Cathy’s Long Road

It has been a very long time since I have been on the board like 5 yrs. my ankle is at 95%. The best thing that worked for me was water pt. I went thru 3 different iterations of pt and the last one included pool therapy and that is what saved me. I just walked heel toe back and forth. I eventually worked up to stretches on the side of the pool. Y’all should try it. Best of luck cathy

Go Micah get well soon mate that tear won’t last long and you’ll be back at’em!!

Hi Cathy,

I can relate to your pain, I had lots of ultrasouns, massage and laser treatment with various comments like it could be tendonitus, heel spur, a form of neuralgia etc. etc. but basically I still have pain in the heel, it is always hot to the touch as well, surgeon told me to stop physio as it was making no difference.

I have started to take some tablets to try and break-down the scar tissue, will report about these if and when I think they have made a difference, don’t want people rushing out to buy them if they don’t work.

I cannot have my operations on my knee and other ankle until achilles is strong enough to cope, so just have to grin and bear it.

Good luck
Annie

Cathy - seems to me Doc Ross advice is good. why not try that for awhile if the tendon is there. the body is an amazing healing machine. You could always have surgery later if you believe it’s appropriate at the time.

Now that you mention it I’m freaked! They have steel toed boots, wonder if there’s steel reinforced Achilles boots?

My guess is that aside from the pain, if you’re tendon is strong enough to be out of a cast or boot, it’s strong enough to get doinked and survive. At least, that’s what I like to think.

yes, and it is amazing how i’ve never worried about these kind of things before. the other day - first day out of the cast, mind you - i was bobbing in the community pool and someone was on a direct path to me, swimming at top speed. i thought my heart was going to explode, like i was in a scene from the jaws movie. regardless, i had to put my hand out to keep him away from my leg. i laugh about it now and how rediculous i must have looked freaking out in the pool, however the thought of anything happening to my slowly recovering leg puts chills down my spine.

I think about this often. I have a wedding to go to next weekend. I’m finally out of the boot, off crutches…..but an unfamiliar place? I’ll probably put the boot back on for safety.
I also have football starting, last week of August, American Football. I paid too much $$ for those season tickets to not get used! I mentioned this to my ortho and he said,”7 p.m. see you there baby.” I’m glad he’s confident i’ll make it across the parking lot, up the stairs, up the ramp, and down the stairs to my seat. AAAUGH!!

yep the simple thought that some one hit you on the heel freaks you out n its pain full too you can only take precautions ………but in crowed places its better to be at a distance……………Take care

I’m not going anywhere now!!

Staying away from crowds, …. and shopping…. but ….. in August it is the start of the football season here in England and I will be going to watch Manchester City FC along with 45,000 other people, I will make sure my husband goes in front, my son behind me, my brother to my left and my niece to the right, I think that will bring me protection!!

Annie

I’m not going anywhere now!!

Staying away from crowds, …. and shopping…. but ….. in August it is the start of the football season here in England and I will be going to the match along with 45,000 other people, I will make sure my husband goes in front, my son behind me, my brother to my left and my niece to the right, I think that will bring me protection!!

Annie

Hi Cathy,

What you described sounds very similar to what I’ve gone through for the past week and what Jim has described as well. In fact, I had the similar tear feeling which was different than the rupture, but clearly a tear and quite painful.

From my experience 3-4 days of minimal activity (I went back on crutches) made a world of difference. I skipped 3 PT appointments as well. I’m in to see the doctor tomorrow, and am hoping to get back to my earlier routine.

Craig

Cathy…

As long as you can feel the tendon and get plantarflexion (toes point down) you are fine. Hopefully just some adhesions/scar tissue tearing. Watch the inflammation over the next few weeks, slow down on the rehab, massage, and wear some type of brace to help stabilize the area.
Good luck

Doc Ross

Like you Cathy I have been told to keep off my foot because of spurs in the heel, it really is difficult I can imagine your frustration and that of your husband, I hate having to ask anyone to anything for me as I’m usually the one who does for others.

What about a splint? - my physio thinks that they are very good if you just need a bit of extra support.

I wish you well and hope your research brings good news for you.

Annie

Hang in there Cathy. i’m sorry to hear there may be more complications for you. Sending good vibes your way.
kk

Cathy, I hope things turn around for you…hang in there.

Hi, I have this condition called erthermyalgia, not sure if I even spelled it right. Anywho, basically I have very hot feet so its very difficult for me to wear an inclosed anything during the summer. That is part of my problem. I wish I could put on my camwalker right now and help the problem. I had to have an icemachine sent home from the hospital with the cast and still had to have ice packs underneath! Drove hubby crazy. See why he doesn’t want me to have surgery AGAIN! Thanks for the thoughts though. I’ve been researching today and have been looking at some laser techniques. Looks like I might have “micro tears” in the scar tissue itself. If it gets real bad then they’ll classify it as a partial rupture again. I’m trying to stay away from that. I’m gonna have to start icing again though and also “slowing down” which I don’t know how to do. I’ve got to stop inviting folks over to the pool, going out shopping, except where they have scooters, etc. I can still do the gym as long as its non weight bearing.

