7.5 Weeks Post-Op

Things are going very well around here!

About 4 days after getting the CAM boot, I was able to move to just one crutch... then a few more days I was down to NO CRUTCHES!

Things are a bit stiff in the AM so I use one briefly until the muscles and tendons are moving. At this point however, they stay upstairs by my bed. Since I can sleep without my boot on, I do need them if I have to get to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Here is a photo of my boot! It has an air pump on it to inflate it for extra padding. I always use this and notice a huge difference in how things feel if my boot is not tight.

I had my first PT session the day after Christmas. It consisted of electric-stim and basic movement exercises, then ice. Since I'm doing everything at home already (part of the reason I could walk so quickly) I only have to go to PT once per week right now! Whooo hoo!

When I take off the boot, I have zero ability to even stand on my foot. It's not yet flexible enough to have the angle I need to stand. I do use it a little bit to balance. Hopefully if I keep working on it, I'll be able to in the next week.

Today I received an amazing invention in the mail. It is called a BootzGuard! It is a weatherproof cover for my boot to keep my toes warm and away from rain/snow/etc. It does not cover the tread, just is tight around it and then ties at the top of the boot. It slips right on/off. This is great timing, since we now have 12" of snow in Buffalo and I'm able to get around FINALLY!

6 Week Post-Op

I'm officially 6 weeks post-op and out of the cast! Whoo hooo!

At yesterday's appointment the cast was removed and I was fitted for a CAM walker boot. It's fairly large (about twice the size of the cast) but about a million times more comfortable!

As expected, my leg was extremely gross looking. I've decided to spare you my before cleaning photos. Even after a clean up, it's still scaly, dry and gross looking. I imagine it will take some time to regain it's normalcy!

I start PT in one week (it should have been sooner but it was hard to fit it in before the holidays). I can now put weight on it, as tolerated. I'm allowed to ride a bike with the boot on, as pain tolerates. In two weeks, I can resume swimming. I'm allowed to take the boot of for showers and sleeping, otherwise it has to be on at all times for the next 6 weeks.

As much as I want to work out, I probably will wait until I'm able to put a bit more weight on it. Trying to put pressure on it, along with basic stretching is already alot. PT is going to be rough! 

Here are some pictures that I tried to take myself. Since I wear a sock under the boot, my skin was indented on my boot side!

Sitting with my legs stretched out. You can see even in a "relaxed" state, my left foot is nearly flexed.

Ewwww... but really, the incision looks awesome. There is still some marker on it that I was scared to scrub too much on.

"Weight bearing" (not really). This is about as flexed as I can go right now. It's fairly swollen and still slightly bruised.

My first night without the boot was actually really uncomfortable. There is light bruising on all sides of my foot and ankle that is sensitive to touch. No matter how I laid, it always seemed to touch something!  It felt good to put the boot back on in the morning!

I'm going to miss my scooter...

5 Weeks, 1 Day... Opps!

I'm 5 weeks and 1 day out... and had a bit of an accident. Twice in the last week when I was "showering" water got my cast cover. The second time it happened it was bad... the inside of my cast was soaked! It wasn't until I reinvestigated the cover tonight that I realized it wasn't the seal that was broken but the lining actually has a huge hole in it! So much for that!

Since I'm one week out from 6 weeks and moving to a boot I debated whether or not to call the Dr. However after Googling the issue (just don't!) I was totally grossed out and in need of a new cast.

So, I headed over the the Ortho Urgent Care this afternoon and here is what I saw...

My gross, emancipated, hairy leg.

The PA actually removed the steri strips to check out the incision. Her reaction, "wow, that's big! But it looks beautiful!" I should have taken another pic but I didn't want to be too weird about it.

Here is my new cast. I opted to change my color. Sorry for the noticeably disgusting toes.

Here's another picture with cleaner toes. My foot is still significantly bruised. I was really surprised to see that. You can see the bruising underneath my middle toe, inward. The entire inside of my foot was bruised too. 

Lacey promptly signed her name and drew some new lizards on it. She is so cute!

The PA who was on call did contact the Dr. to see if I could just go to a boot a little early... no such luck!

5 more days and counting! Now that I've seen the damage, I'm really, really, really excited to wash it!

