grammy’s AchillesBlog

Comment by Vicki N

March 1, 2014 @ 5:29 am

Wow, February was a very busy month for you! Glad it’s behind you. I am ready to transition into 2shoes next week and I had the same question about shoes. I am anxious about what our friends have to suggest. I will keep an eye on this post.

Good luck!

Comment by janis

March 1, 2014 @ 8:54 am

All I can advise is that things that may have been comfy before may not be now. I used to order shoes online all willy nilly, and now I have become a Person Who Tries Everything On First. Anything that presses directly on my incision is still uncomfortable, but it’s still sensitive. I am keeping one particular pair of shoes to see if it desensitizes. For now I’m sticking with my Reebok neutral trainers and a pair of Merrell Encore clogs, for the most part. I’ve heard people recommend Crocs, but… I just can’t, on principle. I stayed in two shoes once in them, but the first couple/few weeks were uncomfortable as the foot and heel got used to bearing weight again.

Comment by grammy

March 1, 2014 @ 12:08 pm

My original injury (cut while taking out garbage) occurred so long ago (almost 15 years) and with several flare ups in between the original stitch up and the surgery…I have worn mostly clog type shoes with no backs for years. Nothing flat, but no heels either. I was able to wear tennis shoes with lifts and would love to be able to do that again. Last March, yes, a year ago, my flare up was much worse and I first tried my usual remedies that didn’t work. Because of trying to avoid surgery, I have been in a boot since the end of July 2013 - until surgery in November! Not the same boot though! Hopeful to not see a boot again, but realize that since January it has been a friend…once I got the four lifts out! I am not discouraged as the pain is not nearly what it was March - November, but I am looking forward to being able to walk normally!!!!

Comment by normofthenorth

March 1, 2014 @ 3:19 pm

I posted a page entitled “this swelling and inflammation is getting OLD!” And I recommend doing the same, because mine cleared up soon afterwards!
I may have been the first Croc person here. Bottom of my foot was so sensitive that I only had two choices: cover the house in squishy gel, or cover my feet in it. That seemed way easier and cheaper, and it worked fine. If the esthetics bother you, HOW did you survive the BOOT??

Comment by grammy

March 1, 2014 @ 11:06 pm

I found your “this swelling is getting old” and read it and yes - I might try posting that soon ! I did learn a lot from the comments but wish there was a way to decrease swelling! Not sure about esthetics bothering me - the remark about the walker? My MIL lives with me and to go anywhere with she and my husband - with his two women in walkers - just too much - used my scooter. Probably just as funny and still plenty of joke material - just a line I couldn’t cross! I love crocs bot do they make them that don’t slant negatively? They contributed to one of my flare ups so I have used Merrill’s . My fat foot won’t fit in them now, and I haven’t worn a right shoe in so long - don’t even know where they are,.was inspired by your bike riding -hope to do something soon!

Comment by normofthenorth

March 1, 2014 @ 11:31 pm

Grammy, if your “I love crocs bot do they make them that don’t slant negatively?” refers to Crocs having a lower heel than toe (which I never noticed — though I mostly use[d] even cheaper Chinese imitation Crocs myself), this could surely be fixed with a combination of soft heel wedges and footbeds, to achieve whatever angle you like. Just make sure any heel wedges or partial footbeds are securely anchored in place, to avoid the kind of serious problem Anne = Superjewgirl suffered when her unsecured heel wedges slipped out of place.

Lots of folks here have benefited from exercising on bikes — both the stationary kind and the on-road kind — during ATR rehab. They can be used with a boot (fixed or hinged) and in 2 shoes. If not in a fixed boot, the “challenge” to the healing AT-and-calf can be dialed in quite precisely by sliding the foot forward (less challenge) or back (more) on the pedal. (And exercise bikes can also be dialed in with a real dial!)

Of course on-road cycling has some risks, to both the healing leg and the rest of the body, though I willingly accepted them and survived them during both my ATR rehabs.

Comment by normofthenorth

March 1, 2014 @ 11:33 pm

Are you having trouble controlling your swelling with RICE = Rest, Ice, Compression, & Elevation? I did fine with R&I&E, though others here have raved about compression socks or tubes.