Thanks.

Cathy

i am very sorry to hear about the tear! i completely understand your frustrations. i am very independent as well, so i can understand not wanting to be off of your leg again. have you discussed being in a cast or boot again in lieu of surgery? if the tear is not complete could there be a chance of it healing on its own? i know that sometimes surgery is not always the answer. perhaps a cast with toes down is the way to go in this situation.

good luck to you, and keep us updated!

Cathy - another member of the shoe club…I should be with you in the next few weeks. I had the heel pain up until about a week ago (8 weeks or so)…and then it just went away. I think the weightbearing helped loosen up the heel. I also finally got a pair of the green superfeet insoles..they are worth every penny. They have made my boot much more comfortable. Cheers!

Brendan, wow, they are really waiting to start you in PT, huh?Wonder why?

Are you allowed to do any stretches w/o the boot when you sitting or lying down?

Cathy - thanks for the update…looks like you are making great progress. I’m 8 weeks post op tomorrow…have an appt late this week and hope to get a script for some PT. I think the FWB I’ve been doing in the boot has helped alot with my ROM, looking forward to adding some resistance to my ankle exercises to start building back some muscle.

ouch! Ok, everyone, I’ll behave. you’re right I need to wear my boot 24/7. I mean I’ll probably get it off in 2 weeks so I just need to behave. But I honestly didn’t think not having it on for just a few and also not bending it would make much a difference. Its just killing me having it on in the heat too. I’m not sure if I posted my problem with hot feet. Its one of the reasons he gave me the boot so soon. I have a remote control fan for the nighttime because they get soooo bad then. I’ve had it since I was a child. Not sure why it happens. I have a small ice pack I can put in the velcro sometimes that helps.

Thanks everyone, I don’t wanna rupture it again, I don’t think my husband can handle it. It really stressed him out so I gotta be careful.

Cathy

Cathy - I’m still putting my boot on to go to the bathroom at night (Day 46 is today)…I agree with Tom…after all this work to get to this point, the last thing any of us need is to start over from scratch again. Be safe!

Cathy…
At 6 weeks I am trying to walk without the boot…but not at night when I’m half asleep. Dennis wrote about walking on a treadmill for 5 minutes with his PT but he is further along. If you feel ready to walk ask your surgeon about getting in the pool and walking in the shallow end or treading in the deep end. Nave been doing this for about 10 days and feels great. Just be careful on the wet floor.
Let me know what your surgeon says.

Doc Ross

Cathy The circumstances you describe are the very ones which my surgeon said caused one of his patients to rerupture so I’d be very careful. Gerry

Cathy - I agree with Bill. I don’t think it’s wise to push things, going against your doctor’s orders. You’re still only 33 days post op. It’s easy to say that you will only take small steps and not put weight on the injured foot, but it’s very easy to lose your balance and end up putting all your weight on the recovering tendon. Especially when it’s the middle of the night. The last thing you want to do is start the recovery process all over again.

Having done the non surgical route 1st, I’d be very cautious doing that. I tried after a month to walk without the boot at night and probably didn’t give it enough time healing wise. I’m not positive, but I beleive it impacted my lack of recovery. I know what it feels like and I’m a lousy patient, but I would follow the doc’s advice. Look at the bright side, you’re further along than me

Freedom…
A few days ahead of time is nothing to worry about. Just go slow, listen to your body, everyone heals at different rates. Physicians always pad recovery timeframes so that when you are walking “earlier” everyones happy.
Enjoy mobility.
Doc Ross

cathyj - glad that you are elevating your leg. I was very careful about that, and I think it really made a difference. Yes, it’s good to be outside. I went for a walk in the park, and it felt good to sit on the park bench and watch the kids run around and people walk their dogs.

thanks Dennis. It just feels so much better to be able to get out of the house by myself. Its spring and being a girl I’m so in to the plant thing. You don’t think I rushed it too much by walking 5 days early do you? I mean the only issue I’m having is some swelling and with that more pain comes. But I do try to keep it up as much as possible when sitting, I even had it up when I went out to eat, we were in a booth so that was easy.

Thanks for the kind words.

Cathy

cathyj - good to hear that you are doing better. keep us posted on your progess! Also, patience is the key.

Dennis, thanks so much. I did write an update!

Cathy

cathyj - Also, if you are already logged in, your admin console link is: http://achillesblog.com/cathyj/wp-admin/

cathyj - on the upper left hand of your page, you’ll see a “login” button. Click it, and it’ll redirect you to a login page.

