Posted on October 15th, 2018 by popouch
Haven’t posted on here in a while, but thought I would give a quick update. I had my surgery from a full achilles rupture on March 13th this year and it is now October 15th. 7 months! I am pretty much fully recovered. My left calf is still weaker than my good (right) leg, but I have started to lift legs at the gym, do weighted calf raises and run every day. I can easily do single leg calf raises with my bad leg but I still have less strength than my right leg. I am not playing sports or doing aggressive cutting/jumping, but that will probably come soon enough.
Most mornings my achilles is still stiff until I walk around for a bit and it warms up. Sometimes it is sore after a workout or run, but not much pain. I ran my first mile at about the 6 month mark and I can pretty much run without noticing it now. I’m just out of cardio shape…so running is a pain anyway for the lungs haha!
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Posted on July 28th, 2018 by popouch
Hey everyone, 19.5 weeks post op and everything is getting slowly better. I am able to do a singe leg calf raise but I can’t quite hold it…so its just a split second. I can jog but not for very long before it starts hurting.
I still feel how tight my achilles is constantly, but I am just happy that I am able to do everything necessary to work and be back to normal life. Looking forward to running again. I have a feeling it will be another month…especially since I am scared to even try it.
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Posted on June 20th, 2018 by popouch
14 weeks and 1 day post op. I’m feeling good about the progress I’ve made over the past 2 weeks. I am barely limping anymore when I walk and I’m feeling less pain during the day. When I go to the pool, I’ll do single leg calf raises in about 3 foot deep water and simply walk back and forth pushing off with the front of my foot. PT is twice per week and I’m getting stronger with more mobility each session.
My goal was to start jogging lightly by week 15. That seems pretty realistic at this point, but I am a little scared to try it. The last thing I want to do is re-rupture. I see the doctor again at week 16 for my last checkup. I’m hoping for good news.
I am ready to put this all behind me and get on with my life again. It feels like everything has been on pause for the last 14 weeks while the rest of the world has moved forward.
Good luck to everyone.
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Posted on June 5th, 2018 by popouch
Today marks the 12 week post surgery. I am walking around in shoes pretty decently but I have a significant limp because i can’t quick roll my foot on my toes. I started PT about a week ago, and I’ll be going to that once per week. So far, they are massaging my tendon, stretching my foot, making me do some weighted squats and some other basic things.
I am worried that I still have such a limp when I walk. I figured that around the 3 month point I would be walking normally. Does anyone else still hobble around at week 12?
As far as progress goes, I have made some significant improvements since week 9 when I was cleared to walk in shoes again. I am getting around much faster. Each day gets a little better, but too much walking makes it sore for the entire next day so I have to take it easy for a while.
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Posted on May 17th, 2018 by popouch
I went to the doc today at 9 weeks post surgery and got cleared to start walking without the boot. I’m not gna lie, I have been walking around the house without the boot slowly for a few days already. Things are feeling pretty decent. My flexibility is still pretty limited but it gets better slowly every day. I am going to try to make tomorrow with only shoes and see how it goes. The doc also said I could officially start PT, so next week I’ll probably have an appt.
I am never touching those crutches or boot again. I tried to fly the simulator (Im a pilot) yesterday but it was pretty awkward to use the rudder pedals with the boot, and the brakes are difficult to push with my week leg. Im hoping to fly again by the end of June.
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Posted on April 26th, 2018 by popouch
I saw the doc this week for my 6 week post op appt and I got cleared to put weight on my foot and start walking in the boot. The doc said to begin relying less and less on the crutches as pain allows. So the past few days have really gotten my spirit up because i can finally stand on two feet!
It was pretty scary at first to put my foot down and put any weight on it, but eventually I was able to stand up without crutches. I started walking around today with 1 crutch and putting more and more weight on it. My goal is to walk without crutches by mid week 7. My ankle is getting really swollen by the end of a long day, so I typically keep it elevated and put some ice on it when I get home. Here is a link to my ankle at week 6. http://AchillesBlog.com/popouch/files/2018/04/img_1469.jpg
Will probably celebrate this weekend by using a crutch in my right arm and a beer in my left hand on Saturday.
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Posted on April 17th, 2018 by popouch
Today marks my 5th week post op. I have another appointment next week to transition to PWB, probably. Right now i am still pretty numb on the outside of my foot. I can move my ankle around slightly, but the ROM hasn’t really improved much in the past week…but I’m not really pushing it too hard.
I take off the boot while I am at home just sitting on the couch/bed. Does anyone else do this around week 4-5? I sleep in the boot because i’m nervous about twitching.
I am thinking about getting an MRI to make sure the surgery worked and everything is in tact how it should be after the surgery. Has anyone else done this? I don’t know if it just an irrational fear…but I always feel like it didn’t work and my achilles isn’t put back together.
Below is the link to a picture of what my achilles looks like right now. You can see the huge blister on my heel…which is wonderful looking.
http://AchillesBlog.com/popouch/2018/04/17/5-weeks-post-op/img_1454/
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Posted on April 9th, 2018 by popouch
I am at 4 weeks post op and I just got my cast off today. I was supposed to be in the cast until 6 weeks but I asked the surgeon if it was ok to get the boot early because the cast was loose. I also stepped on my bad foot on friday so I wanted to get it checked out…I was feeling a little bit of pain and throbbing right on the bad achilles which I hadn’t felt before. Turns out everything is OK and I now have a boot. I took the day off work and I showered, cleaned my leg, and have been letting my foot breathe today. It is nice to move my ankle around slowly.
The atrophy in my calf is pretty substantial. It is going to be a long road to recovery. One complication that I have is a large blister underneath my heel bone. When I was in the splint for 2 weeks, I had a painful burning sensation in my heel and I called the nurse, who told me not to worry, “It is just the nerves coming back to life”. It turns out that the splint was irritating my heel and now I have a huge blood blister. I don’t think it will delay the timeline to get back into shoes, but will take about 6 weeks to go away.
Overall, the wound is healing well and i can move my foot up and point my toes slightly. The other complication is nerve damage on the outside of my foot. It is fairly common to have slight nerve damage after this surgery, but unfortunately mine is the entire outside of my foot from heel to toe. The doctor says this should come back in time, but to avoid areas with people who smoke (and not to smoke either).
NWB for another 2 weeks. Then PWB. Then hopefully some PT.
Hope everyone is “heeling” well. Cheers
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Posted on April 2nd, 2018 by popouch
I am 3 weeks post op and I’m in a cast. I was pretty thin before this surgery, but now my quad is very skinny compared to my other leg and the cast is appearing loose. I am very eager to get out of this thing and start rehab.
I have heard some different timelines from multiple people, but I was curious if it is possible to be starting PT at about the 7-8 week mark? I will be PWB at 6 weeks post op in a boot and I plan on getting an aggressive PT plan because I need to get back to normal.
When does the swelling stop?
When will I be able to start PT?
When does the appearance of muscular atrophy go away?
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Posted on March 30th, 2018 by popouch
I am 17 days post op and I have been going to work all week. Things have been feeling better and I can move my toes and foot around a bit more in the cast. However, I’m worried about re-rupturing my achilles just from flexing my foot and twitching at night while sleeping. Has anyone re-ruptured their achilles at this stage post op?
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