Ten days post op - Frustrated and confused..?!
Was feeling bright as a button yesterday. Had seen the doc on Tuesday and all’s well. I told him I had been squeezing the calf muscle inside the cast to try and prevent withering and he seemed happy with that as long as it felt okay to me . So, no pain, no swelling, wound fine, posh new cast and feeling well and lively in myself. Terrific! So I started getting around a bit more and trying to do a few things around the house as far as my crutches will let me.
Which is all great and I was feeling on top of things, but then hubby comes back from the pub where he’d gone because he knew a physiotherapist mate would be there (or at least that was his excuse!). Physio mate was indeed in the pub and the message came back: “During the initial period (didn’t say how long this was) you need to do NOTHING. Even just moving around NWB will use the relevant leg muscles to some extent and you don’t want to be doing that.”
So I’m not sure what advice to follow. Of course I have to take it easy and I am. But if my body tells me it is happy for me to be a bit more active occasionally, and it hasn’t reacted badly when I have, and if the surgeon seems happy that I’m deliberately tweaking muscles to keep the blood pumping, isn’t that okay? But I’m not a professional and pub physio is (he’s a sports physio so he does know plenty about ATR, I assume) so if he says Get Thee to the Sofa then…..what?????
I think partly I’m frustrated because we’ve got parents coming for the weekend and I normally make a big effort to get the house looking nice for them. Can’t help it, it’s just me being house proud. Hubby gets chippy and defensive if I say anything about it being a bit messy. I think he’s fed up because he’s having to deal with all the boring domestic crap and it doesn’t exactly excite him. Can’t blame him, it has never really excited me either.
Guess this is how it’s going to be for the foreseeable - some days you feel okay, other days you feel fed up and frustrated.
Oh, and I’ve just been pushed around the supermarket in a wheelchair with a special wheelchair trolley. Felt about a million years old.
Hurrumph.
Smoley
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Definitely been there - you’ll be up and down for the next few weeks, I’m afraid.
I have to admit I didn’t do very much in the house at all the first couple of weeks. Everything I tried to took so much longer than normal it was frustrating and I was feeling quite tired by the end of the day, partly because it was difficult to get comfortable at night.
I didn’t feel so bad doing the supermarket shop ‘cos of the self-propelling wheelchair I bought - could whizz ’round quite quickly on those nice flat shiny floors!
Are the parents coming to see how you are? Maybe they’re expecting to help out? We went away self-catering for a week 2 weeks post-op and I didn’t do any of the cooking or tidying up during that time.
Try and let things go a bit and enjoy a break from the mundane household stuff. So what if it’s a bit untidier than usual, they’ll appreciate you all the more afterwards! (She says hopefully!)
Sam
I agree with Sam.
Since the operation my husband does almost ‘all’ the shopping and my son does ‘all’ the ironing (he is 31 so it was time he knew how anyway). Really showed them how hard it was to have a full time job, do the housework, cooking, shopping and gardening. Hubby has even mastered the art of hanging out the washing!! They really struggled at first but I think they had no idea of how hard life was before the achilles.
You really must give yourself a little rest and catch up on things you want to do. Perhaps, even do all the Christmas card writing and present shopping on the internet, then you can have a nice quite time in December!
As the spam word just said ‘patience’ is the key.
Annie
Thanks Sam and Annie,
You’re dead right of course. That is a great idea about the Christmas cards and pressies. Have just signed up for month’s free trial of getting everything delivered for one lump sum with Amazon so perhaps I can make the most of that. Every year I promise myself I’ll be ready for Christmas in good time and every year I end up running around the shops on December 22nd like a blue-arse fly. Maybe, bizarrely, this can be the year I don’t do that!?
Sounds like you’ve got a good physio there, Sam. I’ll try and make a list of some of the recommendations for future reference.
Smoley
Hi Smoley
With regards to what you should do with your foot in the cast. I was told elevate and do nothing much but wiggle my toes (consultant). I was told to keep my foot above the heart for six weeks (surgeon). The real healing happens when the cast comes off, and you can move your foot some. As both Sam and myself are experiencing now. I would say five weeks was a felling better milestone. But mostly because it’s when the pain backed off, and I stopped taking the pills. If you can move your toes that’s great, Spread them down and up, this pulls the arch and is vital for circulation. Practice on your good foot, to see what parts of the foot are affected by toe flexing. Look at the side of your foot, and the AT. Now do the same with the other foot, you cant see it, but its a lot of movement, and helps prevent DVT. Really spread your toes, its a good thing to do.
Being house proud is great when your healthy, frustrating when you are not. If it helps, head for the five week barrier, and potter more then. But for now I am with the others. Sit, Relax, and Get well. Is it time for our medication, with Ice I think.
Lee
Agree with Lee, I did mainly toe-wiggling and elevating for the first couple of weeks.
Yes, very pleased with my physio so far and had a good chat with her generally today while she was hurting me.
Have found Amazon’s Prime service very useful recently!
Sam
re: the toe wiggle… thats kinda what i’m doing..leg elevated and toe wiggle.. idont sem to get any pain, so i think its okay.
I know what you eaan about the confusion..there is so much information and everyone’s case is slightly different. I suggest you just filter through the advice and experience and right a list of questions for the doc.
Isnt your first post op appointment on monday (like mine?)…thats good right?
Also i understand how frustrating being immobile can be. I live on my own and alothough friends come over when they can…they have homes to go to..so after about 9.00pm i’m on my own… booooooo…
Chin up (and leg)
FM
Its interesting to see the different things people get told. I went back to work on my 10th day after surgery, and then went back to work again on the 13th day after surgery after a run in with Human Resources, by the 17th day after surgery I was taking transit both ways (up to 60 minutes travel by bus and subway both ways).
If you trust your surgeon then trust yourself to feel when you’re going too far, the body is a pretty forgiving thing!