sporti’s AchillesBlog

As many others have similarly posted, it is amazing what you take for granted in our normal active life, such as walking and carrying things in your hands at the same time!  I took to my crutches very quickly and utilized assistance where necessary, such as in the airports during my commute home 2 days post op.  I was feeling strong and lucid since there was no need for the heavy painkillers after the first and second night with slight discomfort.  Once I returned home, much to the dismay of my wife who is simply watching out for me not to overdo anything too soon, I began a cautious routine of core work, push-ups, and using dumbbells for curls and presses while seated.  I had clearance from the surgeon and my trusted chiropractic/ART physician friend, who is very active in athletic training and himself with multiple Iron Man competitions under his belt, that as long as the boot was in place and no stress was placed on that leg, I was free to do upper body and core work.  Even with some great upper body workouts completed, using crutches to get around can certainly take its toll on the shoulders and neck!  Luckily, a acquaintance from our children’s school heard about my injury and brought her Drive steerable knee scooter to school and gave to my wife.  I’m not sure who got a bigger kick out of my using the scooter between myself or each of my kids? This was such an incredible life saver for use in the house, as I didn’t mind ever getting up to go anywhere.  It kept me moving around as much as possible as it is difficult for me to sit still for longer than an hour or so.  I could help around the kitchen with my knee resting nicely on the comfortable pad.

Upstairs, I would use my crutches.  Obvious challenges occur in the middle of the night when nature calls.  I’ve read where people used different devices to urinate without having to leave the bed.  While that certainly held some appeal, I was determined to maintain as much normalcy as possible and cautiously use the crutches to go the the bathroom.  This would wake my wife at first, but we both started to sleep a little more each night.  In addition to working diligently on my lowering my caloric intake, I was not drinking any alcohol, for the most part because I wanted to be as sharp as possible at all times.  Having an accident while crutching to the bathroom at 3am was not something that I was prepared to have happen to me - therefore all precautions are being taken to avoid something like this happening.

Since this was thankfully my left leg, I saw no reason why I could’t begin driving to the office after the weekend.  Of course, there were certain others in the household and extended family that disagreed.  If I was going to rebel on one thing (without permission from Dr’s, family, etc.) this was it.  Getting to the office proved to be as easy as I had anticipated, and was beneficial for my mental and physical well being to maintain as much normalcy as possible without placing the repair at risk.  Using the Drive scooter while at home really provided much needed energy to do other things out of the house if necessary.  Needless to say, I did spend a lot of time resting by reading and watching some TV (Breaking Bad), as I typically don’t sit still to watch anything.  I’d rather take the dogs for a walk.

Toward the end of the week (9 days post op) I visited the Dr. recommended to me by many people in the medical field.  The visit was interesting mostly because it was the first time the boot came off and I saw my leg (picture).  The incision sort of freaked me out, but not too badly.  It was too soon for the stitches to come out, so the boot went back on and I peppered the doctor with questions.  The most important thing for me was that I left with the assurance that placing weight on the boot was solely a function of my personal comfort, and that as long as the boot was securely on, the repair was safe.

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