Why do the bones in my foot hurt so much when I try to walk after my broken ankle? - Foot Problems Message Board

Jen51 · 01-09-2009, 11:25 AM

Why do the bones in my foot hurt so much when I try to walk after my broken ankle? My ankle has been broken for four months and is still not healed, but the doctor said to put away the crutches and take off the walking boot and get back to normal, because the other bones in my foot were weakening. What he didn't mention was the severe pain that I would experience when trying to walk. I don't want to fall again!

janewhite1 · 01-09-2009, 01:27 PM

Okay, you need to transition back into walking. You can't go directly from crutches to normal. There will be some pain, but really severe pain can be a sign you are pushing too fast.

Have you been partial-weight-bearing in the boot? Or outside of the boot? Have you had physical therapy?

Jen51 · 01-10-2009, 07:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by janewhite1

Okay, you need to transition back into walking. You can't go directly from crutches to normal. There will be some pain, but really severe pain can be a sign you are pushing too fast.

Have you been partial-weight-bearing in the boot? Or outside of the boot? Have you had physical therapy?

I had been putting a little weight on my foot, as it began to feel better, but only with the crutches. I was surprised when the doctor told me to stop using them and the boot immediately. I have had to continue with the crutches, but am trying to put more weight on the foot gradually. The pain is quite severe, though. It is mostly my foot and ankle, but I sometimes feel pain all the way up to my knee. I know that four months is a long time to not use a limb and he said that all of my bones were weakening, but I just don't want to do more damage by trying to walk with no help when it hurts so much. I am concerned that I may fall again.

The x-ray still showed the small bone in the ankle to be broken, but it does not seem to be causing me any trouble. It is just all of the other foot bones that are so painful when I put my weight on the foot to walk.

I am wondering if anyone else has experienced such slow healing and extreme pain when trying to walk again.

I appreciate your response and will definitely try moving forward more slowly.

janewhite1 · 01-10-2009, 11:03 PM

When you walk, all the little joints in your feet move and flex a bit. This can be VERY painful if they've gotten out of the habit. Also, after so long in a cast, the nerves get a little weird and oversensitive. Like if you sit in a dark room for hours, even a little light can hurt your eyes. Massaging the foot and leg some can help the nerves get used to the world again.

You might find walking a bit more comfortable if you stretch your leg and foot and flex your ankle and toes first.

I'm not the doctor, but pushing through severe pain never seems like a good idea to me. Maybe if the patient just isn't making any progress, then it's time to take away the crutches cold turkey, but it seems that as long as your walking is substantially improving from one week to the next, it ought to be good enough.

I believe that full weight bearing in the boot will be more effective at rebuilding bone, and that partial weight bearing without will build your calf muscle better.

Definitely, you should be exercising your leg at least 3-5 times a day until you are walking enough to get around a bit.

Ask for physical therapy, your PT is your friend.

triguy450 · 01-16-2009, 04:36 PM

Hi Jen,

I just went thru heel bone surgery and recovery. I know what you are going thru. I hope my thoughts will help you into walking again.

Jane brings up some great points. You have not walked on your foot in a while. Between atrophy, the bones heeling and the ligaments and tendons getting tight from lack of use, it will take some time for any pain to subside as you put pressure on your foot.

I felt tremendous pain when I 1st applied pressure. The doc wasn't much help with preparing me for what I would face. He told me my PT would help me thru this process.

If, after you walk or put pressure on the foot an it hurts. Does the pain stop when you take the pressure off? If yes, this is good news news. If no, then you might be doing some damage. This is your indication to back off, rest for a 24-48 hours then try again. My nurse's words exactly.

MY PT said the same thing. If the pain stops, it is good news. There will be pain with this transition. Listen to your foot tell telling you how hard to push and when to back off and rest. You will have to suck it up tho and push into some painful times, but don't over do it either.

In this stage, your foot is just like a baby. Babies don't sit up, crawl or walk right away. It's a slow process and takes time.

I am 7 months post op and still feel discomfort from time to time. The foot is a very complicated piece of the body. There are tendons, muscles, nerves and blodd vessles not to mention the bones in there too. All these have to work together to make it work.

Have you seen a PT yet? Physical Therapist? If not, I recommend them highly.

Please feel free to ask more questions. I, and several other heelies have or are going thru the same process.

Ed