Days 7,8,9 Not much new

A widespread power outage interrupted my posting although I have to admit not much has changed over the last few days.  For the most part my foot feels fine and I can easily walk around in the boot.  But I do notice that the top of my foot feels more irritated at night when I've done more walking and standing during the day.  Although yesterday I didn't really get to ice since I didn't want to open the freezer door.  Today, I'm trying to just take it easy.

My biggest challenge right now is that our typical northwest weather is back which means a lot of rain.  It still haven't devised a good system for keeping my foot dry in a sudden storm or walking through parking lots puddled with water.  A friend told me about a product called Dry Pro (drycorp.com).  Looks pretty slick.  Kind of like a neoprene cover for feet/legs or arms/hands.   I think you can even use this product to swim.  Looks a little heavier and more sturdy than the shower water proof cover I bought.  They have a knee length foot/leg cover that looks like it could be the ticket.  Unfortunately, the places around me that carry it are all closed Saturdays and Sundays.  Since I get the stitches and dressing off Thursday morning, not sure it's worth it for only three days.  I did notice they had overnight shipping on their website but figured the weekend would still present a problem with that as well.  I suppose I could try one of the shower covers when I go out.  But the plastic isn't that heavy duty and I'm afraid between the pavement and the bottom of the boot it will end up in shreds.  I may just resort to the inelegant solution of a garbage bag.

Day 6 --Out in the Garden

Foot feeling good this morning.  I've been dying to get out in my veggie garden although certainly didn't want to risk dirt and water getting into the bandaged foot.  Decided to try a contractor's bootie, the tyvek cover made for contractors to put on over their boots when they come into a house.  Perhaps a little looser than I'd like but it did the trick.  It covered my exposed toes and kept the sole of the protective boot clean.  Was able to harvest tomatoes, strawberries and cucumbers.  I iced and elevated my foot afterward.  Was up making ice cream for about 30 minutes and later out on another errand where I used the crutches since their was a fair amount of walking involved.

Found my cleaned out joint was throbbing a bit at dinner time although once I elevated my foot on another chair it went away.  Other than for a shower tonight, I'm going to try to keep my foot elevated and iced.

Only one more week to go before I can get this wrapping off.  Luckily, I've finally gotten into reading the 575 page Catherine the Great and have devised a way to keep my feet elevated that is a little gentler on my back.  Unfortunately, we're supposed to have a lot of rain over the next few days which may limit my ability to get outside since my tyvek cover doesn't cover the top of my foot.

Day 5 No big changes

Not much different today from yesterday although for some reason not feeling much like walking around.  Just getting kind of tired of all this stuff on my foot.  The top of my foot, although not necessarily the incision, is feeling kind of sore and ichy.  Hopefully,  it's just healing skin doing its work. 

Biggest excitement is that bandage is coming off a week from tomorrow!  I suspect that will be the start of the real work as I'll need to get my toe and foot working again and I suspect it's going to be sore when I get started.  Have been trying to wiggle my toes just a little in the bandage.  I can bend big toe just a little without pain although haven't wanted to push it too far at this point.

Have no idea what kind of shoes, if any, I'm going to be able to get on once the bandage is off.  Have been reading blogs and looking at photos.  Lots of bruised, swollen feet when bandages come off.

Went out to dinner tonight.  Used the handicapped parking tag but no crutches since we didn't have too far to walk.  Did fine.  Got home and iced and elevated foot to make up for the fact that I didn't elevate during dinner.

Day 4 First outing since surgery

Woke up just wanting to free my foot from all it's wrappings.  The bandage between my toes was bothering me.  The whole top of my foot felt irritated.  Not really hurting just uncomfortable.  I took an ibuprofen thinking maybe my foot was a little swollen.  I had kicked out one of the pillows it had been propped up on during the night.

Decided to do an outing today.  Cabin fever has gotten really bad.  My husband came with me so decided to use the crutches since I knew I'd have to do some walking in the store.  He could carry what I bought.  Packed wallet, sunglasses, phone, etc. into a light weight back pack to avoid having a purse at my side. My foot thanked me for that but the heels of my hands are red and sore from the crutches.  But a good trade off in all.  Was able to slowly get down our wood stairs in the house hanging on tightly to the rail just in case.  No crutches for this.  No problems.

So excited to realize that my follow up to get my stitches out is a week from Thursday, not Friday like I thought.  So hopefully I'll be out of this wrapping and boot a day sooner than I thought.  Still kind of wondering what shoes I'll be able to wear when the stitches come out.  The doctor's assistant keeps saying loose, floppy shoes.  Other than flip flops I don't have any loose floppy shoes.  Really don't want to have to add another pair of shoes.  I already have too many that are only geared toward specific foot problems.

Shower was easier today.  Instead of using string to keep the towel wrapped on my leg inside the waterproof boot cover I found an old woven belt with two d-rings that worked much faster.

Up and moving around a little more today although foot seems to still be doing okay.

Day 3 Driving short distances

My foot is actually feeling remarkably good.  I can get around fairly easily in the boot.  It helps to have a higher soled shoe on my right foot to more closely match the height of the boot.  I feel more stable that way and if I can keep the boot from rocking too much my foot doesn't get as sore.

I went out to my local drive through coffee place this morning.  Was able to get in and out of the car fine even with coffee in my right hand.  Just too it very slowly and used the car itself for support.

