Things I'm glad people shared with me and things I've learned…..
1. Crutches
a. take getting use to and are hard. When given mine at Urgent Care I was instructed how to use them- they do not go under the arm pits- you use them to lift your body weight- so it is your hands/palms and arms carrying the weight.
b. turns out mine were too short- hmmmmm- glad my pal the PT adjusted them the day before I was able to stop using them!!
c. I was loaned a walker and really appreciated it in the beginning. It eventually hurt my palms too but was a nice alternative to the crutches around the house in particular.
2. Surgery site/ incision:
a. the bruising that appeared in interesting places- bottom of the foot- makes sense, internal blood goes somewhere took a full 3 weeks to go away.
b. We did change dressing after 3 days and then again 2-3 more times until seen by Dr 2 weeks after surgery.
b. I'm putting bio oil on it to help with the scar tissue- we'll see, I'll keep you posted- Vitamin E and other good for the skin items! Know what Vitamen E is- soybean oil!! I coudl buy vegetable oil- most Vegetable oil is Soybean oil. My Vit E has lemon oil too- it smells good.
c. It is numb it is tight- friends told me this would be the case so I'm not worried- Dr kept saying it was doing well!
3. When is the Boot Coming off? How long are you in the boot. Is now my least favorite question. Similar to asking a pregnant person- is your nursery done? The answer is I don't know. I have a date I hope it comes off. I have a Dr. appointment and he'll tell me if it comes off….here is how it has gone for me and I know I'm lucky with just a break and no soft tissue (muscle/tendon) damage/ repair needed:
-urgent care confirmed no need for emergency surgery and that it was broken- took X-rays, immobilized my leg until I could be seen by Dr.
-Dr visit affirmed next steps of action- we chose surgery due to shift in bone alignment.
-Surgery- outpatient- woke up with boot back on- yay and wrapped. Instruction to keep weight off, care for the incision
-Two weeks after surgery- incision looking good, staples removed and permission to shower, bathe and swim granted two days later! Weight permitted on boot with crutches and told time out of the boot a good thing at home. (I swam at exactly 48 hours after staples removed and showered for the first time standing with my back to the water- heaven- little things make a huge difference!!)
-I go back to the Dr a week before requested- he is on vacation the day I was suppose to go in- I opted for week prior for next appointment instead of week after…we'll see- I'll keep you posted!
-Keeping you posted- xray looked good and I was permitted to take off the boot, walk with a sneaker and be OK with a bit of swelling. Do things slowly and listen to my body.
4. The Boot- Silly me- someone told me they had two boots- and I was wishing they would of offered me one. These are designed for one time use only. Some people hate theirs, speak of it not positively. I'm grateful for the boot vs a cast and now appreciate the support/protection to rolling, inappropriate movement it provides.
a. I was able to sleep OK with the boot- I did elevate and use sleeping pharmaceutical- Tylenol PM.
b.It does get stinky and athletes foot can sneak in- thanks to the advice of friend/orthopedic I have used powder, cream and cotton to prevent this. However we're going on week 4 and it is starting to look like Sally's Uggs worn every day.
I'm making great progress and am grateful for support and care. I drove the convertible today- stick shift!! I woke up today and it was like all the toe pointing/flexing exercises for the past two weeks have paid off- perfect day to drive stick. It was a bit tender on the drive home- full day at work but I did it!
I'll keep you posted- the big issue for me is the tightness of the scar area- it is limiting range of motion but I'll keep doing my exercises and I know I'll be back on the courts soon- Dr said 6-8 weeks!!
Life on Newark-Granville Road has had its challenges but given me great perspective with this broken fibula. The big lesson is the various ways the kids have reacted supported, interacted.
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