Very good day, further improvement. I thought about going to the swimming pool today, but when I looked at the scar, I decided to wait until Saturday (the skin is still very thin, and there is crust after the stitches, so I thought it would not look well to others, and perhaps I could damage it). So I went for a walk instead; I could not walk in flip-flops, as the scar was too sensitive, so I walked barefoot and was OK.
Tomorrow I am flying for the first time since the surgery; a short flight only.
24 May, 2012
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Just plotting my progress against the above...
ReplyDeleteevery day getting better and better, can walk short distance in boot. stitches out today!
they put butterflies on the wound. Doctor suggested I should not take advil or aleve, but tylenol. I still have some of those oxycodeones left
I had a bad night last night of tossing and turning due to throbbing and spasming, but today has been very comfortable (this seems to be my pattern). I was able to take a shower (with foot bagged and hanging out of walk-in) without help. In general, my foot doesn't feel as "vulnerable". Tomorrow is my post op appt. I am nervous about getting my pin (hammertoe correction) out, if in fact it will be coming out tomorrow. A lot of information on the internet seems to indicate that it should stay in longer-- for several more weeks-- but I shall see. At the very least, my cheilectomy stitches will come out and I will schedule the second foot, probably for after Thanksgiving.
ReplyDeleteDay Thirteen - The site of the surgery is dry and flakey. It is only swollen a little right around the stitches area. I tried walking in some big clog-type shoes yesterday, but by the end of the day, my foot really hurt. I, also, rode my bike trainer for 46 minutes. Today, I have mostly just been walking around the house in socks trying to be careful not to hit anything with my toe. Regular wide shoes are do-able, but not for long periods of time. Can't wait to get my stitches out tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteDay 13-
ReplyDeleteI am still wearing the cast. It seems that other blogger's post op feet had not been treated in the same way as mine. Maybe because some of you had additional procedures? Not sure why my podiatrist did this, but I feel that it has advantages. I have no pain whatsoever, perhaps because the foot is immobile? I am getting around pretty well- went to the movies and dinner over the weekend- and grocery shopping with a short list. I try to stay off my feet as much as possible. Before the surgery I purchased a vinyl boot that has a rubber gasket at the top at the medical supply store. It was about $25 and a worthwhile investment. I also have a shower chair so showering is easy and pleasant.
Parsifal,
ReplyDeleteHow did you manage to walk in the sand barefoot without your wound getting full of dirt or, worse, infected??
After 13 days the site of incision was pretty well covered with scar, so it was very unlikely for it to get infected. I am also a strong believer that a little dirt is not harmful - and actually I think it may be good to by providing some stimulation to my immune system - unless of course it gets to a place where it should not (e.g. open wound....).
ReplyDeleteAgreed, and I walked on the sand about 15 days post-op cheilectomy. I'm 66. Thanks for the blog, D.
DeleteGreat blog - this helped a lot. I'm a 30 guy diagnosed with bone spurs when I was 19 (young, yes... genetic and perhaps to do with marching band toe-jams in high school or an oddly angled bone in my foot or hip socket - I'd been given a few reasons by different doctors). Waited until now for surgery - glucosamine and advil helped enough up until now but pain had gradually increased over the past 11 years. Wanted to get in better shape when I realized it got so bad I couldn't run anymore and I was often limping.
ReplyDeleteI'm 13 days after the procedure now; still pretty sore and in the post op shoe, but all in all good shape. Stitches out yesterday and starting stretches and able to bend my toe on it's own about as much as I could before the surgery.
The doc told me I also had a lot of damage to the cartilage and he hopes with PT the surgery will end up successful, but I may need fusion in the future... we'll see
I had a tough time walking the first few days but realized the bandage was too tight and crunching my other foot joints causing the problem. Cut it off and that pain went away and have improved walking every day since.
Now working on stretching out the joint as much as I can tolerate but that does seem to exacerbate the soreness. Hope that will continue to heal and get easier to take.
Anyway, very helpful blog in both preparing for and knowing what to expect of this surgery. Thank you!
I'm female and still very vain-what does your scar/incision site look like now? I need this done to both of my feet, but am leery of outcome. Thank you
ReplyDeleteI posted a photo, just look in the table of contents, and it is also here: http://cheilectomyexperience.blogspot.com/2012/12/scar-after-cheilectomy.html. It looks pretty much the same now.
DeleteThank you for your fast reply! I hope you know you have been a blessing to many because of their anxiousness regarding the procedure.
ReplyDeleteMy scar looks and feels pretty healed. It's numb on top, which I expected. Still have my stitches in, but anticipate getting them out at my post-op appointment this week.
