Cast came off!!!!!

I went in yesterday for my 2 week post-op appt and I was able to get my cast off, yeah!! The skinny from the PA is that they want me non weight bearing for another week and then start my physical therapy next Thursday. The goal is to have the ankle joint at a 90 degree angle at the 6 week post op mark. I asked questions about range of motion, boot questions, and the all important sleep question to the PA. Range of motion questions went from how far can I bend my toes back toward my body to side to side motion to pain during the process. The last thing I want to do is re-rupture it!

It always feels weird when the cast comes off too. My foot looked all cramped and swollen and the surgery site is "sick" looking, with all their marker marks and dried blood with the staples and sutures. They did take out the staples and sutures before the PA came to look at it and talk with me. The girl did a good job taking these out, it just felt like she was pulling out hairs down there. In preparation for that removal I took a Promethazine nausea pill just in case I didn't do so well while she was taking them out. 

Well, I did ok, sweat a little bit but at least I didn't pass out like I thought I was going to. Ever since that fishing trip out in the Pacific in Oregon last year when I got really sea sick, I have not been able to do some of the first responder things that I could do before that. I don't know if it's all in my head, but I can't really look at a lot of blood now or injuries that involve those things. Anyway, tangent!

My first nights sleep without my cast on was GREAT! I was worried that I might move it around too much or tweak it, but I didn't do that and it was wonderful. Before I went to bed I also worked some of the swelling around my foot up into my leg. That ended up making my skin itch and caused a little pain but I know that I need to spend some time doing that or else that swelling hardens and causes problems in the future. Updates coming as I progress.

Not much going on here...

There is not much going on with my recovery so far after my last post, hence the "no updates" on the blog thus far. I am getting excited to have the Doc look at my surgical site this coming Thursday at 10 a.m. I hope that means that he won't cast me back up after he looks at it! I know that I have a ton of time left in the process, since I've only been around 9 days post-op. A little anxious about starting to move the new tendons around though.

Tendons I say because the Doc told Tiff that when he got in there, he usually ties off the newly repaired Achilles to the Plantar (?) tendon, but that Plantar had also been blown out. So he saw four limp pieces of tendons sitting in the muscle bellies when he opened me up. So we will see what the rehab for those two tendons together will be, exciting!! Whatever...

Wow, a lot more of nothing

Leg is feeling good, butt is feeling sore, and I'm finding different sitting positions don't really ease the restless feelings that I have. Guess this would be a good time to take up knitting??

At least there was football games to watch today. My fantasy teams in the Yahoo, ESPN, and NFL leagues are doing really well. My thumb is getting to be really good friends with the buttons on the remote and I don't really need to look at what buttons I press now, it just comes to me. : )

This could possibly be the most boring Christmas break that I have had. Other than the time that I broke both my arms at the same time, and they were casted up for 6-8 weeks.

Dec. 22 is the date for the 2 week checkup on my tendon. Can't wait to see what the Dr. tells me about getting the cast off and a walking boot or casting it up again.

Much better sleep...

Wow, what a difference a day makes getting a good nights sleep! I feel a lot better today and actually feel like I can eat things. I was able to keep the medicine for pain in me every 5 hours or so and it helped me sleep really well. I made it down the stairs and met my new friend, the couch, again. The nerve block came off last night and I could finally feel my incision site, I don't know if that is good or not. It burns down there but not enough to really hurt bad.

I feel good today and Tiff is taking really good care of me. I am able to get around on my crutches well and I even used the knee scooter today a little bit to break up the boredom. I feel good enough to attempt a bath today as well. This should be good!

So I ended sitting on a step stool in the tub with my leg hanging over the side and using a cup to dump water on my body. It worked out well, and Tiff was the one that suggested using the step stool. Great suggestion, that way I didn't have to sit all the way down in the tub and have awkward angles to wash myself.

Hardest part of this whole thing is the sitting and taking it easy part. I am supposed to be total non weight bearing for two weeks. Tiff was told that the first four days are extremely critical in taking care of the surgical site and getting the healing process off to a great start.

First day post op

Today was not a good day, usually is not after surgery. The night was a long one with a lot of tossing and turning and worrying about my leg and if I needed to elevate it all night. I made it through and made the couch my best friend. I still think that I have anesthesia in my system because it was very hard to keep my eyes open all day and not feel nauseated. I only had 1 piece of toast and about 1/2 cup of Mtn. Dew to eat today.

Getting used to crutches and sitting on my butt all day is going to be really hard!

Surgery day

I spent the day getting myself mentally prepared for what was going to happen today. The appointed time came around (5:15) and Tiff took me down to Central Utah Clinic. I registered and then the waiting game came. The nurse took me back to get me prepped and ready at around 6:30ish. After I had changed into one of those great hospital gowns, slippers, and blue surgery hat I was informed that I had about a 2 hour wait time! At least the nurse offered the choice of some movies to watch while we waited.

I got into the gurney and got all settled with the IV in and dripping and the movie going. Tiff was with me all this time and I told her that she did not need to stay and she could go and get something to eat. She left and I started the wait game.

They wheeled me back into the OR around 8:30 and I did not have any medication in me. I was a little worried that they had not put anything into the IV yet. All I remember is looking at the floor of the OR and seeing a lot of iodine soaked bandages and floor markings. Worried...

I remember them putting the first drug into the IV and it feeling cold inside my arm. Then they put an oxygen mask on my face and told me to take deep breaths as they put another drug into the IV. This one was really cold going into my arm. I started to feel really good and then I was waking up in recovery!!

We didn't get out of recovery until midnight, crazy, and then it was freezing cold going home. I was thankful for the nerve block that they put in on the nerve in the back of my knee!

Insurance, clinics, and anxiety

After many calls on my part to make sure that insurance covers the facility that I will have my procedure done at, I can get down to worrying about how it will go. This is something that will affect me for the rest of my life if I don't do the rehab right on this one.

Bishop Fieldsted came over tonight to visit and give me a blessing. That helped out. So I go in at 5:15 on Thursday for the operation. Here we go.