Swelling - ugh!

There is WAY more swelling happening this week than I'd like and it is making wearing a shoe really difficult. I am supposed to be moving from the boot to a shoe, but it is slow going. Spring shoes are different in style from winter & this is part of the problem .... I do better with a closed toe, no open back or toe piece, can't do a flip flop, something with forefoot flexibility and no higher than approx. 1 inch. It is quite the criteria to find in a shoe!

Today I just resorted to the boot all day because I was so frustrated on Monday. Tomorrow I'm going to go back to a pair of shoes that I know worked well w/my foot when it was doing good. I've had dressy speaking events the past two days, so that is hard also. It will all work out, but sometimes the shoe fits in the morning and then by 1:00 it doesn't (swelling sets in) .... go figure.

This morning while drying off after a shower, I noticed that my incision was bleeding. The skin is so incredibly thin, that a little scab that was there had opened & suddenly my white bathroom rug was now red. My incision has been very itchy yesterday & today, so I'm hoping it is not another allergic reaction suture situation coming on.

I will return to the STL orthopod on May 13th and not this week, so give me a little more time to see how the walking goes. I'm missing going to pt already, because that is just what I've always done!

Overall, it is still good .... just a few rough days with sausage toes and a fat ankle. I'll get over it!

je

Busy weekend ....

I am home again .... yeah! We've slowly been moving things back to my house for the past several days and we all agreed that this is the LAST time we are moving clothes, shoes, jewelry, etc. I always end up taking more than I need ... no surprise there. It has been marvelous to sleep in my own bed the past two nights.

I am slowly working my way out of the boot and back into a shoe. On Friday and Saturday I wore a shoe for about six hours and then today I managed the entire day in a shoe. It feels good still and no pain, but the toes are somewhat stiff. It will take a week to get them back into "walking mode." I am taking it SLOW - have no fear!

On Saturday I worked outside a lot of the day planting flowers, and re potting pansies, and spreading mulch. It was a gorgeous day outside and it was fun catching up with my neighbors. I watched the Cards/Cubs game on TV .... awesome game! I reacquainted myself with laundry, bathroom cleaning, and dishes in the evening.

Today I went to church and then Blake came to my house for lunch. We then went to look at new cars (for me) at a new Honda dealership. It was good to go with no salesperson there for the first time. We had root beer floats for .49 each at Sonic on the way home!

Thankfully all continues to go well with the foot. This week coming up will be post-op week number five. Still no pain, toes are moving some and are flat to the ground. I am supposed to return to the STL orthopod on Friday, but I may move it to the following week (a week of walking is not much to judge anything significant). I am sleeping well and am off all medication. The foot still gets fatigued easily and is a little sore after using it for awhile, but those are no biggies. The transfer area in the forefoot is so swollen - the warmer weather this weekend makes it worse. I'm wearing a forefoot compression stocking, but it is not helping much. It will go away with time, but it makes shoe wear challenging.

Better get some things organized for the work week .... now that I have to think about food preparations!

Wishing you a joyous Spring week!
Jenny

4 week Post-Op

Today we are at the four week post-op mark .... yippee!! All continues to be well with the toes staying flat to the ground. I've walked more this week with the boot shoe and there is still no pain - big praise! It gets tired still, but that is expected. The plan this weekend and moving forward is to transition out of the boot shoe into a normal shoe. I'm planning to take it slow and will wear the boot as needed or if I know I have a lot of walking .... hopefully in another week I won't need it at all. Once you start wearing a shoe, usually the shoe feels better. It definitely feels much better and like it is "back to normal."

Today at work I must have had ten parents ask me why was it that they came last year to BizTown and I was in a boot/cast then as well! They all wanted to know if it was the same foot, same problem, etc. ..... yes to everything - we're still working on it!

I return to the my orthopod in about another week or so, for a recheck. No plans for pt as of yet .... we will see how the walking goes and I'll then be able to tell if I feel like it is needed.

We've moved some things back to my house last night and will do the remaining items on Friday/Saturday ... looking forward to sleeping in my own bed.

I've been pretty busy at work this week, so I haven't had a lot of time to dwell on the foot problem ... just trying to do "life" and take it day-by-day. Still very thankful for your thoughts, e-mails, cards, and prayers.

Happy weekend to you!
Jenny

3 Weeks Post-Op

New pics today! The top picture is the new incision area (middle incision is the latest one) and the bottom picture is how the foot looks now with all toes touching the ground. This is proof that walking works best when all 5 toes touch the ground!

Today is the 3 week post-op mark .... yippee! It feels like three months, but I'm managing. I have to wear the glorious boot shoe for another week and then I can transition to a regular shoe (or whatever I can get into). The boot shoe gets tiring by the end of the day and I look forward to sleeping without wearing it. There is no pain, which is great! Last week there was an aching feeling, but that is gone this week. I'm not taking any medication now, which is a nice change. Still sleeping well. I am using the scooter at work and walking as needed. Next we have 125 kids each day at JA .... rest up this weekend.

Today I had to attend a funeral for one of my part-time staff members that lost her brother (age 15) over the weekend to brain cancer. Adam was in heaven for Easter, but it was a tough service today with lots of his High School sports buddies in attendance.

Mom & I are headed to central IL this weekend for a visit. We'll leave tomorrow afternoon and will return on Sunday. No medical appointments this time .... mom has a "Girls Weekend" with three girlfriends from High School & I'll hang out at the Eickhorst farm and will visit with family.

I will likely be at mom & dad's house for another week and then may try to return to my house on the April 25th weekend. I miss my bed and my pansies outside need some TLC.

