It’s been a while since my last post, but I’ve been checking the site everyday reading everyone’s posts during my free time here and there. I am still amazed by how many people are on the site, and we now have close to 200 Achilles Bloggers. That’s a lot of people healing, recovering, and working hard to get back to normalcy. When I designed the marathon tracker, I never thought that there would be groups of people at each 1/2 mile marker.
Speaking of the marathon tracker, I’ve finally made it to Manhattan! When I ran the nyc marathon some years ago, probably the most memorable part of the race was running through the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan. I had thought that there were lots of people cheering on the runners in Brooklyn and Queens, but getting off the Queensboro Bridge ramp into the streets of Manhattan and feeling the amplified waves of cheers was definitely something else. I probably ran about a minute faster that mile with adrenaline pumping through my system.
It has been 32 weeks, almost 8 months since my injury, and I am pretty happy about the progress I have made in my recovery so far. I’ve been playing tennis fairly regularily, and I’ve been enjoying the cool fall weather. I signed up for a group tennis clinic that takes place every Thursday night for 1 hour at an indoor tennis court near where I live, and I am looking forward to playing regularily.
I probably played more tennis this year than the past few years put together, and that’s probably because I now appreciate being able to run around more than I did before the injury. I am still fairly careful out on the court, and I don’t bother chasing down really difficult shots. I’ve learned to ‘let go’, and I am okay with it. 
I’ve been going to the gym to work out two-three times a week, but I don’t do any calf specific exercises. I run about 15 minutes to warm up and then I do upper-body workouts as well as squats with light weights.
As far as my recovering achilles is concerned, it’s in pretty good shape. I can do several single leg calf raises, but I do have a bit of slight, dull soreness that comes and goes if I put too much strain on my achilles. Yes, it’s not 100% yet, but I don’t expect it to be. I don’t limp anymore, but I still can’t wear some dress shoes. Oh, here are some pictures of my scar. It really hasn’t changed much since my last post. Unfortunately, I haven’t been good about applying lotion, mederma, etc.
Well, maybe there has been a slight improvement in appearance, but I don’t care too much about how my scar looks, really. I think it’s a cool scar.
Here’s the close-up:
My achilles tendon on my recovering leg is definitely thicker, and it’ll probably stay that way.
It’s holding up pretty well.
It still makes me cringe when I see images of single leg calf raises, but it doesn’t feel/seem that bad when I am actually doing them.
\Just a word of encouragement to all the new bloggers: Take it slow and be patient. The first few weeks are the hardest, but it gets better, and you’ll eventually get back to doing things that you love. Happy healing!
25 responses so far ↓
1 jonathan9 // Sep 23, 2008 at 2:31 am
Hi Dennis,
Congratulations on your recovery. It sounds like you’re nearly there, but I think everyone will agree that you’ll always be nervous about single heel raises.
keep smiling,
Jon
PS. thanks for the site.
2 annieh // Sep 23, 2008 at 3:13 am
Dennis,
What an uplifting post. Does give us all hope.
After setting up this site you should be very pleased with yourself for all the help you have given to the rest of us, without this site we would have no-one to turn to for help and guidance.
A million thanks
Annie
3 daveleft // Sep 23, 2008 at 3:50 am
Dennis,
Big congratulations on both your excellent progress and creating such a vibrant and supportive community. I think I might owe my sanity to this site.
Are you entertaining any thoughts of playing basketball again?
Happy healing indeed!
dave
4 stevew // Sep 23, 2008 at 4:28 am
Dennis-
Thanks for creating this community. As a newbie, I have used the progress of others as a base, and feel a lot easier about my own recovery.
It’s great to see you vets out there back to doing the fun things again.
Steve
5 Patti // Sep 23, 2008 at 8:52 am
Hi, I caught your blog this AM and wanted to mention something. I work with Mederma and I noticed you said that your scar isn’t changing much but that you also haven’t been good about applying your Mederma. Just wanted to make sure that you know that Mederma does work great on scars but you achieve the best results when used as directed. Also, we do have a new product you might be interested in, Mederma Cream +SPF30, which contains sun protection because the sun can cause discoloration of scars. You can check out our website at http://www.mederma.com for more information on our products, information on application as well as a discount coupon for your next purchase. Best of luck with your recovery.
6 dennis // Sep 23, 2008 at 10:56 am
patti - Thanks for your comment. Any interest in providing Mederma Cream + spf30 to all the Achilles Bloggers who are interested in the product? (With no strings attached.. of course)
7 hilary13 // Sep 23, 2008 at 11:21 am
Dennis,
Great to read your news! Tennis?! I am so jealous…keep thinking I am not sure I’ll play again after this injury…could anything be worth going through this again? Well, reading your post gives me hope that both my body and the way I think about it will change with time.
