Some inspiration if you're on the fence...

I did have my first ever professional pedicure on my cruise back in November, but I'm mostly a do-it-yourselfer. I haven't been back into a salon since.

Base coat is done.

I wish I had taken a photo of my Brachy toe in the sponge separator before my surgery, it looked crazy-funny!

Decisions, decisions...

Hmmmm, what color should I choose?

Waiting for my footsies to dry.

Purple it is!














I got these last summer while I still had sutchers. But I couldn't sport them.

They have a sunk-in center. And that put pressure on my bunionette site that still had sutchers. I couldn't believe how much it hurt when I wore these just 9 months ago.

But I can wear then now! I was way over zealous last summer! ;o)

Life without Brachy is great. It can be great with it too. Everybody is different. But I'm sure enjoying just flip-flopping and not thinking about hidding. Worth all I went through.

Hope this helps if you're on the fence. Tootles!

Future Brachy Doctors

Another little wonderful thing in reference to my last post, is that I have found some doctors viewing my Blog! That's SO great. If those of us who have had surgery document the POST affects, doctors can become educated and aware of what we are really feeling and experiencing.

This increases their knowledge and will help them treat their future patients.

Sometimes patients have difficulty voicing their honest thoughts/feelings, leaving surgeons in the blank.

So keep Blogging, it helps everyone. ;o)

The Number of Brachy Blogs Are Growing

So the number of Brachy Blogs are growing! I keep researching to keep myself up-to-date. I'm noticing people going through the surgery, putting their experiences online. Even more so, these are people who have read my Blog and have modeled their blogs after mine, using it as a guide as to what to include in theirs.

Do I mind this? NO I DON'T!

It's great. That's one of the objectives for creating mine. I don't want to be the only one providing information. Brachy-ers need to be able to research different methods, outcomes, locations, perspectives, etc.

At this point there are more External Fixater blogs than One-Stage. I hope more people doing the one-stage method will consider capturing their experience online for other to benefit. Also, there are next to none of Men! This needs to change too.

I realize it may be probable that a woman's Blog would be more detailed, but I'm not inclined to make that conclusion for all men, or say that it matters at this point. The Brachy world needs to hear from men who opt to have corrective Brachy surgery. (So if that's you, get crackin' ;o)

As always, these stories are on my right column (Other Correction Stories). This list is often updated.

IMPORTANT

I'm very happy to see that others going through this surgery have discovered what I did, that a 6 week recovery period is a gross understatement and misrepresentation of recovery.

Remember this past post?

Well, Chris read my past post, and found it to be true for herself. 7-weeks in, and this is her post. (It takes a whole lot of time.)

BUT SO WORTH IT! I just love my feet now. I wear flip-flops all the time and have to stop myself from looking at them. I'm so grateful to have had this opportunity. What a blessing?!

Take care I'll talk to you soon! Thanks for following!

I Can Wear My Old Stuff!

14mo post-op

I've had these shoes for about 10 years. They are made from denim. I didn't mind my Brachy in these but my bunions made it uncomfortable to wear because the big toe slot of the shoe is straight.

But now I can wear them! Isn't that great!?

 

Tootles!

Short Update

Howdy,

So on the treadmill, these are the happenings...

1. My pinky toe seems to still be experiencing some issues. It seems to get stuck in position in my sneaks. I should be going to the gym continually to let you know the consistency of this but I'm not. Shame on me.

Water blister.




2. Good News!
Remember this post about the Tendon situation?

Well after that post I went on a few challenging hikes. 6 miles, rugged terrain. and the tendon issue went away. YAY!

14th Month Post-Op!

 (8mo post-op for my left foot's bunionectomy)

Hi everybody, hope you are all enjoying Spring. I would love to be buying tons of new shoes, but I'm now working PT and on a budget. ;0) I don't have the room for new shoes anyway.

I did invest in 2 new pair that I intend to last the rest of the year. I really do like them. (2" wedge heel.)

They were pretty plain so I added the turquoise beads. ;o)

Again, you can see how my prior Brachy foot (left) is narrower than my non-Brachy foot. There is more space in my shoes as you can see below. I'm not leaning to any one side, I am standing straight with full bearing weight.

But aren't they pretty? Shopping is still sorta weird. I don't know my style yet with open toe shoes. Another complication is fashion trends. Somehow the styles of this year, platform 6" heels, aren't my thing. lol.

Tootles! KLU!

ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY! - Post-Op

First, I want to thank God for being with me, cuz I sure did need to know he was around those first few months when I was shut in.

