Foot/Ankle Surgery Recovery – Day 107 & on

Posted by DetectiveEstes in Uncategorized      No comments

Apr
24

This is the continuing saga of recovery from foot/ankle surgery for PTT(Post Tibia Tendon).    This is day 107.  Things are progressing well according to the surgeon and my therapist, Matt.  I’m not so positive but am in hopes that he is correct.  Last week a substitute therapist, Mark, assisted with my therapy.  Mark had me remain in my brace, and put the boot on if my foot was sore.  Over the weekend I went to a friend’s property and walked around the property.  Evidently this overdid my foot and ankle immensely.  On Monday I could hardly walk.  My foot was extremely pained across the left side and top of the surgered foot.  It was so very painful that I could not do any home exercises I was given.

Tuesday was another therapy day.  On explaining this to Matt he advised that I had simply done too much on Sunday and not to do that again.  After foot bending, stretching the skin and the scars, Matt next advised that he wanted me to not have the brace on when doing home exercises but have it on any other day.  I told Matt that the hardest part of this exercises business was putting the danged brace on, and doing it into a high top shoe.  I asked Matt when I’d be able to go into lo-quarter shoes.  Matt stated I could buy a pair anytime.  Matt advised that the height of the shoe makes no difference in the healing of the foot and that when I believed my right foot was strong enough to deal with a lo-shoe to go ahead and get them

The reason this is so important about the high top shoe is because my last therapist following the first foot & ankle surgery, had stated for me to never wear lo-quarter shoes again, and only buy shoes with a least a mid-height side.  Over the years, that has morphed into high tops as the mid-height shoes are increasingly more difficult to find.  It hasn’t been any issue till this surgery where a brace is to be worn inside the shoe.  The brace is simply difficult to get on when using a high top shoe.  So I’m looking forward to a low-top shoe.

Today, Thursday April 24th, I had physical therapy.  I learned today that I should Definitely do what the therapist tells me to do!  Last therapy Matt advised me that beginning today, all therapy would be done with my shoe on, without the brace on, and with the orthotic in the shoe for my surgered foot.  Today, I forgot my orthotic.  I told Matt that and asked to do the therapy with my brace on.  Not to be.

I already had my shoe off for Matt to stretch it prior to the workout therapy.  Matt had me walk barefoot up the floor and back to him again.  He advised me to put my sock on and I would be doing all but one exercise with NO shoes on!  Uh-oh.  I think, if I had known how much pain I was going to be in, I may have just left and returned for my next bout with the therapy.  Whew!

We did all the exercises I did in my last therapy…..in which I had shoes on.   To be fair, the usual heel-to-toe walking on bare floor was removed as were two exercises on the Wii Fit Plus balance board.  That may have been because I probably looked like I was going to fall down soon though!

So, the moral of today’s therapy is – Don’t anger your therapist.  Follow instructions.  Things will be a LOT less painful.  Oh, and just to throw this in….I’m not the slightest bit angry with Matt.  I did All the therapy because my ankle was strong enough and I’m absolutely positive if I had a pain doing it Matt would have discontinued the exercise.  I’m just whining here.

Till next time.