ReplyDeleteToday I ran a lot of errands, and it was the first day I didn't wear my special shoe. I wore standals instead. The are flip-flop-ish leather sandals with a cork sole from Clarks. They do have a leather piece that goes between my toes and then wraps over my foot. I wore a couple of oversized band-aids over my incision, and it felt mostly OK. Once in a while I had a twinge from the pressure of the shoe on the incision, but not all that often. A few days ago, I had tried the same shoes, but contracting the muscles needed to keep the shoe on my foot when I walk was very painful. Today, however, that was fine.
This evening I got my dogs back and took them on a short walk. It felt OK, even though they were pulling me all over the place. I'm a little nervous about longer walks because my joint gets quite sore if I walk too long, and if I bend my foot at the wrong angle suddenly, the pain is quite intense. I'll have to see how it goes.
The past few days have included a new feature, which is muscle cramps in my leg. It's hard to know what to attribute them to: my uneven walk, the 60 weighted squats I did a couple of days ago, or something else. Given the muscles involved, I'm inclined to say it's not the squats and it's more likely to be an impact of walk off kilter for a bit. They are quite uncomfortable, but they pass quickly.
I'm still trying to stand on my toes to keep my foot flexible. That seems more important now given all the muscle cramps I'm getting, because I'm also getting cramps on the bottom of my feet. Those are the most common. I suspect my body needs to move more and stretch more.
Went for a long walk today (to the pub for Sunday lunch:)) and felt pretty good. I think it will be better still once the dressing is removed as then it will be easier to get my foot in a trainer. I still try to keep my foot up when I'm sitting around not doing much, but I've noticed it doesn't seem to be swelling up so much now as it did in the first few days. It felt slightly achey after my walk but other than that no pain at all.
ReplyDeleteFirst day after removal of surgical dressing and stuff. My new configuration is a lighter ace bandage wrapped around the foot to stabilize the toe and cover wound site, still wearing the post-op sandals. I have stretching exercises and can shower normally (woo hoo!).
ReplyDeleteI walked a good bit between the doctor's office, going around the house, and going out to dinner. Probably a mile, all told. I could tolerate the walking, but last night's sleep was probably the worst since surgery. I had repeated cramps in the small muscles deep inside my left foot on the outside, and they kept waking me up. I think that the lack of stability from the post-op dressing has forced my weakened muscles to bear the load, and since I'm not using my feet normally, my gait is different enough that there's a lot of load on places not used to handling full body weight.
Anyway... this is a process, and I've been doing the stretching, and will still head out to the grocery store for a full grocery run today (plus the driving). I've been told I'm not in any danger of damaging anything, so it makes sense to push the envelope within reason.
Today was a little less tiring and I was able to accomplish more. Skipped the anti-inflammatory today too. So finally some encouraging news. Made sure practice yoga today. Seems to really help my energy and soreness.
ReplyDeleteI'm a fit 49 year old man, and I've been walking in my Birkenstock sandals since having my bandage changed on Day 6. I'd been lightly exercising for a few days, such as walking the dog, stretching, some easy weight lifting, and trying to limp as little as possible. Yesterday, Day 12, the stitches came out, and I walked about 1 1/2 miles home from the gym where I did some easy weight lifting and a few jumping jacks just to see. The walk was mostly fine, but my foot got red and angry above the scar, and my lower legs are sore. I had my first physical therapy session today, with lots of painful stretching -- so I'm back on the ice. My surgeon said I have 3 months to get whatever ROM I'm to regain, so right now I'm in "some pain is good pain" mode (without overdoing it -- the PT cautioned me to be careful for another 2 weeks.) I too have felt tired, and this surgery and recovery has basically dominated my life the past 2 weeks.
ReplyDeleteSeriously me too. It’s three weeks today. What can I expect?
DeleteDay 12&13 Short walks (20 Mins) in my Hokas that I laced VERY loosely!! My dog was happy to get out!!! When inside I wear Birkenstocks or go barefoot which actually feels pretty good.
ReplyDeleteShowering just fine although I did sit to shave my legs the other day (both feet had spurs taken off). Then fresh bandages. Steri-strips all off, incision more raised than I thought and pink.....#2 post op in 2 days. I don't think it is infected, but will feel better after Dr. says so. Bruises keep changing color. At least most of the Betadine is gone.....
PT tomorrow, but it is for my tennis elbow!!! Doing Dr. ordered ROM exercises at home for the time being!!!
Please tell me what the exercises are as I was not given any.
DeleteI am three weeks post op. No surgical shoe as of today. Hurts to bend toe so I don’t. Favoring foot when I walk. How long does it take to be quasi normal? Not doing shock wave treatment....opted for manual manipulation by my chiropractor.
ReplyDelete