4 weeks, 1 day Post-Op

I'm officially 4 weeks post-op (yay???)

Although I was officially back to work last week, yesterday was the first day I went into the office.

 

Not much new is going on around here. If my foot is down too much (more than say... 20 minutes) it starts to hurt and swells. As soon as I get it up, I have relief.

At this point, I'm taking 600mg of Ibuprofen 2-3x per day. It's fairly rare now, that I need the stronger meds.

Things have gotten a bit easier. Since my foot is not as sensitive, I'm able to get around and move around and play with the girls. I can crawl more (ouch, my knees) and move my toes.

Two more weeks and I get to move to a boot and start weight-bearing! I'm really not sure how quickly walking comes back... but I hope I can at least have some mobility by Christmas!

Lacey's favorite new game to play is "cruntches." Here she is with two empty wrapping paper rolls, hopping around on one foot. My mom is the background being awesome, cleaning up our dinner :)

2 Week, Post-Op, Check-Up (Warning, gross photos!)

This afternoon I had my two week, post-op, check-up! It was fairly simple and straight foward - remove the cast, take out the stitches and recast.

I have always found cast removal to be quite interesting. It's a scary looking saw that really just tickles. Once the cast was removed, here is what my foot looked like!



I was pleasantly surprised that it was not as swollen and black and blue as I had expected. Still though, it's not very pleasant.

I cannot believe how much my leg muscle has shrunk already! It's about half the size of my right side!

After they removed the stitches (ouch), they put on steri strips.



From here, the PA put on a new cast. It was a bit rough, and I'm quite sore. The original cast had my foot at a weird angle (I'm assuming on purpose) and so now he wanted it to be more flat. He kept pushing my foot to try to get it to flex. My best analogy of this is when we used to have to do over-splits in gymnastics and the coaches would push you down. There comes to a point where it HURTS so bad, yet your body is just NOT moving. That's what my foot felt like.

Here is what my new cast looks like!

My next appointment is in exactly 4 weeks. At that time they will remove this cast and I'll go in a CAM Walker boot. Until I have the boot, I am still non-weight bearing (ugh)...

I'm really hoping that the Buffalo weather holds off and we do not get anything too wet until after December 18th. Snow + cast = really bad situation.

Day 13

Tomorrow, tomorrow, I get to see what my foot looks like, tomorrow!

Tomorrow is my 2 week post-op appointment. They will be removing the cast, removing the stitches and then putting on a new cast that I get to keep for a lovely 4 more weeks. I'm so excited.

Otherwise, here is a summary of what's been going on...

I've had a total of 2 scooter and 1 crutch incident. My knee is sore and bruised from such incidents.

I still do not have approval to work. This is driving me INSANE! I want to work people! Tomorrow when I go to the Dr., I'll be making sure that my papers get signed and delivered!

My cast is super loose now almost all the time. This is really good in that it means the swelling has really gone done. I probably keep it elevated about 22 hours a day. Seriously.

Speaking of the cast, it's getting gross and smelly (says Brian).

I can pretty much cover my foot and toes around as much as they can in the cast, without any pain. I can even put my casted toes down and use them to balance a little when I'm standing so I'm not entirely on one foot.

The girls can now climb on my cast and not hurt me. This was a big milestone for us. It still can't be bumped or twisted however.

Lastly, I learned tonight that tickling is NOT good. When my casted toes were ticked, my foot did a major jerk and it hurt BAD. Lesson for all - DO NOT tickle someones toes when they are in a cast!

Besides those updates, I'm really starting to be a fairly miserable person. Now that I'm not on the narcotics anymore and not in as much pain, I want to do more and I can't. It's frustrating not to be able to walk over my kids toys (hence 1 of the scooter and crutch incidents) and to not be able to run upstairs and grab a sweatshirt when I'm cold. The scooter is great, but it can't go up/down stairs and I can't move it in and out of a car myself. The crutches are tiring. I still have not yet driven my car. I'm dropping things (sorry MacBook, ouch) and spilling things... it's just so frustrating. I can't imagine people who go through this surgery without any help. My husband has been amazing, my 3 year old "helps" me and we have great other family who have been doing whatever they can to assist.

Next update will be tomorrow, post appointment. I'm hoping to get some pics of my foot when the cast is off!

One Week

I'm officially one week post-op! Whoo hoo!

