it's worse I will discuss it with her. She said that she is in communication with my surgeon so she can easily share any concerns with him.
That does sound logical about making sure I am walking on my foot correctly. I am not actually sure how I am supposed to walk on it. I am so used to the way I walk on my other foot, which I know isnt right, but I have had to accommodate the high arch and claw toes. I will ask the physio next week to do some walking with me and make sure I am doing it right!
It is really great having you here to talk to and run my questions by. It makes me feel a lot more positive about it all.
Laura
Hi Shady Lady! I just found your blog after a google search. I too am home after foot surgery and I'm going batty. I was actually excited to see my doctor today just for the human contact (how sick is that considering she was taking out my stitches!). I'm in my 2nd week, feels like my 4th, and my incisions look nothing like yours or anyone elses I've seen online. They're... just not neat and it's making me crazy and giving me the creeps! Well, I hope you're healing well. I go tomorrow to buy decent shoes, but I might stick with the boots because nothing fits :( Any brand/shoe suggestions for when the swelling comes down a bit?
ReplyDeleteHere's my blog in case you're interested. It's a work in progress and I haven't posted any gross after pics yet because I'm still healing and they are worse than any photos I've seen so far :/ I'm waiting for a nicely healed photo so I can show the comparison.
ere's my blog!
http://hammertoeshorteningblog.blogspot.com/
Glad I can help. I enjoy talking to you as well. It's nice when there's someone to talk to who knows what you mean because they've been through it too!
ReplyDeleteDana
Hi Tootie! Yes, being stuck in the house is no fun! It sounds good, but after a couple weeks it gets real old.
ReplyDeleteAs far as what type of shoes to use, I like New Balance because they come in double wide (and even wider) so they aren't tight even when your foot is swollen. You can order the width that fits you best on their website. If you look back through my blog you'll see a post with a photo showing the type of New Balance shoe that I wear. I've bought this style twice and have been very pleased with it.
Good luck with your recovery!
Dana
Thanks for responding, I'm definitely going to try the New Balance in various widths! Ok, back to excercising by "bending" my toes. Who am I kidding? These suckers are NOT bending. ::sigh:: Soon... soon.
ReplyDeleteTootie
:)