Weeks 15-16 Making Progress

Here I am at 4 months post surgery.  I saw the doctor last week who assured me that my toe is moving fine for this stage and that what I'm experiencing is normal.  He said I was at 50 degrees of movement which is what you need for running.  Probably not enough for downward dog in yoga although he said it was fine to try.

So my last three yoga sessions I've been doing plank and flowing into downward dog.  I can do it although not so flowing and gracefully.  The discomfort I was experiencing two weeks ago seems to be resolving.  I'm back to having moments of not noticing my foot for a while.  Or maybe I'm just getting more acclimated to the discomfort.  At any rate, yes, I still notice my foot although it isn't limiting me right now.

I'm still glad I had the surgery.  I think my foot is in better position (I'm not rolling outward) while I'm walking and that burning sensation that I used to get is gone.  The discomfort that I feel now is much easier to deal with.

Holding onto the back of a chair I can get up on my toes which I couldn't do before although my left foot isn't quite so steady.  I can get my foot into a shoe with a 2" heel but haven't tried walking in them or wearing for any length of time.

The incision is fully healed.  A faint scar with a little redness around it at times but not tender at all.  I can push hard on the top of my toe joint with no pain.  In fact the only discomfort I feel is on the bottom of my foot, not on the top.

So all and all, I'm happy with where I'm at.  Looking forward to going for days or even weeks without noticing my toe at all.

Weeks 10-14 post surgery-more ups and downs

It's been a while since I've written.  It's been a month of ups and downs.  Perhaps more downs than I was expecting at this point.  My foot felt pretty good on vacation, weeks 10 and 11.  I did a couple hours of hiking per day during one of those weeks.  Had my lightweight hiking boots on and did pretty good.  As usual, my toe seemed to loosen up after about 20 minutes of  hiking.  My toe would stiffen up while riding in the car for a few hours but seemed to easily get back to normal once I started walking.

Once we got home, the weather turned cold and wet and things seemed to south.  In spite of continuing my twice a day toe exercises, things seemed to have moved backward.  My toe has ached bad enough at night to wake me up, has started hurting out of the blue while just sitting in the car.  Walking is uncomfortable most of the time.  Is this the weather?  The fact that I'm not walking as much as before?  Not sure why the progress seems to have slipped backward.  I do seem to have a bit more movement in my toe but the discomfort has gotten worse, not better. Most of the pain occurs on the bottom of my foot either between my big toe and the next toe or in the ball of my foot just below the big toe.  Much of the pain has an electrical jolt feeling.

I'm pretty much able to do anything and wear most of my shoes; still not able to do downward dog although I did get up in plank position in yoga today.  So I have more function--it's just the discomfort that is bothering me.

My three month follow up with the doc is Wednesday so will be interested in hearing what he has to say.

Weeks 8 and 9 post surgery--ups and downs

It's been a couple of weeks since I've posted.  No really big news to report.  My toes are definitely bending down much better and without pain but moving them up (the direction that was originally the issue) continues to be an up and down process.  I really haven't seen much change in that this last two weeks.  Have been walking 3 miles almost every day.  I can walk fine and my pace is almost back to where it was before but it's consistently uncomfortable.  Sometimes it just feels stiff, other times achy, other times like I have a 220 volt line attached to the bottom of my foot.  And yes, there are times where I barely notice it.  This really is the tough part because I'm not really noticing progress like I did the first 6 weeks after surgery.  I continue to religiously do two rounds of my toe exercises every day.  Sometimes both rounds are in the evening only a few hours apart but I do get them in.  I've been trying to push myself through the discomfort when I walk.

I've been trying to get up on my toes with the full weight of my body at least 5 times a day.  Sometime more luck with that than others.  Trying to hold that for 10 seconds is tough.  So I'm still a ways off from downward dog in yoga.

Off on vacation tomorrow.  Will be doing some hiking.  First test of my toes on hillier territory.

End of week 7 post surgery

First plane trip post surgery.  No big issues.  A little stiff after the 4 hour flight but walking slowly and deliberately rolling my foot to bend my toes loosened it up fairly quickly.

The other piece of progress is that the top of my foot no longer hurts or pulls when I push my toe down.  It still feels a little stiff when I try to curl my toes but I can do so without using my hands.  The incision is also noticeably less tender.