There, just enter your username/password. It’ll then direct you to your blog’s administration panel.

Then, click on the “write” tab. Then you can start posting!

By the way: “Write Page” tab is for pages, which can be used for not time dependent things.. like if you had a howto or a faq.

For your progress updates, “Write Post” is the thing to use.

let us know if you have any other questions.
Btw, direct login for your blog is: http://achillesblog.com/cathyj/wp-login.php

ok, I want to post an update to my blog but I have searched all evening as to how to do this. Posting here looks like I’m replying to previous comments. Am I right? Help me help me.

Cathy
19 days since surgery

Cathy - I don’t want to post my email directly into a comment as spammers search these sites for email addresses….if you comment on one of my posts…I’ll get your email address and we can coorespond off the blog. Thanks for taking the time to fill it out!

Hi everyone, I’m not sure if I’m posting in proper place but anyway, Brendan what is your email so I can send updated spreadsheet? I have looked for the last hour but it IS late..12:20 am….

thanks

Cathy

I’m jealous of all of you that have office jobs. I have to be on my feet for 12 hours at a time for work. It’s going to be a difficult transition from riding the couch all day to being up and walking for 12 hours. If I could work from home or at the office time would just go so much faster. Maybe I can get some sort of online degree in the next month. I don’t know, I’m just going kind of koo koo sitting around. I do go to the gym every day and sit by the pool, but that only takes a few hours. Thanks for letting me vent. 2 weeks to go in my cast, and then things will probably look a lot better. It’s strange because sometimes my cast is so perfectly comfortable, and other times it’s like a torture device. Not so much pain as I just want to move my foot.

Jim

Cathy,

I think the pain with this injury can be quite different from person to person. The entire time, from rupture to 22 days post op, I have taken 1.5 vicodin (.5 for a bad headache). The only limiting factor on the pain medicine is the fact it’s mixed with Tylenol. You can take 1000mg of tylenol every 4 hours, and each of the pills you describe has 325 mg of tylenol. The tylenol doesn’t do much for this pain, but mainly keeps people from taking too much narcotic. You could try adding a 5mg to the 10mg for a short time (it’s what I would do for myslef), but the risk there is that the 10mg will no longer work for you. Now I’m no pain management specialist, (I’m an ER nurse) but I have treated lots of short term pain, and peoples tolerance for pain and meds varies greatly, and as I don’t want to give medical advice, it’s only my opinion. Hope you feel better.
Jim

Oh what a day I had yesterday, I really had a lot of pain where my incision is. Also, my toes stayed hot and red all day I couldn’t get them cooled off for nothing.

I had a restless night last night as well, the pain woke me up twice.

Now the incision is starting to hurt this am as well. I called the doctor yesterday and they are supposed to call me today.

I’m still keeping it elevated and iced. I don’t understand why I’m having so much pain.

THanks

Cathy

Tom/Lee

I never had one done in the achilles only in the bursa. I had 2 of those. The first one actually made it better for a while. The 2nd one I got nothing. I’m not sure if its the only way to treat fibro, I’m not sure who else they give them to? Its really hurting today and my foot is burning a lot. I was sent home w/ an ice machine and it helps cool it down.

Thanks

Cathy -
I’m at day 19 I think since my sugery non-weight bearing. I’ll be getting my cast off this saturday. My surgery was similar in that my tendon was detached, the bone sculpted and it was reattached but with a titanium spider plate and screw.

Tom is correct about cortisone injections. they can cause achilles tendon rupture. My doctor in fact would only give me one injection per year into my achilles to relieve pain. He said any more would weaken the tendon. But my poor tendon has scar tissue and was already weak from prior surgery.

I hope that you’re feel better soon and if you have any questions, let me know.

Cathy - I believe I’ve read that cortisone injections in the area around the Achilles tendon can lead to ruptures. I was just curious if your doctor mentioned this at all. Perhaps cortisone shots are the only way to treat fibromyalgia related pain??

Dennis,

I have fibromyalgia which can cause lots of issues. I am subceptalble to injuries and pain. last Jul/Aug it started w/ some tenderness when I walked the dog. I noticed some sharp pains, etc. I had some cortisone injections but in the bursa which was not the right area. Maybe I should have injections in the sheath? Not sure. So then on dec 25 I was going down the steps and was not careful (had started going down sideways because of the pain) and felt a pop and I think that’s when it tore. I had more pain after that. Then the doc ordered an MRI and it showed a partial tear, thickening of the tendon itself. Then surgery was scheduled.

Thanks for the inquiry,

Cathy

Cathy - Glad to hear that you are on your way to recovery. Time seems to go by faster after the first week, so it looks like you are through the rough part. Keep us posted on your progress and welcome to the club! By the way, how did you rupture your AT?