As I look back, I'm reminded of so many things! My melancholy, the pain, and the small hurdles I overcame along the way. =o) 

A FEW HAPPY THINGS

• I use to have a corn on my third toe and now it's gone. ;o) 

• I also use to have thick calluses in the bottom front of my feet. They are gone too. I hope it stays that way.

• Another little thing is that before the surgery I was a size 9 to 9 1/2 shoe size; and now I'm a size 8 1/2 to 9. This is due to my Bunionectomies. Yay. 

• In case you're wondering, I do not feel the hardware in my foot.

OUTSTANDING PAIN ISSUES

(the red areas are further past muscle, closer to the bone if you will.) This Sciatic Pain pain keeps me from taking long walks or doing anything on my feet for hours. It's an annoying and sometimes miserable kind of pain. It's daily, and if I keep going I end up limping. I'm hoping it will diminish completely with time.

UPDATE The issue in this box WAS part of my outline when I started putting this entry together 4 few weeks ago. BUT something amazing happened. I won't go into the details, but I received complete healing in this area. This pain lasted 11 months and 2 weeks. I've been completely pain free for the past 2 weeks! So there are no outstanding pain issues!

TENDONS

Remember I spoke about this back in the "Didn't know" page? Back in the 11th post-op week? Anyway, when I wake up in the morning it feels as though my tendons have been in a ballerina position (pointed foot) for an ice age. 

So every morning I have to recline myself forward to make the tendons feel "released". It's weird.

NUMBNESS

RED are numb areas. YELLOW are areas of a tingling sensation when touched.

PINKIE TOE
As I mentioned in a previous post, I suspected my 5th toe might develop a bump or callus because it's now rubbing up against the inside of my shoes.

It never did that before because it lived under my 4th toe. (I placed it out from underneath my 4th toe for the B/W photo.)

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
Well, the past year has been a sedentary one. If you remember, I tried walking at the track back at the 6.5 post-op-month mark. It didn't go well. This post explains the complication with the fourth toe.

At the 8th month mark I tried the treadmill for 2 weeks, but my whole leg was in pain. I had to stop.  

So now the question remains, "Will I forever have to wear a band-aid on my toe when doing intense physical activity to avoid a blister?"  I think I've avoided the gym because I don't want to test this. I don't want a painful blister under my toe! But at this annual point, I really have to. I'll be sure to post the results.



SCARS

The two in the center are from the Brachy surgery.

VIDEO

As promised, I made a video to summarize this past year's journey in case you've just joined the Blog. ;o)

INSOLES

In the past few months I've had to invest in this stuff.

It helped with the pain, but moving forward I will make this part of my shoe-drobe because I want better foot health.

I wore this lovely little number a few days ago for a 40th BD party.

Again, the higher the heel, the shorter my new fourth toe looks. ;o)








The "High Heel" insole is just a must for me now. They feel so good. I think this will help keep those calluses under the front part of my foot at bay. 

And these things even have arch support! Awesome.

FLEXING

This is how things look when I flex my toes upward.

RESULTS

My right foot looks gigantic! LOL

Obviously my left 4th toe isn't as long as my normal right one. 

This is more likely with the one-stage method vs the external fixator. I knew that going in. 

With all I've been through— I'm ok with it.

I'm more bothered by the results of my bunionectomies. Specifically, the first-metatarsal on my left foot. Seriously, I thought it would be better than that. But it's been a year of recovery and it's time to just move on.

HELP

As I had shared in this post, I'm looking for flip-flops that say "Puerto Rico" on the straps. Preferably in leather. If anyone knows where I can find them, please leave me a comment. ;o) Thanks.

QUESTIONS

Is there anything you'd like to know that I haven't covered?



Thanks for following!

11 MONTHS - Post-Op

Eleven months, I can hardly believe it. ;o) Let's get to some updates.

Physical Balance

I've heard many Brachyins speak about balancing issues. I don't recall ever having any with my Brachy. Now, after my surgery, I do have balancing mishaps (while getting dressed mostly), but that's different. It's due to having bone in places I'm not accustomed to. But I'll get use to it and my balance will be fine. I'm no doctor, but at 11 months, bone union is probably done but still stabilizing?

Closed Shoes

I recently wore entirely closed pumps for a short period of time. It was great. I couldn't fit into these before because of my bunions. But I did notice something. My pinkie toe on my x-brachy foot felt some serious pressure compared to my right. Which is odd because my brachy foot is narrower than the non-brachy foot, so you would think it would fit better in a shoe.

