Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
No, it is just a piece of cream colored foam with a cut out area for my lower leg and an angled area for my thigh. I have written to my doctor's office to ask about where one could order them or who manufactures them. < edited > ... has just an angled section for your thigh, whereas mine has a cut out section, which is particularly nice to place the ice pack underneath your knee. I found a really nice ice pack that has a clay like substance in it that you put in the freezer. The larger size is just perfect to place inside the section where my thigh goes and it wraps around my lower thigh and behind my knee. Also the one shown looks like it is a bit wider where the lower leg goes. Mine is just perfect...it has a rounded section where my leg and cast fit perfectly so it doesn't move around much. I don't know if you could order directly from that other company I found online. It looks like they come in packs of 3, but maybe if one printed out the photo and took it to their ortho, their doc could order some for their patients during surgery. I'll let you all know if I can track down more information on my pillow. It has made a HUGE difference!
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Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
I'm feeling better each day. Sheila, I'm wondering how you are doing? Do you have your stitches out? I get mine out tomorrow! I'm a bit nervous about that. I remember from last time that it wasn't a very positive experience. Hopefully it won't be too bad. I'll remember to take something before I go to take the "edge" off things!
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Peggy! Hi! Take a pain pill before the stitches appt. Yuk. I was impressed with my doctor's skill with the tweezers and scissors when he was taking mine out. Watching him kept my mind off the pain of it and he worked very fast.
Today is my xray appt where we get to see if there is bone healing!! I can't wait and my fingers are all crossed. If there is healing then i get to start PT and get this walking thing underway. I am 11 weeks and tired of crutching. The pain levels are VERY good and the swelling is way down and I am ready -- just waiting for that bone to grow!
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Good morning, Everyone!
Peggy, my first post-op appointment was a piece of cake. The only uncomfortable thing was stretching the newly moved ligaments, tendons, into a 90 degree foot position to be casted. I picked a bright, kelly green, by the way; don't go with purple, it looks too much like your swollen foot
I did need some additional pain meds after the appointment and tech said to expect some soreness for a few days after the repositioning.
Doc said foot looks perfect (he's pretty pleased with himself) and I congratulated him on creating a "not too hideous" model for me.
Sarah and Lisa, thank you so much for your information and continued progress reports. I get nice messages from Healthboards, too. I look forward to reading them and connecting with you all.
Peggy, your doc is an innovator. Like Sarah, I now have 6 more weeks of NWB. I can't wait to hear how you do with your protocol.
Check in Soon!
Sheila
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hi,
I enjoy hearing how everbody's coming along. I'm at 13 weeks post-op and am having a very hard time being patient. My new theory is; even though I can not walk without my walker yet, it's only been 3 months. Just think how far along I'll be in another 3 months.
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hey Lisa,
How's your mother doing? She has had a lot to deal with between surgery, and the UTI (talk about painful), and the thrush...one health problem at a time is all I can stand. She must be Wonderwoman. Tell her I send my best.
How many months/years out are you now from your surgery? Do you see continuous improvement?
Remind me that better days are coming. I think I've hit a plateau at 13 weeks. I am so impatient!!!!!!!! I'll go do my PT home exercises now and then it's time to ice it up.
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Just back from the doctor. I'm glad I took a pain pill before my appointment as even so, I'm in a great deal of discomfort now! I had the stitches out and took a good look at my Frankenstein looking foot! Then I went into a removable boot! WOW! I'm not quite at 2 weeks yet! It hurt to be putting my foot into a 90 degree angle to fit into the boot. He said that I can bear up to 50% weight right now and eventually build up to full weight bearing (with the boot on) He said that some of his patients are at full weight bearing by the time they come to their next appointment 4 weeks from now (at 6 weeks post surgery). I told him that I am feeling pretty nervous about it and he said that's good... because you don't want to do too much too soon, but that if it doesn't hurt too much, it is ok to bear weight, but to stop when it hurts. I asked how long it has been since he has changed his protocol and he said that he changed his protocol a couple of years ago but that his patients do much better with this new protocol. I'll let you all know how it goes! Right now my foot hurts ALOT and I haven't done any weight bearing yet! The pain feels like it did several days ago. I know, though, that it is temporary! Each day brings us closer to being able to walk again, right?
