It’s been nearly 11 months since my Achilles surgery, and my recovering Achilles feels pretty good. In fact, it feels b
etter than my right Achilles, which gets tender after I play basketball.
I now play basketball once or twice a week, and I go to the gym a couple of times a week for strength training and running. I wear my ankle brace, which I think provides some protection from accidental contact.
I went skiing for a day while I was in Salt Lake City, and it felt great to be out in the mountains. I had difficulty fitting into my ski boots that I’ve had for several years, and I had to take the bottom insole out of the boot. My foot either grew after my surgery or my heel now protrudes more than it used to, jamming my toes into the tip of the boots. Without the insole, I was comfortable in the boots so that was not a problem.
Overall, I am pretty happy with my recovery progress. I am still hesitant with jumping and pushing off hard with my left leg, but that hasn’t stopped me from doing the things that I love. I still play basketball, tennis, ski, and run. My recovering Achilles feels fine after any sort of activity, but my right Achilles gets pretty sore. I have to really be careful, or I’ll be getting matching surgery scars, and I don’t want any more surgeries.
I exchanged e-mails with John and Brendan who were on this site from the very beginning. They have moved on from their injury/recovery, and they are not so focused on it as we all once were. John said that he went skiing a few times this season. He said that he didn’t have as much control of the skis at first, but he felt fine and was able to cruise at high speeds and carve some good turns. He also reduced tension on his bindings a bit too.
John mentioned getting some additional Physical Therapy and taking Pilate classes, and I am also going to look into more PT and give Pilates a try too. It’ll be beneficial for my ailing knees to strengthen my core/legs.
I still feel a bit of stiffness in my Achilles at times, but I’ve gotten used to it. I wonder if I am feeling the sutures that were used to stitch together the tendon. It’s the non-dissolvable kind so it’s still there inside me.
Here are some more pictures:
Yeah, the scar doesn’t look pretty, and it hasn’t improved since the last time.. Except that I am able to wear one of the dress shoes that I wasn’t able to wear a few months ago. There are some shoes that I still can’t wear, and I threw out a pair. They were old anyway.
It’s more obvious from this picture that my Achilles tendon seems thicker than a normal tendon.
My left calf muscle has recovered to its original size/strength.
Thanks for reading, and if you are in the early stages of recovery, be patient and don’t get discouraged. It’ll take time, but you’ll get back to doing the things that you love in due time. Have a happy new year, and lets hope that we’ll be healthier in 2009!
26 responses so far ↓
1 10 Months and 3 weeks - Update | Les Videos de Tennis // Jan 3, 2009 at 7:03 pm
[...] original post here: 10 Months and 3 weeks - Update Partager et découvrir : Ces icônes sont des liens vers des sites de partage de signet sociaux [...]
2 bostonbrother // Jan 4, 2009 at 3:28 am
It is nice to know there is some normalcy at the end of all this. I was kind of surprised by your scar and the size of your achilles this far along into your recovery. At your point in recovery I was hoping things would look more like they did before the rupture.
The other day I was thinking about why this injury happens more often to men than woman and I was wondering if it might be a flexibility issue. Then it struck me that yoga might be helpful. Have you seen anybody mention yoga in their recovery?
3 dennis // Jan 4, 2009 at 3:41 pm
bostonbrother - My scar isn’t the prettiest. If you check Brendan’s blog and Tom’s blog. Their scars healed much nicer. You can barely tell that Brendan had surgery on his achilles! So it depends on the individual. Not sure about Yoga, but probably there are also more men playing these sports that can lead to this type of injury.
4 subdigit // Jan 5, 2009 at 5:37 am
Good to see you’re back on the slopes. The first day out is tough on the feet even without any injuries. It could loosen in or maybe time for a new boot fitting to make sure. Now if I can just get my butt out for my 1st day out…
5 dennis // Jan 5, 2009 at 4:21 pm
subdigit - yeah, it was nice to be out there. I definitely need new boots. Maybe I’ll get something end of this season.
Hey, how about those papers that I asked about? Can you ask Michelle? thanks!
6 Tom // Jan 7, 2009 at 7:13 pm
Dennis - Great to hear from you and I’m glad things are progressing well. I’m sure it feels great to be back runnin’ and gunnin’ again on the hardwood. Good work!
7 pistachio // Jan 9, 2009 at 2:53 am
I just stumbled upon this blog today, and reading this post assures me that things will get back to the way they were. Congrats on getting back to doing the things you love.
Patience is something I wish I had more of, but now I have an idea of what is in store for me for the days to come.
8 Smish // Jan 9, 2009 at 10:17 am
Dennis,
I know you probably hear this a lot but I feel compelled to write it again. I am REALLY thankful for this site . This injury is so challenging both physically and emotionally. The help that this site provides is immense. There are other sites on the internet but they are nowhere near as organized or comprehensive. I am sure maintaining Achillesblog for everyone is a job. I am very thankful for the work that you continue to put into it. The posters and all of their vastly different stories are great as well. Thank-you so much for all of the work you do.
9 dennis // Jan 9, 2009 at 12:38 pm
smish - thanks for your comments. It’s helped me through some tough times to be able to speak to others who are going through the recovery together.