I've had some great improvements in the last few days. Specifically, I can really move my toes so much more now, with very little pain. There is some, (still when I scrunch) but not at all like before. My cast also has much more room in it, so i can sorta move my foot a bit.

During the day I am basically still on just ibuprofen, unless I have a bad day. At night I still am taking the codeine to help me sleep.

I can move around much more without it throbbing. I've actually be sitting at my desk (with my foot up!) for nearly 45 minutes. Two days ago I couldn't do that.

In one more week I will have my post-op appointment. I'm hoping, hoping, hoping that maybe there is some crazy possibility that I can get a CAM boot instead of a new cast. It's doubtful, but maybe???

New scenery

Since I was feeling better and the weather was beautiful, we decided to head to our cottage for the night.

I enjoyed a different couch, new scenery and some fresh air.

If I gain 10 pounds during my immobilization, it's because of my moms cooking!

This is my second day of only taking ibuprofen during the day. I feel much clearer and less tired! I am still taking the lortabs at night.

The pain I'm getting is less on the incision now and more inside my foot. Today I'm getting a sharp pain in my arch. I can wiggle my toes with no pain but trying to "scrunch" them hurts quite a bit.

The cast is feeling more and more loose! I think that is a good sign that the swelling is going down.

My first outing

This morning my mom volunteered to take me to Target (scooter and all!) it was nice to get out, but I certainly did not save any money!

I'm currently waiting for my mom in the car while she runs into Wegmans. Look, I found jeans that fit over my cast!

Things are feeling good. It's definitely swelling up though because the cast is getting tighter.

Op Report

Here are some of the "highlights" from my Op Report...

Diagnosis: posterior tibial tendon dysfunction.

Operations performed:

• Secondary reconstruction of the left posterior tibial tendon.
• Flexor digitorum longus tendon transfter.
• Intraoperative fluoroscopy.

Procedure:

The original incision was extended to fully expose the posterior tibial tendon. The posterior tibial tendon sheath as opened and an extensive straw-colored fluid was drained from the tendon sheath. There were obvious signs of tendinosis. The anterior portion of the tendon was severely thickened and tendinotic, and this was excised from its attachment into the navicular. The more plantar portion of the tendon appeared to be more intact with healthier looking fibers, but about 60% of the tendon width had to be resected. The remaining tendon was tubularized and prepared for a flexor digitorum longus tendon transfer. The repair was good with no signs of weakness of the repair.

Postoperative plan:

Non-weightbearning for full 6 weeks, in fiberglass cast. At 6 weeks, switch to a CamWalker book and begin PT.

Day, I don't know what day it is...

However long it's been, I am in the most pain this evening than I have been so far. I'm also taking the hard core meds which is not allowing me to stay awake more than 2.5 or so hours at a time.

Today I got the Op report. I'll summarize tomorrow when I can see straight (maybe?) but it said they had to remove ~60% of my tendon. I'm trying to realize that's why it hurts so much right now!!!

Improvements

My Dad came and attached a basket to my wheels for me. Now I can carry around important stuff like my codeine, a banana and sour patch watermelons!

Day 1

A quick summary of today -

I started off just trying to take Tylenol and holding off on the Loratabs as long as possible. I really don't like the Loratabs because they make me so tired, even if I just take one. I made it till about noon, then I really needed it. Within minutes I was asleep which took care of me for the afternoon.

During my nap I received some beautiful flowers and even more delicious cookies from my team at work - thanks, everyone! I especially liked the card :)

After nap, the hospital nurse called me and yelled at me for not taking the Loratab around the clock. She didn't like my strategy of not really moving because I guess this can somehow increase your risk for phenomena. Apparently, I'm suppose to be taking it so that I can be more functional and keep my body moving. I don't really get this, since it just makes me fall asleep. Maybe someone can explain this theory to me?

Anyways, I'm glad that I took the rest, because when the girls came home at 4, things got a bit rough. They are still having a hard time understanding that they shouldn't go near my foot. Especially Nora. Needless to say I've never been more happy to have a cast in my life, because I'd be in big trouble if it was just in a splint like it was suppose to be after surgery! Someone needs to send me some type of zapper thing... touch mommy's cast and ZAP. I bet that would solve the problem! (Just joking... sort of!)