Was still getting sporadic pulling and the electrical charge sensation on the bottom of the joint both while walking and pushing toe upward.  Sometimes it just comes out of nowhere.

Can get in most shoes at this point.

Although was diligent about the toe exercises, I didn't get nearly as much walking in as when I'm at home.

So all in all, it's coming along.  I feel I can easily handle  the hiking that will be coming up on the trip in two weeks.

If there is a disappointment it's that my toe isn't bending much more than it did right after surgery no matter how hard I push on it.  But the doctor did say full return of motion could take a year.  It just seems like I should be seeing more change.

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End of week 6 post surgery

More progress this week.  I'm pretty much now able to wear all the shoes I was wearing pre-surgery.  Can't say I could walk distances in all of them but they do comfortably go on my feet which is an improvement from last week.

Continuing with my 3 mile daily walks.  I'm usually a little stiff when I start and sometimes get the little "electrical jolt jab" on the bottom of the joint but both generally go away after about 20 minutes of mindful walking making sure I roll my foot straight through the step.

I've also had hours where I've been moving around or walking where I don't even think about my foot.  So that makes me optimistic.

Have been religiously doing the toe exercises twice a day (sometimes only a few hours apart in the evening but I'm determined to get both sets in.)  Have been using a first aide cream with comfrey in it as well as a comfrey oil that my yoga teacher mixed up and who everyone in class raves about.  She says comfrey promotes healing.  I figure it can't hurt.

The scar occasionally looks a little puffy and red.  Not sure what that's all about.  It doesn't really present a problem but just looks more visible at times.
 
Have not yet tried downward dog in yoga although have been doing some things that require getting up on my toes a bit.  Have been practicing getting up on my toes while holding on to a chair. When I feel I can do that without noticeable pain, will try downward dog again.  (I probably could do it, just a little scared to try.)

At 6 weeks out, I'd say I'm back to 97% function with a little discomfort.  I definitely have more toe movement and haven't noticed the burning sensation I used to get when I'd walk. My toe doesn't bend 90 degrees but it's pretty close to my right toe which I've never had a problem with.  Very satisfied with how things are progressing.

End of week 5 post surgery

The first four weeks after surgery went so well that this week kind of surprised me.  The beginning of the week my foot was hurting the worst it had since the stitches came out.  Had trouble getting into the shoes that were not a problem last week. The incision looked red and puffy and more noticeable.  Hmm. What was up with that?   The colder weather perhaps?

But then the last two days of the week my foot felt much better.  I discovered that my hiking shoes are pretty cushy and yet have a fairly flexible sole.  The extra bottom padding  seemed to really help on my longer walks and enabled me to roll through my step bending and stretching my toe as I walked.  My  3 mile walk was much better in these.  My gait was fine and was able to get my pace up considerably.  Yesterday was even able to do a short sprint.

Have been religious about doing my stretching exercises. Also have been massaging my foot with vitamin E oil.  Don't know if it really helps but it sure feels good.

So as of tonight, good progress.  But lesson of this week is that this is very much an up and down process.

Day 27--The pain returns

Maybe it's the colder, wetter weather.  Maybe I pushed a little too far on my toes in yoga or while I was out walking.  But today was not a great day for my foot recovery.  Was stiff and achy almost all day (other than for about an hour after swimming).  The affected joint throbbed even sitting down.
But I guess the ups and downs are to be expected.

So a month post surgery, here's what I can sum up:

• The exercise and movement in general are really important.  Even sitting for an hour or two can allow the joint to stiffen up.

• It's important to walk through the stiffness and pain.  It definitely gets better after about 20 minutes.

•  A pair of soft, flexible shoes that are very easy to slide your foot into will likely be needed in the few weeks following surgery.  A month post surgery, I'm still very limited in what shoes I can get on my foot.

•  Expect ups and downs.  Some days are good and then you seem to take a step backward.  But in a day or two, things generally start making progress again.

• At one month I'm getting around pretty well although probably not quite yet to where I was before surgery.  I can definitely move my toe more but the discomfort level is still a bit higher most of the time.

I'll be writing more the end of next week.