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
All Right Peggy,
A boot and permission to start using that foot...what a day! Each time I moved into a new phase of recovery, I would need pain medication again for a while.
I've overdone the weight bearing thing a few times and regretted theaftermath...
intense pain and gigantic, ugly swelling. So I agree with your doctor to take it easy!
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hello all you lovely people!
You are making my head spin with your combined progress. Peggy--50% weight bearing at two WEEKS?! Yowza. You, all of you, are amazing. Thanks for the lovely words, Sheila.
Carol, oy, you get your very own paragraph--much to tell. I'll attempt brevity (ha). Mom's infections were a gift from the hospital. Thrush down your throat?? Maybe from the tube, whattaya think? The UTI wasn't clearing up, got it cultured--Pseudomonas. They put her on some hefty antibiotics, recultured her, and it seems to be gone. Yay! Still dealing with the thrush, though, and it's good friend who came to visit, the yeast infection. Her new cast is too tight and/or not padded enough in the right areas. While I talked with her this evening, my bro-in-law (an orthopedic surgical nurse) was making alterations to it to make it more comfortable until she sees the doc again. She's got the pain under control, yay! A bit bummed because her doc won't let her begin weight bearing for another eight weeks--total of ten. I imagine that's because of her age. I'll pass your kind words on to my mom. I will not pass on Peggy's two-weeks-and-weight-bearing. That would just be mean. Oh, by the way, my dad tripped and kneeled down hard, cracking one kneecap (on the opposite side from Mom's bad foot). Luckily it's a vertical crack, so he doesn't need surgery, but must wear this long boot thingy to minimize movement. This should be interesting (Poppy is not generally what you'd call a compliant patient). I said they could tie their gimp legs together and enter a three legged race.
Ok, you get two paragraphs. "How many months/years out are you now from your surgery? Do you see continuous improvement?" You know, I actually had to check! Well, I was two months post op on 8/8/08 when I started this thread =o. I saw continuous improvement for a long, long, while. Now it's just stable. I don't think about it too much, mostly can do what I want. I was going barefoot for a few months recently to strengthen it--I do think I made it stronger, too. But, as Emmie said, the other one started hissing at me. I wear my shoes now. You are absolutely right in that you'll be amazed in another few months at how far you've come. Yes, I do still have pain, but nothin' much. No more than many other body parts (which haven't been mangled). The day is coming when your life does not revolve around your foot. I promise. Days may even go by when your foot occupies no part of your mind. I promise. In fact, very soon, you will spend no time at all devising complicated strategies for accomplishing simple stuff. I promise.
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Lisa, it must be so hard to be so far away from your mom and know that she is going through all of this. Hopefully things will improve for her soon. (and for your dad, too!) I'll admit that I was very nervous when my doctor said that he was sending me home an hour and a half after my surgery (since when I had the other foot done I was in the hospital for 3 days). He also sent me home without antibiotics, which made me nervous, but I guess his thoughts are that you are at lower risk of infection if you aren't in the hospital. (I had a doctor once who said that hospitals are hazardous to your health!)
Carol, try not to get too discouraged. I went through this same surgery 7 years ago and know that there were times that I felt like I wasn't making the progress that I wanted to, but then I could look back and say, "Oh, I'm doing much better than I was a month ago." Eventually you do get to the point where you can forget about your foot. (I'm trying to remind myself of that right now!)
I'm both excited and VERY nervous (scared) about the whole idea of being PWB at just under 2 weeks!!! I remember all too well how much it hurt last time when I went to PWB at 5 weeks! I'm mostly scared, though, that I'll damage the foot. I know, though, that I have an outstanding doctor, and I need to trust him. Especially since he said that he has changed his protocol because he found that patients who accidently started bearing weight early like this because they just couldn't do the NWB stuff got better so much faster. Just putting my foot into this new position, though, hurts so much, I didn't get brave enough to put any weight on it yet! My husband leaves to go back "home" to Singapore in 2 1/2 weeks, though, and then I'll be on my own, so I hope that I can work on weightbearing enough to be able to be independent enough to be on my own by then. (Right now I feel like I'm still totally dependent!)
