week 14
11/12/2010
Hi All ,
Havent been back to see my PT since my last post , added to being stuck indoors a lot due to the snow, so theres not much to report .
Still struggling on the calf raises , as i said the last time the next time i see the PT he expects me too be able to do 3 x 15 of them , i have over a week to go before that appointment and I can manage a few at a time , but there is probably still a fear there to push it too hard that is holding me back .
To be honest I think in my head i thought I was futher down the road to recovery than I really am .
Haven’t got back to work yet , so i havent been on my feet too much , so I think this lead me to believe I was ok . So the other evening I went to a shopping mall with my kids and we where only there for 1hour (1.5 at the most) and by the end out it I had a stinging pain in my AT and wanted to get out of there ASAP……. no swelling but that was probably down to it not being “too much” on it .
Plus getting a lot of pain in the top part of my foot ,all on the side of my little toe. The tendons that run down to my toes are not getting enough movement maybe ?
Plus , dont know if this is connected but the area around my scar is SO itchy its unbelievable .
Plus I stepped over one of my kids toys and as i was bringing my AT leg over my leg obviously turned sideways as the corner of the sofa connected with the AT directly and HURT .
Apart form that , I think things are coming along slowly now , but coming along nun the less.
Take care all
Keep the faith
Phil
December 11th, 2010 at 10:00 pm
I found that shopping was the absolute worst. Of any activity, bar none. I expected the slow walking, not too much standing still, and support from the cart if needed, would all make it a nice easy workout. But it always destroyed me. No explanation here.
December 11th, 2010 at 10:14 pm
“I found that shopping was the absolute worst. Of any activity, bar none.”
is this before or after your ATR Norm ?
it’s mine before and after :>)
On another note , I went to the other site your currently using , maybe to lend support or something but it required I registered and then I felt like I was just bein nosey .
Hope things are going well on that front.
As always thanks for you reply .
take care ,
Phil
December 11th, 2010 at 10:31 pm
My PT recommended pushing a shopping trolley for gait retraining
Seriously though, I found that when you are at home you automatically take breaks when you are tired, without even realising. then when you go out and try to stand/walk for any length of time its really hard!! You are not alone.
Also, on the calf raises, i’m slightly further on (in time) than you, but I’m doing up on 2legs down on 1 pretty easily. The PT says that the eccentric (down) movement builds muscle faster so we are focussing on that. I can do the ‘up’ movement a bit (obviously for walking but not generally the full range onto toes) but to be honest, have been happy with the progression he has given me, so haven’t really tried up and down.
don’t get dispirited!! Its all pretty easy from here, maybe can’t do sport but at least you can live most of a normal life until you can!!
December 11th, 2010 at 10:57 pm
as Im off work , my wife introduced me to the “supermarket” on friday ;>)
what a great place that is !!!
the 2 leg up and down on 1 i can do (apart from the feeling that there a pices of wood or something strange in there) to a “decent” extent but the PT has said h wanted the up and down on 1 foot by the time i get back to him (with a christmas pressie!!)
December 12th, 2010 at 6:07 am
Thanks for the smile, Phil. Sorry that ValveReplacement.org is unfriendly to casual visitors.
The recovery from Open-Heart surgery is going amazingly well, touch wood. Also less pain and fewer painkillers than most people’s ATR surgery (including mine in late 2001)!
I don’t know how it’s possible that they can slice through my “wishbone” and stitch it back together with stainless-steel wires (after drilling little holes in the bone first?!?) and the next day, it doesn’t hurt AT ALL (unless I pull on it or cough, etc.) without even a Tylenol?!? Boggles the mind.
Two days ago, I walked over half a mile, back from my GP’s office. Slowest and most segmented walk I’ve had since I was maybe 3 yrs old, but I made it and didn’t feel the worse for it.
My lungs — they are completely collapsed by the surgery — have recovered very close to 100%, based on the test-and-exercise “spirometer” gizmo they send us home with. The main incision and all my little wounds and bruises seem to be healing well and quickly.
Main disappointment is that my heart hasn’t really settled down near normal yet. I’m told this is normal, and will resolve with time. (It’s only day 10 post-op.) My cardiologist says a resting heart-beat in the 90s post-op isn’t “a symptom”, even if I could usually drop it a bit below 60 with the old parts.
December 12th, 2010 at 11:06 am
Hi Phil
I think the snow has put us all back a bit, I didn’t dare set foot outside the house for a few days when it was at it’s worse. I have also experienced the stinging pain you described and I think it’s just a warning sign that you need to rest. I’ve also had an itchy scar, the skin is very dry probably down to the cold. I got some stuff called Bio Oil from the chemist and have massaged it into the scar after a bath or shower, this seems to help, also seems to help the lumpiness I have on the back of the scar.
Keep going, think how far you’ve come!
December 12th, 2010 at 4:00 pm
I think the pains that appear around your foot are common to us all, and a result of all the tendons that are in your foot being shocked after 3 months of relative inactivity. I have taken to icing something I didn’t do before I started to walk. I also revert to the boot in bad weather, and when shopping in really busy christmas crowds. GOdd look with your future recovery.
Oh I also have invested in bio oil. still reserving judgement on that.
Finally I’ve also found changing shoes can play havoc with diff stresses on different parts of your foot, so I’m staying in my saucony trainers for now.