Today I've been working on moving my toes and my foot inside the cast a bit. The swelling must have already gone down because I do have some room to move. It definitely hurts, but I also know I should move things a little bit. My toes feel especially strange. I also iced quite a bit today even though I don't think I feel it, my instructions say that I should.

In other news, my new scooter is amazing. It's so much more useful, and more fun, than crutches! I need to find a basket to attach to it so I can get water & snacks from the kitchen and carry them myself. The girls also like the scooter and I admit, I did take them on a few laps around the downstairs. They got a big kick out of it, and I enjoyed being able to entertain them for a little while.

As for stairs - I went up and down twice today. It's not so bad - when I go up the stairs, I crawl. When I go down the stairs, I slide on my butt. The hardest part is bringing the crutches up/down with me. Now that I have the scooter, I'll keep that downstairs and the crutches upstairs.

I also did manage to take a "shower" today. Getting the shower chair and cast cover in advance was good planning on my end. It certainly made things much easier and allowed me to be self-sufficient.

Tomorrow will be my first day on my own - Brian is back to work. My plans are to finish season three of Parenthood in the AM, probably take my pain meds by lunch and be out for the rest of the afternoon. I really hope I can be off the Loratab by the weekend.

Time for more meds and time to pass out!

Cast decorator

Lacey (and Nora) had fun doing some cast decorating before dinner. Lacey drew two "lizards" on my cast and Nora made "dots." They both participated in putting smiley face stickers all over it. She is making such a goofy face her - I think I got her on the second half of the "cheeeeseee!"

My new wheels!

This is my new scooter that the hospital sent me home with, in addition to crutches! The way this works is that you put your bad leg (with the cast) on the padding and then scoot with your good leg. This thing is AMAZING! It's a fun ride and I can't wait to go somewhere and have a race (ok, just kidding, but I would like to see what kind of speed I can get...) Our downstairs is just big enough to glide this around and it even makes all the toys on the floor irrelevant because I can ride right over them. They have been quite the hazard with the crutches!

First Night

My first night went fairly well. I took two loratabs at 10pm and was out within 10 minutes. That stuff kicks my butt!

I work up at 2am too pee and let me tell you... Trying to use crutches at 2 am, while on codine, is very hard!!! It woke me up and then I was up for a few hours.

Today I'm trying to go on just Tylenol this AM and hold off on the codine till lunch time. I'm sore, but I'm ok with it as long as I don't move. Within 3 days I plan on taking just Tylenol. I just don't like being on drugs that mess with my brain!

The cast

So much for painting my toes! You can barely see them!

Surgery Day

Disclaimer: I'm still groggy from anethisia and taking lortabs as I write this post. Hopefully I don't write as scattered as my brain feels right now! :p

I'm up from sleeping most of the afternoon away. I wanted to makes sure I tried to post today, while I still remember some of what happened.

So, today was surgery day!

Starting last night, I was not allowed to eat/drink past midnight, the usual. I certainly obeyed the instructions as I have a history of getting sick from anesthesia and know how important this really is.

Of course I woke up super early. I'm still not adjusted to the time change. I think I woke up around 5am which is much better than the 4am I woke up the last two days. This was good because it gave me some time to putter this morning. The girls stayed at my parents house last night, since we had to be up and out fairly early.

The first thing we made sure to do on our way to the hospital was VOTE! I was number 30-something at 7am and proud of it :)

The surgery was being conducted at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC), in Buffalo, NY. While this hospital is on the other side of town, it is very cool because it is actually the ONLY level 1 trauma center in New York State! It is a huge hospital and there is tons of stuff going on. It feels a bit like a factor but everything was managed very well.

We arrived at the hospital a little before 8. It was nice to get there early because I was finally able to see the office where Brian works and some of his co-workers. It was great to have the surgery where Brian works because he knows all the Drs. and a residents, so he was comfortably knowing who was who and what was going on.

At 8am we had to check into the Ambulatory Surgery Center. I waited no longer than 10 minutes before they had me all checked in and into the back.

The first thing they had me to was a pregnancy test. I found this ironic because I had to pee in a cup when I wasn't allowed to even drink a sip of water since the day before. Anyways, I managed to make it happen, probably because I was a little nervous/anxious.