I noticed that you don’t have an achilles profile. If you’d like to set one up, please read the instructions to set it up: http://achillesblog.com/atrpt.php
You just need to register, and you don’t have to setup a blog if you don’t want to).
If you need help with it, you can let me know your relevant info and dates and I’ll create an achilles profile for you.
speedy healing!
10 walshie // Jan 13, 2009 at 9:47 am
Dennis thanks for the update…I have to say that scar is nasty!! Hahaha I wish mine was more like that…
I bet it was tough stepping on that court for the 1st time…Im looking forward to passing that huge mental hurdle..should be a good gut-check.
Keep on keepin on
11 Gwen Chia // Jan 15, 2009 at 1:19 am
Hi Dennis
Congratulations on your recovery.
I followed your link from Simon Barratt’s page. Glad I did because I’ve been wondering how my scar will look like and if I’ll be able to wear my favourite shoes again.
My ATR surgery was 10 weeks ago and my recovery is slowed down by a bad pseudomonas infection. My doctor has left the incision site open to debride and dress the wound every few days. It’s still an open wound but it’s slowly healing.
I’ll bet my scar’s going to be totally ugly. Do you know of anyone else with a similar problem?
12 Doc Ross // Jan 15, 2009 at 10:11 am
Dennis,
Congrats on your milestone. Have not read or written in awhile. Glad to hear that things are going well. Your scar looks ugly but makes for a great conversation starter. As for me back on the racquetball court and actually came in 2nd in my first tournament. and get this…got a tattoo above my ATR scar. Will post pictures on my 11 month anniversary.
Thank you for this site it was a life saver during a very stressful time.
Doc Ross
13 dennis // Jan 15, 2009 at 8:27 pm
Doc Ross - Thanks for your comment. Looking forward to seeing the picture of your ATR tattoo.
14 dennis // Jan 15, 2009 at 8:29 pm
Gwen - Please check out: http://achillesblog.com/kristinatl/
My scar is one of the uglier ones. I think Brendan has the cleanest looking scar. You can barely tell that he had surgery: http://achillesblog.com/brendan
Glad that you found this site, and good luck on your recovery.
15 nancy // Jan 18, 2009 at 2:17 pm
hello dennis
i haven’t checked your blog or the ATR one for so long,just thought i would check to see how everyone is doing and compare notes…
i’m 10 months post op like you and active
still lots of stiffness or pain after a sport
i started skiing again, very conservative, my 7yrs old is faster and better than me…
same as you, had trouble fitting my boot, i like the idea of loosening the tension on the bindings, i’ll try that
i massage my scar and calf every night, still
my scar looks better than yours though!!
i’ll keep in touch
take care, nice to read you all
nancy
16 Ernest Peters // Jan 19, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Hello Nancy and everyone, I just wanted to comment on the information you guys place on this site. I have been a little discouraged becuase I am only 18 weeks post op.
I have gone to therapy for 12 weeks and I keep working out daily but I still seem to have so pain around the ankle popping and cracking as I walk. I saw my surgeon and he thinks its normal until I build the strength in my foot, ankle and tendon. it has been a slow recovery the good thing is I can now work out and wear normal shoes when I go out. I try not to stand to long or walk too far when I’m out. I don’t have much pain in the achilles area more around the ankle than anything. At least I know I have plenty of time to go and the pains I am experience is similar to everyone else.
I don’t know many people who have had this injury so I want to appreciate all of your comments it has given me a since of relief.
I planned taking a trip skiing but decided its probably too early. I also wanted to try roller skating but decided maybe my ankle is not ready.
Maybe its the fear of reinjury holding me back. My scar looks great only a light line down the back of my leg. My therapist suggested Vitamin E oil to help the scar heal. I use it to message my tendon after I work out and shower. I think it really helped. Thanks again!
Thanks again
EP
17 5christinamaria // Jan 23, 2009 at 9:20 pm
Dennis, Just wanted to say thanks for such a great site. I appreciate your efforts and comments. It’s nice to know I’m not alone, and that there is hope. I’s great you got to go skiing. I am actually 15 minutes from SLC….hard to look at those mountains this winter and not be on the slopes. Keep on keeping on!
18 justin // Feb 16, 2009 at 2:20 pm
I ruptured my achilles playing hoop on Jan. 19th. I had surgery a week later on the 27, and am now 3-4 weeks post-op. This has got to be one of the worst injuries, just because your mobility is completely stripped and your reliance on others becomes super important. Thank god for my girlfriend.
It’s nice to see progess from someone who has gone through this. I feel the same way, I have very little pain, it’s more uncomfortable than anything. I’ve never been so jealous of people wearing walking boots either. I CANNOT wait to be able to walk again.
It’s funny that I hurt myself playing basketball, since over the past 5 years I’ve played twice and injured myself both times. Yet, EVERY summer I play over 100 games of extremely competitive softball and have not got hurt once.
Go figure.
19 Jennifer // Apr 20, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Well may problem was that i walk on my tipy toes and my archilles tendon didnt seche how its soposto so had something like this surgery when i was 5 years old and im 17 and it was may both legs at the same time it was the worse and i still walk on my tipy toes but it helped me a lot Thanks to God and my family and the Doctors it was a hard time 4 me
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