We are continuing to take it slow and one day at-a-time .... all continues to progress and is positive. Happy weekend to you!

je

Stitches Out .....

All went well on Friday afternoon with the stitches removal .... I've seen it done so many times that I almost think that I could do it myself. A visiting nurse one time left a suture kit at my house, so I have the tools - hopefully there won't be a need to use it in the future. The incision looks really good and nothing appears to be open, so there is no wound issue. It has been nice to sleep with it uncovered the past few nights. The toes are still flat to the ground and there is really no pain. I continue to be amazed at when I am able to put weight on the entire foot, my foot functions as "perfect" as I'll ever get & there is no pain. My Chicago orthopod suggested that we just see what the next few months brings with it and try to just use it and not dwell on what we'll do if the problem comes back. We have to think positive and keep praying that we've fixed it forever!

Two more weeks in the boot shoe and then I can slowly transition to a regular shoe. My STL dr. doesn't think there will be a need for pt, but he is going to check with Dallas again on this. I don't have to return to the STL dr. for three weeks. I have walked a little (very little, don't worry) around the house today and it doesn't appear that the foot drop concern is going to happen (at least initially). I am fairly sure that I would be able to feel it immediately, if it was an issue.

Easter has been nice and quiet at home today .... We went to early morning church and had afternoon dinner as a family at home. I took a nap this afternoon and we watched a DVD. Can't believe that tomorrow is Monday already ... fast weekend. I have a packed day tomorrow with meetings and 130 parents coming for volunteer training at 10am and 6pm - busy day.

Thanks for continuing to pray .... hope you had a blessed Easter as you celebrated new life in Him!

Love,
Jenny

Two Week Post-Op ......

Greetings! Just a quick update ..... I am doing okay with the foot this week. I've been pretty tired each evening after work, but that is understandable. Today was the "two week post-op" mark. I have the stitches removed tomorrow at 3:20pm - yippee! The incision looks really good, is dry, nothing looks open and the stitches have been in there for 14 days, so I think all is clear for no wound issues. Two more weeks in the boot shoe. I did take a few steps this morning without the boot and the toes are still flat.

I was able to communicate this week (e-mail) with my Chicago orthopod, which was good. I had not heard from her in a long time, so I was wondering if something was wrong or if she was upset w/me. She is not upset & is grateful that everything is going well so far. She cautioned against doing further surgery, as we are at the point that she thinks the risk may outweigh the benefit .... I agree. Either the latest procedure will work long-term, or I have to live with it or we revisit the amputation question. I am thinking that option three is not an option, just based on multiple doctors telling me that this is not as simple as it sounds. She agreed that we've done the best we can in making wise medical decisions. I'll continue to e-mail updates to her occasionally & can make an appt. to see her, if necessary.

We're going to continue to pray that the healing continues smoothly, will take rehab really slow and see what happens in the next several months. I have not discussed pt yet, but part of me thinks perhaps I'll just try it on my own.

Wishing you a Happy Easter weekend ....

Love,
Jenny

Good weekend ....

It has been a good weekend. On Saturday morning I was able to get a shower (used the leg cover) for the first time in a week, so that felt good. Mom & I went for coffee and to run some errands on Saturday morning/afternoon. We had dinner together as a family on Sat. night and watched the NCAA game. My mom is ahead in the final four standings for her office – amazing!

We went to church this morning and then it has been a quiet afternoon at home today. I only have students on Mon. & Thurs. this week, so that will be a little break.

I’m done with the post-op pain and am only using extra strength Tylenol now. The walking boot is a million times easier than a cast. I can at least put lotion & water on the leg area. On Saturday morning I was looking at the incision area and foot very closely and I am back to being able to put all the toes on the ground & can feel each one! Yippee!

In talking w/my STL orthopod on Friday, it sounds to me like the Nov. surgery didn’t fail or come apart. The tendon contraction happened a 2nd time a little lower on the foot. They are likely related somehow, but I didn’t get that technical. Still would be nice to know the cause, but I’ve given up on hoping to find that answer.

Many have asked when we’ll know if this surgery was successful …. the answer is it will be awhile! Three months is normally what most doctors use to gauge success, but in my case it is probably more like 6-8 months. It is hard but you have to go w/the assumption that it is healing and doing well, until you see or feel something different. As long as the toes remain touching the ground & I can continue to bear weight on the entire foot, all is well. There will not be a pain issue if the toes/foot is positioned properly, thus this is why there is no pain now.

I see my STL surgeon again on Friday afternoon (4/10) to have the stitches removed. They are starting to get itchy, which means they are healing. I'll be ready to say good-bye to them by Friday.

Looking forward to a lighter week at work.

Hugs,
je

One week post-op appointment ....

My first follow-up appointment went well this morning ..... we removed the splint and got to see the incision. It turns out that he didn't use the same incision from the November operation (this is good, because the chance of a wound issue is a lot less) and instead used one from last May. It is about 6-8 inches long. The incision looked really good - dry, skin together, no gaps and healing well. We decided to leave the stitches in for another week, just to be on the "safe side."

The St. Louis dr. and the Dallas dr. talked on the phone and decided that a walking boot would be okay instead of a cast. The cast would rub on the incision so since it is doing well, we didn't want to risk incision problems. I have to keep the walking boot on at all times, but I can manage that. I go back next Friday to have the stitches removed .... walking boot for the next three weeks.

Tonight I looked at the foot and it is pretty swollen, but I am sure it is from all the movement today. For some reason, the artery transfer area doesn't take "trauma" well and always takes a few weeks to look normal.

Thanks for praying today ..... Hope you have a joyous weekend!
Jenny