After that, I was given the usual hospital gown and told (my favorite quote of the day) to "get naked like the day I was born!" Ha ha ha :) It was super cold in the room so I was bundled up in blankets. That is when we took the picture I posted earlier.

They immediately started an IV with a sedative. It was very, very slow (I think they just wanted it started but surgery was still nearly 2 hours away, so they kept it slow). During this time there were lots of questions on my medical history.

I saw both the Resident Anethesialogist and Anesthesiologist. I can't say enough of how amazing they were. This surgery was my BEST experience ever in terms of anesthesia. After my first foot surgery, I woke up nauseous and shaking. During both my c-sections I was very nauseous and with Nora, vomiting the entire time. They took this into consideration and made sure they had drugs lined up in advanced. If I ever have to come back for another surgery, I really hope I get the same Dr. He was just so open and understanding and really talked things through with me. He also kept visiting me while we waited which was nice.

My Dr. and his team performing the surgery were also amazing. Although I didn't see my favorite PA, Karen, I did get to meet a new PA Jeff. Jeff and Dr. Ritter both came by multiple times to discuss what the definitely knew they had to do, and then what they might potentially have to do. They examined and talked about my foot again and made sure I understood everything before signing off. As I said before, they "got my foot" more than previous Drs. I had seen. There is no greater feeling that to be able to totally trust your entire surgical team prior to going under!!!

So, my last memory is around 9:45. In my IV I was giving something that made me feel like I had a few drinks of wine... really fast! After about 10 minutes, my mind goes blank. Brian says that I was still totally awake and chatting away, when I was wheeled off at 10, but I don't remember anything at all! (Last surgery I remember getting wheeled into the OR and breathing in the mask... this time, it's a blank!)

Apparently I was in surgery for nearly two hours. They thought it would only take about 1 hour, so I was very surprised to hear this. I have yet to see the Op report, so I will find out the details when I can get ahold of that.

The next thing I remember was waking up around 1:30. Wow, and I just woke up like I woke up from a nap! It was the greatest thing ever. I wasn't cold, nauseous or anything! I was so excited and I think I kept telling the nurse how happy I was about this. She let me have two big glasses of water right away.

The next thing that I was surprised about was that I had a cast! The plan was that I would have a splint after surgery for two weeks and then get a cast. Again, I'm surprised but very happy about this. Having a cast gives it much more protection from some unruly toddlers that I know...

Before I woke up, I had already been out of surgery for and hour and a half. Brian was then able to come in and visit. He had spoken to the Drs. and got the report. At this point, they were ready to get me out. I wore stretchy/comfortable clothing so it was easy to get dressed and they wheeled me out to the car.

So, what did they do?

When they got in there, they learned that my tendon was in a much worse state than they had thought. This is probably because of my past issues and the fact that this is my second tear. A good portion of my tendon had to be removed. They also found a cyst on the tendon that had to be removed.

So, the decision was made that they would "transfer" an existing tendon in my foot (the on that connects to my baby toes) and help stabilize the posterior tibial tendon that was left. In order to do this, they drill a hole in one of the bones and thread the tendon through, in order to run them parallel together. This helps give the existing tendon support, since it will likely never heal to how I need it to be.

As a result, I'm probably going to be loosing some mobility in my toes. My future activities will be limited - I can no longer climb trees and I definitely will have to retire from any kind of running.

The good news? They did NOT have to take the bone from my heal and rebuild my arch. Although I was showing some symptoms of this, they decided not to perform the procedure. I'll find out why in my post op appointment. I'm thrilled about this since that procedure would probably have added another few weeks to my "non-weight bearing" timeframe.

This is about all I know at this point, in my special, non-medical explanation.

Overall, I'm feeling pretty good. I'm happy with how things went. My foot is hurting ALOT and I'm maximizing on the painkillers right now. Hopefully within a few days I can go down to just Ibuprofen, since I hate feeling out of things. This afternoon I slept, at homemade mac 'n cheese my mom made, slept and ate again.

Thank you to everyone who has left me such nice messages on Facebook and sent me Texts. I really appreciate all of your kind thoughts!

Ready to go!

