I shoulda stayed on the couch!

Anybody out there want my knee rolly thingy? It was a godsend to me. It’s the kind where you rest your knee/calf along a cushy bench thing and then push yourself along with your good foot and steer like a scooter. It even has a basket.  I wouldn’t feel right selling it since my insurance paid for it (600 dollars!!!!)  I would love to pass it along to help a fellow ATR. I’ll even deliver it if you’re a righty (I was a right ATR and remember what it’s like not being able to drive!)

This Christmas the only big black boots in the house belong to Santa Claus! Last Christmas I had one of my very own! I finally get to be the one peeking in on all you guys a year from my ATR  and saying, “It gets better. Really it does!” It’s been a year since I ruptured my right AT on BOTH ends! And you know what? That was the best thing that ever happened to me. After years of being sedentary and obese, and CHOOSING to sit around all day on the couch, suddenly I HAD to lay around all day and then, of course, I didn’t WANT to! Since my surgery and PT and etc, I’ve lost weight, go hiking 3 to 5 times a week, and love walking the dog. My relationship with my husband is more wonderful than ever since we got rid of our TV so we would be more active. We hike together and take long walks around our neighborhood almost every night and talk about everything. Who knows what blessings your ATR may bring you in the new year?

I ruptured my right ATR November 3, while taking my inaugural ride on my new TRIKKE scooter. Now, 4 months later, I am back riding it again. Went around the block a couple times tonight. I didn’t shatter any land speed records, but it was fun and I wasn’t worried about my tendon much at all.

Well, I haven’t posted in a while, which I guess is a good thing! Today I am exactly 15 weeks post-op and doing great. Graduated from PT, although I do continue to do MOST of the exercises MOST of the time (well, OK, some of them some of the time).

Driving to work and home no problem and driving long distances again without  much discomfort. The only real reminder I have of all this is that I can’t wear any of my shoes from “before” yet. Crocs and clogs, crocs and clogs (not allowed to ear tennies to work). I do still have a very slight limp when I’m tired, and a little swelling on days when I’ve overdone it. And I admit I can’t do a single leg raise, gives me something to shoot for, I guess. But all in all life is back to “normal”- actually better than normal because I have a new-found appreciation for my dear husband who took care of me and my co-workers who cheered me on. So all you newbies out there, hang in there! Things get SO much better, they really do!

Suddenly having some pain after having escaped relatively scott-free (compared to some other poor souls on here) thus far. The pain is at the calf end, not the heel end. Of course this worries me because I tore my AT on both ends and the calf end could not be repaired surgically. So that tear was left to heal “on its own.” I did do some SERIOUS spring cleaning (it was in the high 70s here the other day!, and I had let things go around the house for obvious reasons until recently.)  I am really hoping I just overdid it a bit and it’ll be gone in the morning.

Didn’t think about my ankle much today. During the first couple months, I used to think about it pretty much constantly. Went to church, breakfast out,  went shopping, did laundry, went to the movies with my DH, and not much swelling for the first time ever!

Some days it’s not so bad, but then other days, like today, I get home and my ankle is riduculously puffy and swollen. As far as I can tell, I’m not doing anything different on the days when it swells so horribly. On the bright side, my PT says I am almost ready to get back on my Trikke scooter- the scene of the crime! I was riding it for the very first time when I ruptured my right AT. I never expected to get the go-ahead to get back on it so soon! I don’t know if I will have the nerve. It’s been my goal all along, but now that it is nearly here I have a lot of anxiety.

And loving it. Did a lot of weeding in the front yard, laundry, lunch with a friend, shopping, and still going strong. Life is great at 11 weeks, 2 days.

Since my surgery. Things are going along OK. Glad to be in two shoes. A little dismayed by the swelling and dull ache in my heel at the end of the day. I should have expected it based on all the posts on here on the topic. Somehow I thought since I had had so little pain thus far I might escape it.  Love my physical therapy, I can tell I’m getting better every time. As ever since this whole thing started, I want things to go faster.

I seriously thought my swelling wasn’t too bad- but I went shoe shopping today and my right foot is two sizes larger than my left. I guess I’ll stick with crocs and the one pair of clogs I bought after the surgery. . There’s something about crocs that makes it easeir to get  your foot into them without pushing hard. I did finally make it to Walmart to get the compression sock GerryR recommended- it did help. But putting it on and off is no fun- it’s like some unholy cross between old lady stockings and a sports bra!