Well it does fit better in a shoe, it just doesn't feel that way right now because that picky toe lived its life under my fourth toe, remember. Now that I have a normal fourth toe, the picky is farther out then its ever been. It's not use to being up against the inside of the shoe. I feel with time it will get use to it. I've even gotten mild blisters because of it.

www.midedocorto.wordpress.com

IN FACT, now that I recall, Anita (the girl is Spain I've spoken to you about) had a similar problem. But she chose to have surgery for her pinkie toe. (Her 5th toe began to develop what she calls a corn, or a permanent blister, on the bottom of it because of the way it was so snug to her new 4th toe. So she had surgery done on the front side of her toe to remedy this.)

My 5th toe isn't as plump as hers, so I think I'll be fine as-is.

Speaking of Shoes

I'm pretty much eating my words now. I've been saying all along that I'm not going back to really high heels. Well a few things have happened to make me turn on myself.  

1. At the stores, there are a poor supply of 1.5" heels 

compared to very high heels. It's frustrating even. I spend way too much time searching for the needle in a hay stack. And it's winter, so small heels are coming in not so feminine looking styles... which my closet is full of. (I'm sure it will get better once warmer weather hits.)

2. Something unexpected happened. I saw a pair I really loved, but they looked much to high. I kept coming back to them though so I tried them on. As I walked the store with them I had to hold back the tears because I've never felt like that in high heels before. There was no bunion pain! I don't know why but I had forgotten about the pain that use to shoot up my shin. (probably because I've been nursing my bunions with short heels for a couple years now.) Anyway, I was shocked at the comfort.

By bunions were in full swing when I was 14 years old. I don't know what it's like to wear high heels without pain. The joy I felt was indescribable. And if that wasn't the best thing ever, the shoes were 70% off! I took those puppies home for $30 instead of $100! 

I've never been so happy to eat my own words in the whole of my life. ;o) I want to hug my surgeon right about now!

Know what else I discovered? The higher the heel the shorter my fourth toe looks. I find this very funny and very cute. I love my new toe!

Another Highlight

My aunts 50th wedding anniversary! I was able to wear the kind of shoes I use to dream about wearing when I was a teen. It was a thrill to show up in these! 

Left Foot is Narrower

My left foot has always been narrower than my right because of the Brachy. My 5th toe on that foot never got the same wear and function as the right, so it remained narrower. And now after my surgeries, it still is.

If you have Brachy on just one foot, this may be the case with you as well. Below you can see how my left doesn't fill the width of the shoe like the right. And still, I love my toe! ;o)

Next month will be my one year anniversary of my Brachy one-stage corrective surgery. Be sure to come back and check that out. I'll be talking about any numbness that remains and I'll be presenting a video. Don't miss it!

Ciao! xoxoxoxo

A New Year Approaches

I've noticed more doctors popping up on the internet professing their expertise on Brachymetatarsia. Regardless of opinions on that subject, I'm hoping this means more open doors for people with Brachy, and more options.

I get to enter a new year with better feet. I'm grateful. Things worth having often comes with challenges and hurdles. I'm happy to be past mine in this area.

Life is too short to live with regrets or hating parts about yourself. Surgery isn't for everyone, but happiness is. Be happy. Shine where you are.

The big "D" word!

Depression. Very controversial subject among people. Even further for Christians. Everyone has their own belief about what it is, the types there are, treatments, etc.

I'm not about to get into all that. I just wanted to share a little something I found. I've not known myself to be a depressed person. Like all teenagers I had my rough times. As an adult I just don't have time for it. My pity parties are short lived cuz there is just too much to do and it's not my cup of tea. 

Going through post-op offered a lot of down time and being in solitude magnified things. I found it difficult. I was not depressed, but too often felt sad. After the fact, when I was already walking, I looked for a natural supplement that would help with this state that seemed to linger.

After some prayer and a 'lil research I started St. John's Wart. I did begin to feel much better. And No, it wasn't a placebo effect because when I got it, I pretty much figured I had wasted my money.

I wanted to post my finding right away, but I've waited a few months to really see. It turns out that I find myself down and discover it's been a week since I've taken it. I take it daily. So you may want to try it, perhaps it may work for you if you find you need to "balance" your mood. That's what I use it for. Be sure get it with "Hypericin".

Tootles! 

UPDATE:  If you remove refined sugars (all sugars that are not from fresh fruits/veggies) you'll stabilize your emotions and not even need St. John's Wart!)