Preparation

I've had about 3 weeks notice of my surgery date, in this time, I have been frantic to prepare. Some of the things I have done:

• Purchased/made somewhere around 47 meals and packed them into the deep freezer. I also made an inventory of the meals so that we know what remains.
• Hired someone to come and clean my house once/week.
• Created a schedule for the grandparents/babysitters of when the girls need to be picked-up/dropped-off, taken to activities.
• Picked up/borrowed a FREE shower chair from the church near my house.
• Purchased a Sealtight Cast Protector (I hope I look as sexy as the woman on the box when I use it!)
• Borrowed over 10 books from friends and the library.
• Moved my home office from the basement to the front hall of our house (less than 5 feet from the couch and ~25 from the bathroom/kitchen!)
• Talked with the girls about how mommy is going to have a cast like Abi on Bubble Guppies did when he fell of his bike and broke his tale.
• Chopped 5 inches off my hair.
• Made sure I have pillows both upstairs and downstairs to use for propping (so I don't have to carry them around).
• Put gel polish on my nails (toes and hands!)
• Purchased a few extra pairs of comfy, stretchy pants to go over the splint and cast.
• Cleaned, cleaned, cleaned and organized, organized, organized!
• Started this blog!

I'm ready to go!

The Surgery

We are up to the point of surgery! The plan is...

• Repair the tendon (duh).
• Potentially perform a procedure where part of my heel is removed and then screwed into my foot to reform the arch - this might be called an Osteotomy based on my research.
• Potentially lengthen another muscle, a different one than before.

I've tried to pay attention but I can't keep up with terminology. From what I understand, the PA is exceptionally surprised that I'm able to walk with the size tear that I have. Even more so, that I'm able to go on my toes. Most people with the tear that I have, have a foot that looks like this one. (By the way, that is a link to my favorite site that explains my condition).

Because I'm so functional, they aren't sure if they will need to the osteotomy or not. They will see when they get in there. If they do have to do it, the healing time is significantly increased. I've also read that many people have to have an additional procedure done to remove the screws once everything is healed.

My plan is to be off of work for one week, then start working form the couch part time. I plan on being back to work full-time within 2 weeks, from my couch. I'm not sure when I'll be returning to the office (after Thanksgiving?) - that will depend on the swelling and comfort level.

History - Part II

Life after my first surgery was amazing. As long as I wore my orthos, I had no pain. It was the first time in my life I was able to wear cute dress shoes (orthos velcroed in!), heels, etc. I was lucky they were able to give me two styles of orthos - one short, for dress shoes and another longer pair, for sneakers.

It took a long time (at least a year) but I was able to run, walk, workout just like I used too... maybe even better/harder than before. We eventually moved back to Buffalo, popped out two beautiful girls, and then...

I had post-childbirth-I-need-to-workout-again syndrome.

After having kids I did what any mom wants to do. Loose weight, feel confident and buy cute shoes (not necessarily in that order). I started wearing even more styles, including flats (with my orthos, I swear!) AND I started running... alot.

It was my own fault. I remember the beautiful day in early May 2012, about 1.5 miles from my house, on lunch hour, when I felt it. It wasn't good, but I kept going (because that's what gymnasts do!)

I ran a few more times that week and things went from "I might have done something," to bad words.

I knew it, I knew it, I knew it... I did something bad so I halted all activity and went to see my primary in Buffalo who immediately sent me to a podiatrist again.

It took over a month to get an appointment. In this timeframe, I went to extreme pain on a daily basis (5-7) and couldn't do a lot of my daily activities, like walk the girls, walk to the beach, etc.

I won't say the podiatrists name, but I did not like him. From the first day, he did not get what my issue was. He read my op report from the first surgery, but he just didn't get it. He kept having me try new braces (I spend around $400 on them) and nothing even improved the situation. He didn't think I needed PT (diagnosis=tendonitis) and did not feel an MRI was warranted. After three appointments and another $300 in new orthos, I switched to UB Orthopaedics.

Of course, it took me another month or so to get an appointment there. It was now nearly September. Thank goodness Brian works in the same hospital as the office - he was able to get me in on someone's cancellation.

My summer was not fun. I had to get rides down to the beach, I was in constant pain so I couldn't chase the girls around... it really just was not good timing.

My first visit with PA Karen Thomas was wonderful. Right from the start she understood my foot and I. She had a feeling right from the start that I re-torn the tendon, but we both agreed that before scheduling anything drastic, I should try some PT.