Like many others on this site, I do credit it with helping to keep me sane! Dennis, thanks for giving us all a place to express ourselves! I actually ran into a woman in the cast room yesterday who was at week 2 with an achilles injury, and I referred her here…hope she makes it.
Congratulations on all your healing thus far…love the pics.
Hilary13
8 marianne // Sep 23, 2008 at 12:43 pm
Dennis,
Really great to read your post on your excellent recovery thus far!! I KNOW this site has kept me sane and has helped me gain so much knowledge about this injury. I remember being number 49 to log onto this site and am just amazed that since June 1st, so many more “lucky” people have found us!! Looking at the pic of your scar makes me feel not so alone with the bumpy/sore bottom part of my incision. I guess I just need to learn to accept it and deal with the pain the best I can, and not be afraid that it will keep me from walking normally again
I have my shirt waiting for me to be FWB and I can feel I’m almost there….I’m one of the slow ones, but know I will get there 
Thank you soooooo much for this awesome site and your positive outlook. You are an inspiration!!!!
Congrats,
Marianne
9 dennis // Sep 23, 2008 at 4:04 pm
Thanks for all your comments. Looking forward to posting my 9th month update!
10 albertr // Sep 23, 2008 at 5:26 pm
thank you so much for this site, kept me sane…..congrats on your recovery
11 shelley // Sep 23, 2008 at 8:17 pm
Dennis,
Thank you for putting up this site. It has been great to see what’s in store for me and see what others are going through.
Glad to hear you’re doing so well.
Shelley
12 kristinatl // Sep 26, 2008 at 7:44 am
Dennis-Great progress! So nice to hear about your 1-legged calf raises…very impressed! And, such a good reminder to us all to let those tough shots go…don’t try and run down everything…and we should all be smart!
Good job on this community site!
13 Craig // Sep 26, 2008 at 12:04 pm
Well done, Dennis! Keep up the hard work.
14 kev34 // Sep 29, 2008 at 10:24 pm
Dennis-you are the man..congrats, I am right behind you(little over 7 months on the recovery) ..do you still have any tightness on the front of your leg?? looking down at my foot, you have the bone in middle front(shin area) muscle to the right of that is still pretty tight…just wondering if anyone has the same, doesn’t hurt just tight when you try to pull toes up towards leg
15 tiancai17 // Oct 5, 2008 at 12:22 pm
Thank you for creating this community. It has been extremely supportive and helpful for me. Sounds like you have made great progress in your recovery and it makes me very hopeful of mine. All the best!
16 Duarte // Oct 6, 2008 at 9:38 am
I gave just discovered the blog! too bad I havent found it a few months ago… I am about 2 week after you, and it`s funny when i read this… When I look for your recovery process I really se myself. I started to play tenis exectly the same time, and i`ve just started to play very slowly soccer and basket… But i don`t think i`m ready yet… May be i`ll wait more 1 or 2 months…
Thank you very much
Duarte
Portugal
17 heather // Oct 8, 2008 at 9:42 am
Dennis, I bow to you blogging guru….You are my achilles tendon ambassador of Kwan… (sorry, I think I’ve seen Jerry Maguire too many times since I’ve been stuck in bed….)
Sweet Mary, that’s not as far as it seems, right?!
Thank you a million times for starting this site - the stories and information on this site are invaluable to a newbie like me!! I look forward to being where you are in May
Thanks again and congrats on your progress!
All my best,
Heather
18 dazf // Oct 8, 2008 at 11:49 am
Hi Dennis,
I would also like to thank you for taking the time to do all this and set thisup for fellow sufferers. I am still in the throws of checking all the links and sites you recommend and i try and read a different persons blog each day.
Take Care
Daz
19 dennis // Oct 8, 2008 at 5:18 pm
heather and dazf - Thanks for those kind words, and I am glad that you found the site helpful. If you have any suggestions on making this site better for the newcomers and the old timers alike, please let me know.
Happy healing! and we’ll all get back even stronger in due time.
20 Jeff Pheffer // Oct 9, 2008 at 7:36 pm
Heather. My movie was Blazing Saddles–I watched that 10 times in the 2 weeks after surgery. i thought i knew all the lines but it got funnier and funnier.
even though I am 2.25 years out, I still have the memory of the injury, surgery and rehab firmly in my brain–I still do most all of the therapy activities. balance, calf and toe raises, ankle flexion. Interesting thing was before my injury I spent a lot of time every day stretching my calfs and it still ruptured. if you saw the video of misty may–she stepped forward and back with her left foot and as she pushed off her left it snapped–that is exactly what happened to me. a move i had done a thousand times and this time–probably due to body position and probably irritated it without causeing pain from my activities that day–it blew
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