10 MONTHS! —Range of Motion Update!

Howdy. I took these 'before' shots 10 months ago waiting for this day to come. ;o) So here we go.

Not much to say with these because the pictures say it all. I will tell you that I'm flexing and tightening my grip like crazy in my after shots, just like in the before shots.

I was wearing my very old canvas shoes the other day (first time in a year), and I noticed something. There is a dark area right where my Brachy toe use to be, on the left. 

Hmmm, funny how we all know that it's raised up in there rubbing against the top of our shoes, but I'd really never seen the evidence of it on the outside like that. (I think it may be because I was always looking at the bulge my bunions were making instead. lol)

So that's the update. I feel fine. The sciatic pain is improving month by month, so I'm happy about that. Very happy! ;o)

I do hope if you are considering surgery you can find answers to some of your questions among these posts.

Tootles!

Bits and Bobs— 9.5mo Post-Op

While this Autumn has been a warm one, allowing me to continue to spoil myself with flip-flops, the cold weather will come and my feet will have to get use to closed shoes again.

I bought a pair of boots. Aren't they snazzy? A little higher heel than I would have wanted (2.25"), but I do like them a lot. I wore them for 7 hours. My foot hurt for the rest of the day. Mostly where the bone graph is. That bone area seems to get pressure whenever you wear any kind of a heel.

With my foot as it was, I would not have been able to wear these boots. My bunions wouldn't have allowed it. And the vertical room in the front of the boot wouldn't have allowed for my Brachy toe to fit.

Click for larger view.

Another thing I discovered while I shopped for shoes these past few months, is that I felt lost while shopping.

Not so much because I was in a weird in-between stage, where I wasn't in closed or dressy shoes yet, but because I just don't know how to shop for my new feet yet.

I found I kept going for shoes that I use to have to wear. It turns out that your style and taste for shoes has been greatly influenced by having Brachy. I would pick up a pair I liked... then frown cuz they were what my closet is full of.... square toe, with high vertical space in the front. 

I will not be buying the real popular sharp-pointed toe shoes because I don't want my bunions to return, but it's plain to see that I will have to develop a new taste in shoes for my new feet. I did not anticipate this lost feeling while shopping.

But I'm not worried at all, this will straighten itself out in time I'm sure. ;o) Lol.

Lastly, wearing flip-flops has allowed me to feel something I can't remember ever feeling.... the cool/warm air on my toes in the car! ;o) When this first happened on a hot day, I was pleasantly surprised at the feeling of the air conditioning on my exposed feet. It was so nice to feel that! 

I had to wait a few months to wear these. The straps are real snug. While I waited, I sewed on some small beads. ;o)

Where my toe would have been.

Sometimes my foot doesn't look right to me. It seems to me that my fourth toe doesn't belong. It's weird. Not use to seeing a toe where there is a toe now. Lol.

 Tootles!

9mo Post-Op —My Cruise

I'm back! My vacation was great. Was good to really get a change of scenery after so many months. I packed my prescription pain killers that I hadn't used in quite some time just in case. 

I had sciatic pain once I got onto the cruise (I suppose it was the travel)... But I discovered I hadn't packed them after all. 

I don't know why I had this pain nearly the entire trip, but I pretty much popped Aleve like it was candy. Perhaps it was the fact that I was constantly walking around taking pictures. (got a new lens) But I don't believe my sciatic pain is induced by walking. The pain goes up beside my hamstring and into my buttock. I just think I'm getting over some aggravation to it during surgery.

My feet did swell each night, Aleve helps with inflammation.

What kept me going was the photography! There were many christian entertainers on this cruise, so they became my subjects.

Oh, my Pedicure! My first evening on the cruise, I went up to the spa and booked an AM pedicure appointment for the following morning— my birthday, yay! It was a great experience! 

Preeeetty. ;o)

My quick recap is that I get better each month. And that I'm working on the range of movement of my big toe on my Brachy foot.

**I didn't realize this, but because I had Brachy on the same foot, my bunionectomy DID NOT get the post-op attention it needed to regain my mobility there. With Brachy you don't do anything with your foot for at least 3 months... this actually harmed the mobility in the joint of my big toe. Normally you'd be working on it about 3 weeks post-op. ;o/

So my left big toe is much stiffer than my right. But what's done is done and I just work at it as best I can now. ;o)

Not in heels yet. Not sure if I will ever go back to really high heels actually. It's been a warm Autumn, so I still do flip-flops! ;o)

Tootles!