PT and PWB
Posted by terencemc on March 19, 2014
I feel like my doctors are much more patient than I am. Nevertheless, I am finally on "PWB" as of this Monday and for me that means up to 50% of my body weight on the injured leg but keeping my crutches. I also am faithfully doing my at-home stretches as per my Physical therapist.
Here’s what i’m learning.
When I do my foot stretches to move my foot back toward flat, I feel all kinds of things happening in my leg and foot. Pins and needles in my foot, muscle pain in my calf (finally it’s re-engaging!) and other niceties.
My goals in PT are very gradual. For instance, I need to do my stretches to get me 1 degree closer to flat each day. That means 3 weeks of PT will get me to flat foot from 20 degrees PF (1 week in now).
The pain isn’t over yet. Neither is the need for elevation.
My next PT appointment is Wednesday next week. Hoping the progress I’m making continues.
March 19th, 2014 at 3:41 pm
PWB @ 50% is one of the few PWB benchmarks that actually MEANS something (to most people), because it’s what your recovering leg feels when you stand up straight, splitting your full weight between your legs. Still, I don’t think any of the % numbers in PWB matter half as much (50%!) as the progression (start very light and build up incrementally, always with no pain and little discomfort) and the technique (make your stride absolutely normal, except for the crutches).
This is also the stage where it becomes important to build up the shoe on your UNinjured side, so it’s as high off the floor as your recovering foot. Having those heights out of balance will not only slow you down, it also risks a couple of kinds of problems that can take a long time to fix. The technique of balancing them isn’t important, as long as you do it somehow. (Strapping an Even-Up or a “Cast Shoe” onto your shoe is one easy way. Adding some footbeds to your thickest-soled hiking boot is also pretty easy.)
March 19th, 2014 at 8:43 pm
hey Norm. lol on the “half as much”/50%. smart word play!
yeh, the imbalance is annoying. the doctors and Ptherapist don’t really seem to even consider that. Also, they’ve had me keep my foot at 25% PF in the boot. So, I’m even higher and the stride is ridiculously uneven. That being said, it feels much better having some movement. It definitely moves the blood and relieves the “build up” that tends to happen as it throbs while not elevating. they say a 2-3 more weeks and I’ll be starting FWB. At that point, I’ll wedge up the good leg shoe.
March 19th, 2014 at 9:27 pm
No harm in building it up sooner, IMO. The downside of waiting is (1) that you may hurt your hips or knees or spine, and (2) that you’ll be learning a funny way to walk, which may be hard to unlearn. A few folks here had to spend a few weeks on that with a PT.