Bye-Bye Boot

As of today, it has been 8 weeks since my surgery to repair a torn peroneal tendon. Yesterday I tried using the post-op shoe instead of the CAM boot. By early evening, the pain in my foot had increased. I decided to use the lace-up brace instead. That brace irritates my incision along the upper part on the ankle bone. However, today I do have the lace-up brace on with my Nike walking shoe. I will talk to the therapist tomorrow about how to transition out of it. Use the post-op shoe? Use a regular shoe? Do it for short intervals? With the cane or without the cane?

                                                             My current footwear

Should I try this next? I am already using this for short distances such as getting to the bathroom during the night.

 

This morning I wheeled the knee walker into my guest room for storage. It is retired. Without the boot, I can now drive a car again, too. Lots of important changes. Because we keep getting snow every few days, I will continue with the cane when walking outside on slick pavement. I am making progress.

More Selfies

“[Hope is] resting in the imperfections of today because you believe that tomorrow there is possibility.” www.thenester.com

This quote was shared by Ann Voskamp. My foot is not yet perfect, but I am starting to see real possibilities for improvement.

It is looking and feeling better. I am doing more physical therapy exercises now. These are mostly done with a band for resistance.

The main goals are to increase strength and endurance so I can get rid of the boot. I am walking now with the boot, sometimes with a cane, but around the house mostly without assistance. My best exercise in terms of easiness for me is the marble pick-up.

The band of muscles closest to my toes are quite strong already. The hardest exercises are those related to dorsiflexion, i.e., bending my foot backwards. Besides a bit of increased pain, that movement makes me feel the stiffness of my ankle. I am going to try the lace-up brace instead of the boot this weekend. I may have to rely on the cane more again. I hope in one week to start transitioning into a regular shoe. To do that, I have to be faithful in my exercises so I have a strong and stable foot. When I compare my two feet, I can see that the right foot does have some slight swelling. That may last for several more months, making shoe selection rather narrow. I don’t care what shoe I have on as long as I can freely ambulate again.