Sarah, I hope that you got good news today at your appointment!
Hang in there everyone...before you know it, we'll all be wearing our dancing shoes!
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hi Everyone! I got GREAT news at my appt yesterday. The bone is healing and the doctor cleared my for full fledge PT. I start tomorrow and I'm excited. The doctor wants me full weight bearing and NO MORE CRUTCHES in 2-3 weeks. Yikes. I can't imagine that but I'm working it. Right now I have to force myself to progressively put more weight on my foot every time I am crutching. I noticed that if I'm not thinking about it I put little weight on it just to go faster on crutches. They almost feel like a part of me now . I am getting to the point now where I'm really happy that I did the surgery because my foot actually looks like the right shape and one of these days I want to wear PRETTY sandals and not the support sneakers and AFOs I'm used to! I have to say that I went to a new GYN two days ago and she had the NERVE to roll her eyes and tell me I have a problem with low pain tolerance because I was still not FWB after almost 12 weeks after surgery and that I was still taking 1 pain pill a day. She had no history of my surgery and doesn't know the extent of it at all. I was FLOORED and really ticked off. She said taking pain meds at 12 weeks was ridiculous. I told her that it is painful LEARNING TO WALK AGAIN!! Grrrrr. I was steaming by the time I left her office but I held it all in because as a rule you NEVER **** off your gynecologist BEFORE the exam (haha). I saw my surgeon yesterday and he said I was doing really well only taking one pain pill a day.
Whew, I just had to get that off my chest and share it with people who know the pain!
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hi Everyone,
Wow, Sarah what a jerk your new GYN is! You need a new new GYN! I wasn't going to write today as am tired and crabby (with tired being the new feeling but I got fired up for you! Good job on your pain mgmt! I can't wait to be where you are.
Sheila
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hello Sarah,
What a heartless, insensitive, ignorant gyn you have! She has no idea what it is to "walk in your shoes," literally and otherwise. For just the one tramadol that your body tolerates, there are countless others who rely heavily on Advil, Tylenol, Aleve. You have a sensitive body and one tramadol is considered minimal to most. I recall my OS saying, "Tramadol? That's nothing..." And, it's not "nothing" to me as I, like you, can't take any of the NSAIDS. You've had bone removal, cadaver insertion, cuts in the achilles which is a lot. I think you should switch gyns if you can. You do not need that kind of negative energy and judgmental attitude. You showed remarkable restraint. I think I would have misbehaved (haha). Have a great day....and best, Mandy
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hi Mandy and Everyone,
LOW PAIN TOLERANCE??? Are you kidding me? I am so glad you all found that offensive. Me too!
I remember at 10 days post op, my surgeon asked me how I was doing with the pain medication. I told him I was fine and barely needed it at all (mostly just to get to sleep). But you know what, now that I'm on the weight bearing side of healing, I have way more pain and need my meds daily.
Lisa, It's good that you can find a little 3-legged humor in your parents' situations. I hope they're getting a little sunshine in their lives to keep their spirits up.
Peggy and Lisa, I was relieved to read your postings about life no longer revolving around your foot. I don't know how my hubby puts up with me most days. I am obsessed with my foot, its color, its range of motion, what the PT said about it, which part of it hurts now, which part of it feels better, will it be able to tolerate a trip to the grocery store, how did it feel when I woke up, when should I ice it again etc., etc., etc.
Peggy, How's life in the fast lane? I think it's cool that you have a cutting edge surgeon who has studied and updated his approach to your healing. When your husband returns to Singapore will you be staying here with family I'm trying to adjust my thought patterns to a new healing timetable for myself. I really have accompished a lot for now and I'll just keep at it!
Sarah, PT rocks!!! Flex, extend, stretch and strengthen all the way girl! You go right ahead and take the pain pill of your choice. I'm almost at 14 weeks and not FWB. It is what it is. We'll get there.
Sheila, from crabby to fired up. You're sounding quite motivated! Allright!
Talk with you all soon.
Happy Earth Day To All My Foot Friends!
