ATR Equipment
Aug 15th, 2016 by agnesatr
2016-08-19 UPDATE: SWELLING AND HEEL PAIN MANAGEMENT EQUIPMENT (below).
Below is equipment I have been using during my ATR recovery. I will be updating this list as I go through the recovery. If someone has some other suggestions, please post them. I am always on a lookout for things to make life easier! 
BOOT
Started wearing at day 2 post rupture (temp ER cast for first 2 days) with initial angle of 35 degrees.
SHOWER
Using the stool definitely makes the shower safer. I would recommend getting it online. The store price in USA was double of what you can get it for on amazon.
I had to use my boot int he shower for the first 8 weeks, so the cast cover was pretty useful. I used waterproof tape to secure it at the top.
BOOT CARE
I was advised to wear a sock on the injured leg inside of the boot. Initially I was wearing sports sock, but friend’s of mine daughter sent me these fluffy socks (also called feather socks or spa socks), so I tried them out and surely enough they were more comfortable in the boot. I had few pairs of my own already, so I just keep circulating through them. I only wear them on my injured foot, so that makes it for a double stock.
Initially I was allowed to only spot clean my injured foot, so the disposable adult wash clothes with aloe vera were really helpful. Using them will ensure your leg remains clean and soft.
Now, the boot hygiene. Since I was to wear my boot 24/7, I could not wash my boot liner. I found this spray, called Odor Eaters and I just spray it in my boot every morning. I also spray it on my foot after I clean it with washcloth. Doing the 2 things daily keeps the boot and leg fresh. I got the spray in Target. It was almost double the price on amazon.
When I started partial weight bearing, I was putting my boot on the ground outside. But I had to keep the boot on for sleeping as well. To keep the sheets clean, I used wipes to wipe the bottom of the shoe. Then in bed I always wore a shower cap on the bottom of my shoe.
ICING
Icing and elevation of the injured foot will be your best friends. I used pillow on a poof stool to keep my foot up and the below ice bag for icing.
MOBILITY
Crutches are something that one will not be able to avoid. I would advise to get crutches covers as early as possible to prevent ribs and hands pain. One I got my covers I had no pain even after extensive usage of the crutches. Crutcheze is the brand of what I got. They are really soft. You can see the difference below in crutch handles with and without the covers.
iWalk2.0 is a hands free crutch that basically made the first 6 weeks more or less normal. You are able to do everything on it.
Here is my vlog review of iWalk2.0:
Once you start partial weight bearing or/and full weight bearing, the boot will be higher than your shoes and that makes walking a little unnatural and is not the best for your hips. There is solution for it, called Evenup. You place it on your good leg’s shoe and there you go, you are even. The platform makes walking in the boot very easy. I got mine on amazon.
SWELLING AND HEEL PAIN MANAGEMENT
Once I started FWB in the boot at neutral my heel started to hurt. Here are gel pads I used inside of my boot. I got them at a local pharmacy:
The next day I layered them inside of my boot with additional heel gel pads I already had. That helped more:
I also started wearing knee high compression sock. I got MOJO on amazon. These are gradual compression of 20-30 mmHg. They have them in cool colors on amazon. I wear them the whole day in the boot and remove at night. They do help with swelling!
I also use the ice pack (shown above) much more since I started FWB in the boot.
Below is a video of the equipment I recorded a while back:
Hope that helps. I know I wish I knew some of the trick at the beginning!
Thank you for the blog. I am now 12 weeks after my rupture and I have been following how your progress went compared to mine. I am seeing my consultant on Monday and hope to get my boot off then. my treatment has been similar to yours, however I was in a complete plaster caste for the first six weeks. I am visiting the physiotherapist at the hospital.
Agnes your blog and videos are sooooo helpful! ThAnk you so much for sharing all your experiences and info. My ATR occurred during a tennis game last week - when I heard a pop and fell to the ground I thought my shoe had broken and never realized that I had injured myself! I am not even a week into this and a, going crazy but have to gather all my patience. I will be going over each of your weekly blogs and vids every week. Are you available to answer any questions?
Thanks again for all your sharing and information - such a huge help
Hope you are progressing well Keith and that bootless walking is going well!
Sharlene - sorry about your rupture! I was playing pickleball (something like tennis) and am back to it now, so keep patient and you will get back to tennis as well!!! I am still waiting to get back to tennis. I am recovering from broken left shoulder bone and I have 2 handed backhand, so cannot do that yet, but achilles wise I could have played tennis in month 9 after rupture. Its the cutting, sudden moves and unexpected side moves/stops that make the come back to full tennis a bit tricky, but with a good rehab, you will get there! Stay patient!
And yes, I do check the site occasionally to check the comments and others’ progress.
Thank you Agnes!! I am 16+ weeks, post injury, non surgical route. You are the first person I have found that has the same heel pain and achilles pain that I am experiencing. Reading your blog and trying out your solutions is giving me so much hope for the future and recovery. I am older (63) and not as active previously as you were. But I still find so many similar experiences that you have had in your journey, that I am experiencing in mine. I only wish I had found your blog sooner. I would have considered that Iwalk2 very seriously. And believe it or not, I did not know they provided bags for your cast so that you can shower! That would have saved me many awkward and scary wash-ups. Thank you again. I am reading now your Week 14-18 blog and will continue as I progress.
Sandy - The heel pain does go away eventually. I saw quite a few people experiencing it… Hope yours eases up soon. And yes, I cannot imagine going through this injury without iWalk (and shower boot cover)! Good luck with the rest of your recovery!
Dear Agnes.
I am so happy I found your blog and youtube channel. It is where I found out about the iWalk. I loved! I could not survive on crutches caring for 2 toddlers and a man who is used to being taken care of:) In Slovenia no one has even heard of iWalk and I had to order it from Great Britain but it was soooo worth it. The doctors at the hospital looked at me like I fell from the moon when I walked in with it. And also taking pictures of it and hopefully recomending it to their patients.
I will be out of my walking cast next week after almost 2 months. I will use some of your suggested excercises and start visiting my PT.
Thank you again for your time, suggestions and help to all of us ATR sufferers
Yours sincerely
Lucka
Hi Agnes can you tell me why you went for underarm crutches not forearm.. You are so thou rough you must have looked at both?
Robert - I ruptured at 8pm, went straight to ER, where I got a script for the crutches. At 10pm we went to 24hr pharmacy to get the crutches I got prescription for. That’s how I ended up with the underarm crutches. While sitting in the car waiting for hubby, I found out about iWalk on google and was satisfied with it as my main crutch, so really did not research anything else for crutches.
I hear the forearm crutches are easier on ya though.
Lucka - Glad to hear you found out about iWalk in time. It was a life saver for me as well. And I know what you mean with everyone staring at you. I was getting looks everywhere I went with iWalk. Hope more doctors recommend this to the patients. My doc knew about it, but other 3 docs I saw before him had no idea about iWalk. Good luck to you with getting out of your cast!
Hi Agnes again!
Your blog have been soooo very helpful and I have pretty well utilized most of your suggestions - equipment-wise and other! I now have a silly question - I’ve been walking full weight for 2 weeks and want to take the 1st wedge out of the cast boot - but which one do I take?! The top or bottom?! It’s Friday at 8pm on a long weekend, so no doctor to ask until Tuesday?!
Thanks!!
Oh, sorry Sharlene, have not seen this on time. You probably found your answer by now! I never had to deal with this, as the sole of my boot was adjustable in itself for changing the angle… From what I remember in the fb group depending on the brand some ppl were removing from the bottom and some from the top…