A Small Setback

If I had to be laid up, at least I had good company

I am impatient. I know many of you are probably in the same boat. When they told me I'd be out of my brace in a few weeks, I believed them. And actually, I had two weeks where things felt great. I went for bike rides, even went for a walk (woohoo!) and was happy that spring was here.

Then, last Wednesday I trained several of my new museum educators, which included a full scale tour and walking across the uneven fields of my site. 

Thursday, I attended an Earth Day event and had to park my car half a mile away. By Thursday night, I could hardly walk.

Friday, I woke up crying. The good news is that I had physical therapy scheduled first thing. Usually, we start with heat and/or biking to get things warmed up, do my exercises, then use ice and the electrical stim to cool everything off. Friday, we did stim and heat, I biked for ten minutes, did a few stretches, and then we did stim and ice. Both of my PT's expressed concerns about the screw on the outside of my ankle. They felt like it was more pronounced than it had been previously. I took the day off of work, slept, and kept it elevated. 

Saturday I went to work, and tried my best to not move at all. Sunday I felt like I had moved backwards three months. I really wanted to go to the gym or go for a walk, but I knew my ankle wouldn't tolerate it. Instead I sat on the couch and watched Princess Diaries.

All American Surgery Update - Four Months

Yesterday I had my four month check-up with the Physician's Assistant to touch base about my continued recovery from the All American surgery. I am still doing physical therapy twice a week, and my limp is definitely less noticeable. My ankle is still stiff in the morning, and swollen at night, but there is progress.

The other big news is that I will be going back in six weeks to schedule a surgery to remove the screws in my heel and ankle. They are still exceptionally tender, and you can actually palpate the edges of the screw in the heel! I'm glad we are doing it, but definitely not looking forward to more surgery. But, more on that as it gets closer. Now, the updates!

What I Would Have Done Differently - Changed PT's Sooner
Since the surgery, I've worked with two different physical therapists. One is the one I did pt with previously when we thought the ankle was sprained, and the other who has filled in when my regular was gone or sick. They work side by side, and are both very nice and friendly and smart, and I don't want to misconstrue that at all.