Carol
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hi All,
I was very nervous about putting any weight on my foot (and my husband told me I would be crazy to!) but I did "walk" across the room today with my walker and doing PWB! It didn't even hurt, I was amazed! I will say that my foot looks really good and when he gave me the rationale for PWB at 2 weeks, it makes a lot of sense. I guess time will tell, right? When I'm just sitting there, though, I do feel a lot of pulling where the tendon transfer has been done. Any pain or pulling makes me nervous that I could damage something! Although my doctor puts his patients on PWB by 2 weeks, he doesn't let us start PT until the 6 week period.
When my husband returns to Singapore I plan on being all alone in my apartment, so I really hope that I can be pretty independent by then. If not, then I'll have to come up with a Plan B, but I haven't thought of what that will be yet! I know I won't be driving by that time since it is my right foot. But, the grocery store delivers, so I should be ok as long as I am able to do a fair amount of weightbearing by that time. I'd like to ask those of you who are further along this journey than I am, though. Would you have been able to be independent and stay alone by 4 weeks post surgery? (Or should I be working on a Plan B?) My mom (who is 85) lives in the same town but will be out of town on a vacation when my husband leaves. She has offered to take me along, but I think that it would be easier to be alone at my place than to be traveling on a cross country trip at 4 weeks.
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Quote:
Originally Posted by LisaBdot
Hey all you lovely, smart people!
I'm two months post op, doing so much better than I thought possible at this point. Getting around reasonably well at 50% or so PWB in a boot with a walker most of the time. Some of the time I still use the Roll-a-bout (I can't carry much when I'm using the walker--a lunch plate in the totebag is so messy). I almost never use anything for pain anymore, and while I'm still swollen all of the time, iceing daily isn't an imperative (did get some Jobst hose, though). Pretty much everything I was concerned about at my last post is not overwhelming, and I'm grateful.
My PT's wife had the same surgery by the same doc one week before me. At my last PT appointment, she came sashaying in, WALKING!--NO CRUTCHES! I am elated to think that may soon be me. My PT says it will likely depend upon how the osteotomy looks in an X-ray, and that the PWB will actually have helped the bone to heal more quickly (more weight-bearing exercise, more bone growth). Too late to not get my hopes up, but I see my surgeon again Monday...
It occurred to me today that, at this point, I might actually do as well or better with a cane than the walker. Then I'd have at least one free hand. Might be moot by Monday, but right this minute, I'm sort of chafing at the bit. I crave that little bit of extra freedom. Did any of you use a cane at some point?
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
I am into my 5th week after a dwyer Osteotomy and Achilles Tendon Lengthening. I'm confined to a wheelchair unable to get around. Any attempt at putting even the slightest weight on my left heel feels umcomfortable. My cast comes off in less that 2 weeks. How will I be able to walk when the cast comes off? How long does this type of surgery take to heal the foot and ankle?
I'd appreciate any advice anyone has. If you've had this operation, please share with me the recovery period.
Re: Anybody use a cane? (2 months post-op calcaneal osteotomy/tendon transfer, PTTD)
Hi Nkron,
I had a similar surgery to yours but not the Dywer. I had the Evans osteotomy. Both involve cutting a wedge out of the heel, the achilles release, and the tendon tack down.
Please don't expect to get the cast off and walk right away. Your leg has atrophied and your foot is in a different position and your body is going to have to learn a whole new leg alignment. It will take time. You'll need to strengthen the foot isometrically first, the get your range of motion back, then re-learn proprioception. My PT has me doing the isometrics now and it will take a good 4 weeks to get through the protocol.
I am 12 weeks post op and just started PT 2 days ago. I am still on crutches but I "walk" PWB with them putting about 50% of my weight on my booted foot. At 5 weeks I was still in pain and wasn't doing much of anything. I was still Non-WB then. I started PWB at 8 weeks and had to take it really slow because the bone wasn't showing enough healing on xray. My 12 week xray a few days ago showed good healing and I got the green light for PT. My doctor wants me FWB without crutches but still in the boot in 3 weeks (yikes).
From what I've read on these posts, complete healing to where it feels relatively normal is 1-2 years. My doctor says I'll be walking in a regular shoe by 5-6 months but it will still be uncomfortable at that point. It is going fast though so hang in there and lean on the people in these posts. We all know what you are going through.