One month into PT there was no improvement, so an MRI was scheduled. The MRI showed a 2" split tear in the posterior tibial tendon (I KNEW IT!). Surgery was immediately scheduled for November 5 (tomorrow!!!)

History - Part I

From a young age, I was always involved in competitive gymnastics. I believe I started competing when I was around 8 and continued until I was a senior in high school.

My earliest memory of a problem with my foot was when I was about 12 years old. I was constantly spraining my ankle and having trouble with it. To the point where I always had to be taped and was usually in PT. I used to have this peculiar problem that when I did straddle kips on bars, and brought my feet back together, that I would have a ton of SHOOTING pain up my leg. It was weird and funny at the same time... I remember the coaches and I laughing about it because I used to put foam on the inside of my foot when I did bars to prevent this.

Eventually I went to a foot Dr. (I believe at the time it was a podiatrist) and he determined that I had an "extra" bone in my foot. Basically, the bone on the inside arch of my foot was much larger than it should be and put much more pressure on my foot than there should be, causing it to be weak and unstable. The only solution would be to surgically remove it.

Surgery was not an option for me at this age, while still growing. There was hope that I would "grow out of it" as I was older and eventually left the sport. So, as typically gymnasts do, I dealt with my foot and a plethora of other injuries that came my way until I was done.

Sometime around when I was 20-ish, and now coaching competitive gymnasts, I was having problems with my foot again. Although they had never stopped entirely, it sort of flared up on my activity level. It was summertime, I was working multiple jobs, including coaching, where I was on my feet all day. One morning, I woke up, and the entire top of my foot was black and blue.

It was sore, but as in my usual fashion, I just ignored it. Within a week it wasn't better and I went back to the Dr. I broke 4 bones in my foot and was casted. Again, the pressure in my foot, along with my activity just caused the bones to randomly break.

It stunk - I was in a cast for almost the entire summer. As I was coaching and it was the year routines were being changed, I got to travel to Reno to learn the new compulsory routines for my girls. In Reno, I must have been too into the routines, because I cracked my cast! The other coach and I ducked taped it until I we were home and I could be re-casted! After that, I broke my cast AGAIN!. I was then moved into a boot (I think the Dr. gave up on me).

Eventually I healed for the time being. We moved to Altanta, I stopped coaching and was much easier on my foot (aka, desk job). In Atlanta, I started working out quite a bit including lots of running, biking and weight lifting. Alas, my foot problems began again.

In Atlanta I went through a period of time where each morning, when I woke up, I wouldn't be able to straighten my left left. I had to hobble around, getting ready as it would slowly stretch out and then "be normal." It eventually got worse and worse and I went to see a Dr.

Lucky for me I found Resurgeons Orthopedics in Atlanta. They were WONDERFUL. The first Dr. I went to was a lower body Dr. and he recommended I see a foot specialist in the group. Dr. Womack. He was amazing. I can't remember what we did exactly (I'm sure we tried a boot, a brace, cortisone, PT, etc.) but eventually it was determined that it was time for surgery. Oh yes, they also discovered I had partially torn my posterior tibial tendon.

In the summer of 2006 (I was right around 23) I had surgery. It was a very interesting time in my life - my surgery was scheduled within 1 week of Brian and I closing on our first home and three months away from our wedding! It wasn't good timing but it was time to have it done.

In my non-technical terms, this is what they did:

• Removed extra bone on the inside of my foot.
• Repaired the torn tendon.
• Lengthened my calf muscle.

 As a result, I have two incision scars (one on the inside of my foot and the other on the back of my calf) and a screw in the arch of my foot connecting the tendon back to the bone.

After the surgery I had a splint for 2 weeks, cast/crutches for around 2 months and an aircast/boot for another few. Of course I had PT for a long, long time. I believe it took close to 8-10 months to feel normal, and after almost a year, I could finally wear "normal" shoes, including HEELS which I had never previously been able to wear in my life!

My first surgery was a huge success.

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog, dedicated entirely to my left foot!

This week I will be undergoing my second surgery for posterior tibial tendon issues. After doing much research on the web, I found it very helpful to read other people's journeys through surgery and recover, so I thought I would document mine as well.