4th Week — First Cast Removed

This saw-like tool is specifically for casts.
The blade does not turn, it gyrates.
As it cuts the fiberglass you feel the
blades pressure against the cotton bandages
inside BUT it doesn't cut the bandages
or your skin! ;o)

It's been 4 weeks since my surgery. First 2 weeks was with a splint and ace bandages. Then a cast was put on for 2 more weeks.

I went to see Dr. Yes today. The cast was temporarily removed and xrays taken. They look good. The bones are healing just fine. BUT I expressed my desire for an alternative to the cast. I told him I was MISERABLE. Dr. Yes and I struck a deal. It's top secret but I'll share it with you. ;o)

He said he wouldn't mind giving me one of those huge protective boots BUT that I had to promise him I would not put any weight on my foot. And to wear it while sleeping. He said he's basically covering for my surgeon out West so he doesn't want trouble from another doctor for not following procedures for the post-op care.

I promised him that I would wear the boot like a cast and not put any weight on my foot. YAY! I'm sooo happy!!! The boot is heavier, bulkier and much snugger (A cast seems to expand after time, usually it does settle a bit but gets loose because your limb is shrinking.) I will now be able to keep my skin clean and moisturized. And I can flex my ankle a little here and there when I take off the boot to watch TV. This will mean my ankle will be less stiff and weak at 12 weeks. ;o) And this flexing will help stop the atrophy of my calf muscle.

When I got home I CAREFULLY washed. I dry-scrubbed my leg to remove the dry skin.

I washed with a wet terry cloth— very gently. I did not go over the actual incisions. (I don't feel that is wise to do. I think moistening two pieces of skin that haven't bonded together well yet is asking for trouble.) I also shaved. ;o)

I then used alcohol to remove dry blood in non-incision areas. (I had a ton of dry blood underneath my foot.)

I then applied Vitamin E oil from knee down. Additionally, I used Eucerin lotion on my leg.

You can see the atrophy on my left leg.

(Guess what? I just put the boot on my right leg and discovered that it doesn't feel snug at all. This means it only feels snug on my left leg because of the surgery. Weird.)

I applied Neosporin liberally on my incisions.
Then I put gauze on, then wrapped  with
two ace bandages.

One of THEE best things about having the boot in place of the cast is that, if you recall, my toes were exposed past the edge of the cast. This did not allow me to even place my toes on the floor to REST my leg! Instead I had to pick the cast up making the tendons behind my knee work overtime!

But now I can! The front of the boot sticks out way past my toes. This allows me to give my quad muscle and tendons a bit of a break by resting my leg (not put weight on foot). This helps greatly with balance when I'm standing with my crutches as well! ;o) (But it's still painful to have my leg down. The blood rushes, etc.)

BUT STILL, AWESOME! Feels good to be able to rest it on the floor!! With the cast I thought I was loosing my mind. Praise God! 

To celebrate I had pancakes today!!!! Haven't had those in a while. YUM!!!!

3rd Week — Post-Op Summary

This week was a small improvement from last week. (Last week I was miserable.)

• Pain killers to be able to sleep is still on going
• At a very slow rate there is improvement on the pain I feel when my leg is lowered to the floor
• Doing anything on my crutches, or even the task of bathing, still causes foot to swell
• The type of pain I feel is changing. It's different. This week I experienced more shooting pain around the incision areas

EMOTIONS

I do try to stay positive by imagining all the things I will be able to do, what this summer will be like, etc. ;o)

SHORT-TERM DISABILITY CLAIM

The person handling my short-term disability claim approved me for 4 weeks when I spoke to her 3 weeks ago. But to give a final decision, paperwork from my surgeon's office needed to be faxed to her. This was done a week ago. I called her yesterday to get an update. Turns out she was out. Hopefully this coming week she'll get back to me, and will approve me for more time. I need it.

I did express my concern to my surgeon about still not being able to sit upright for more than 20 minutes with my leg raised before experiencing discomfort to the point of having to go lay down in a more reclined position. (This will not due for me to go back to work.)

I was told that the paperwork faxed over stated my surgeon's "return-to-work-date" for me, which was 3 months from date of surgery. So it's not up to the insurance to decide when I go back to work, that's what I was told by Dr. West's assistant, Barbara. 

She said the only way for them to make me go back to work sooner than that is for them to arrange for my employer to make all the accommodations needed for me to work without pain. In her experience, most employers won't go through the trouble and prefer to just follow the doctors recommendations. I'll keep you posted.

TOE

I keep my toes moisturized. I used Jojoba oil this time.

ALSO, I confirmed with Barbara, that yes, the reason for my forth toe being stuck in a lower position is because Dr. West over-corrects the toe to avoid having a 'floating toe' when all is said and done. A floating toe would not touch the ground with the rest of your toes.... we don't want that. ;o) She assured me that in time all toes would be aligned.

HELP

Someone from my church graciously stepped up to take care of my laundry every other week.

I also have a friend who has agreed to take me food shopping every other week. GOD IS GOOD!

Another friend of mine who is unemployed at the moment has been taking me to my doctor's appointments. 

I have also had a few visitors that helps me take my mind off things. ;o)

Cleaning 4th Toe

The skin around my toes seems pretty dry. I guess it's because my toes are exposed compared to my foot.

Anyway, I decided to try and get some vitamin E around my toe with a Q-tip. I had to be really careful. The Q-tip felt like a was using a boulder around my toe.

I'm glad I did this. It turns out there was dried blood in between my toes.

 

All nice and shiny. ;o)