Thankfully . . . all is well!

I am doing well and am about to finish up my last pt session on Friday. We’ve made a lot of progress, so it was worth the money & time. I was on my foot a lot on Friday/Sat., & woke this morning feeling it, but I think it was in need of more rest.

I checked with Chicago this week, as to whether or not there was any possibility of taking apart the toe fusion, but she didn’t recommend it. If you do it, you are left with no joint and no fusion, so the big toe just kinda hangs there. I thought this was the case. I should have asked if there was anything that could be done to loosen it – even a little movement would help. I am pretty sure it is an “all or nothing” deal. In my case, I need to be elated with no movement. The fused big toe (what I have now) is defiantly livable . . . as I’ve become more active though, the desire to have it move has increased. It is human nature, to want it to be just a little bit better! J

All is okay in the skin department . . . . I found socks, tights & trouser socks with natural material (silk or cotton). Nordstrom’s has their own brand of organic socks, which seem to be great. Each item comes from a different place, but it does seem to be helping. I returned two pairs of socks to a store in South Carolina and this older lady called me this week to apologize that they didn’t work out. She had a strong southern accent and was genuinely sorry that they were too thick for me . . . she was so sweet and sincere. I told her no biggie, in anyone else the socks would have been fantastic!

We had a nice, quiet Thanksgiving at home this year. It was our family and another needy family that didn’t have anywhere to go or money for a meal. I continue to be grateful for foot progress & non-itchy skin . . . I still think about the doctor that recommended amputation & thought I’d be in a wheelchair eventually. If he could see my exercise routine now – 12 min. bike, 12 min. elliptical, 12 min. treadmill. There is so much to be thankful for . . . . God is good.

Thanks for checking in & hope you have a joyous week!

Love,
jenny

Quick update . . .

All is about the same . . . just trying to figure out what works for socks, tights, and dress socks. I do think either all cotton or all silk seem to be helping. I’m tired of having to send things back, but that is just the way it will be until I can get something that works. Not quite there yet, but getting closer.

I had pt on Wednesday. I had a long conversation with my therapist about my big toe & how pain in it is what causes me to stop exercising or not walk as fast. It is because the big toe is fused, so it has no movement. Now that I am trying to be more active, it is very noticeable to me . . . I want it to work (bend/move) & it cannot. Fusing the big toe is the one thing I wish I’d done differently. I don’t think there should be pain there though, unless I’m just really pushing the limit on activity. Don’t let anyone ever tell you that you don’t need big toe movement . . . it is more valuable than you’d ever imagine. The four little toes are lost without a leader! Despite all of this, I continue to be grateful for the progress we’ve made.

je

Organic Socks & Tights

I’ve been knee deep the last week learning about organic socks and tights. Organic hosiery means it is made of all (or like 98%) natural materials (cotton, wool, silk, as opposed to nylon, lycra, spandex or polyester.) It is incredibly hard to find. I won’t tell you the time that I have spent reading labels. There are a few places that sell it online in the US, but most are abroad.

I ordered several pairs of socks two weeks ago & they came last week. All were too thick . . . hard to tell the weight from online pictures. I did get one pair of all cotton tights (don’t ask the cost) & they felt fabulous! I did notice a big difference, so I ordered two more in different colors yesterday. It is really just “trial and error,” which is a hassle . . . . I did find some 100% cotton dress socks by Gold Toe yesterday in the men’s dept. at Von Maur. I got them home & realized they were ridiculously big, but I did hunt down the women’s version online today.

I am going to try going the “all cotton” route for a few weeks & will see if it makes any difference w/the skin situation. All is still good with the foot positioning . . . yesterday I did the treadmill, bike and elliptical for 45 min. at the gym.

Need to get onto some work that I brought home . . . thanks for checking in and for continuing to pray that all remains stable.

je

Dermatologist update . . .

I am doing okay and just trying to do everyday, “normal” life activities/work. My physical therapist was out-of-town all week this week, so I didn’t do pt. We are going to do one session per week for the next three weeks and then be done. There is probably always more that I could do, but I wanted to wrap up before the holiday season starts.

On Tuesday, I had an appt. w/my dermatologist. My operative leg & foot actually looked somewhat better. She feels like what is left now is scarring. She gave me an Rx for a new emulsion cream that is supposed to be good & will hopefully help it to heal some more. As for the left leg, I had this awful “flare up” about 2 hrs. before the appt. so when she saw it, it was as red as a tomato & had been itchy all afternoon.

I was wearing a new trouser sock and so I attributed it to something in that sock. She agreed & said to stick to all natural fibers (cotton/silk) for socks, tights & trouser socks for the next 6-12 months . . . . she thinks the man made fibers (lycra, spandex, nylon, etc. ) are continuing to irritate an already touchy situation. I read several articles online about man made fibers & how irritating they are to skin in general. Anything natural is ok.

I wear either opaque tights with skirts or trouser socks w/dress pants to work nearly every day, so I’ve been on a major hunt for organic hosiery. A lot of it is made abroad, and if you find it in the US, the selection is really limited. I ordered two things that will come next week, so we will if those work. The dilemma that I keep running into is that many socks w/organic fibers in them are thick socks & then I’m going to struggle to wear a thick sock w/a shoe. I need anything organic & thin in order to still wear a shoe. I’ve been to every big dept. store in STL & only found one pair at Nordstrom’s. My legs have been a lot better the later part of this week, so she may be right . . . . someone could be making a mint by inventing a line of organic tights & dress socks – they are tough to find. I didn't even know what "organic" socks were earlier this week!

Not a lot happening this weekend. We have out-of-town guests at JA next week from Tue-Friday, so I will be out multiple evenings & will have kid visits all week.

Hope you are enjoying this fall weekend!

Jenny