I'm still icing although the nurse that called to check on me today said that I only needed to keep doing that if I needed it to make my foot feel more comfortable.

My biggest issue today is that all this sitting with my foot up is causing serious issues with my back and butt and upper leg.  I really feel much better sitting normally or even walking but hesitate to do too much since my doctor had indicated a quick recovery depended on keeping the foot from getting irritated or swollen.  Irritated I can feel but my foot is so covered up I'm not sure I would know if it's starting to swell.

I'm going to try doing some weights and yoga stretches that allow me to sit or lay on the bed.  For someone who is used to at least an hour or two of exercise every day, I'm concerned about 2 weeks with nothing. 

Day 2 Off the pain meds, walking in boot, shower

What a difference from yesterday!  I took two pain meds before bed at midnight last night.  Slept well.  Woke up at 6am and the first thing I noticed was no pain in my foot.  I was able to hobble to the bathroom (with one crutch just in case) but found that I could actually walk in the boot with barely noticeable discomfort.  By 10am still no significant pain.   Took a couple of tylenol just in case.

Was able to get out to the kitchen and make breakfast (nothing complicated).  Sat at the table with my foot placed on a pillow on top of a chair.  Although have spent the majority of the day with my foot up, I have been able to get around the house without the crutches today!  No way could I have done that yesterday.

Actually, my biggest problem today is just a foggy head from spending too much time lounging with my foot up.  Although I have a ton of books, I've found it hard to focus.  The Sunday NYTimes has been about my speed today.  I know I'd feel better if I took a shower but just wasn't up for all the effort to waterproof my foot.  Will attempt that after dinner tonight.  Hoping that since I'm not taking the pain meds that the fuzzy head will clear up.

The other thing I've noticed today is that my foot doesn't feel as tightly wrapped in its bandage.  So maybe there was some swelling that has gone down.  That has done a lot to ease the discomfort as well.

After dinner, my foot was feeling good enough to stand on so I did manage to get a shower in.  The waterproof cover worked well.

 I used this Aqua Guard Boot.  Unlike the other cast covers, this one has a wide opening at the top which made it a lot easier to gently slip in my booted foot without banging my toes.  There is a stretchy band with a buckle that locks tight that you slip over the cover.  I tied a microfiber towel around my leg just below my knee to catch any drips just in case and then put the cover on over that.  I fastened the band just above my knee and then folded the excess length of the cover over the lower part of the boot.  No leaks although  the area right above the towel felt damp but I think that might have just been condensation.  My foot felt dry.  I did a quick shower with a handheld shower head to try to minimize how much water was spraying on my leg.  This cover comes in packages of 3 (with one band and buckle) for $19.95.

The other product which I already had and has come in handy is this ice pack and cover.

The label says Caldera.The tabs have velcro that you can fasten around your leg and the main body has a pouch that you can slip a frozen 6" x6" Caldera therapy gel pack into.  A small velcro tab keeps the ice pack in place.  No more leaky ice cube bags!  I think I got this at my local pharmacy.

Biggest issue I'm dealing with now is a sore lower back from sitting with my foot elevated.  Foot is a little more sore over the incision tonight but putting together dinner and taking a shower may been a little too much for it.  It's actually been  feeling better than I had expected at this point.

History, surgery and first day

It took me a long time to come to the decision to have surgery for the hallux rigidus condition on the big toe of my left foot.  I found that reading the direct experiences of others who had the surgery was a big help both in knowing what to expect and in helping me make my decision.  So although I am definitely a rookie at the blog business, I decided to share my experience as well in the hopes that it might help someone else.  I realize that no two experiences are exactly the same but sometimes just knowing what others experienced can give the courage to either go ahead or to chose not to once one has consulted with the appropriate medical professionals.

I had my surgery yesterday morning.  In today's entry I'll cover the day of surgery, today as well as a little of the history leading up to the need to have surgery in the first place.
On subsequent entries, I'll be covering things real time.  I'll start with the surgery and following 24 hours and then follow with history and background for anyone interested.

Day of surgery
The usual prep.  No food or liquid from midnight the day before for a 7am surgery.  Also instructions on what medications to discontinue.  They requested that I shower both the night before and morning of surgery.

I needed to be there by 6am for prep. Once there, I met with the anesthesiologist and the surgeon.  My surgeon uses a block for the lower leg and a sedative, rather than a general.  The surgery took 30 minutes.  Once in the surgical room, they put in an IV and a tight cuff just above my ankle.  I was awake--I can remember hearing music and hearing conversation but couldn't retain what was playing or being said.  I remember commenting that I felt a slight burning sensation on the top of my foot when they first started but after that I felt nothing.  It was just a calm, relaxing, peaceful rest. Shortly thereafter,  the surgeon asked me to sit up and look at how my toes could now move.  I was easily able to do that. My foot was nicely stitched up with about 8 or 10 stitches (I think) and he showed me how they could now bend like they were supposed to.

They bandaged up my foot and wrapped it with an ace bandage and then fitted me with a lovely black protective "boot."  At 9:38 am I was on my way home.  I was given crutches but told I could walk short distances in the boot if I could tolerate it.  I was given percoset for pain.

                                My lovely new "boot" which I'll be wearing for 2 weeks.


Although my foot was definitely sore, it was nothing compared to about 5 bouts of serious stomach pain that I had throughout the day.  Each only lasted about 10-15 minutes but were intense.  Intense enough to make me sick to my stomach on the way home. (Thank goodness for the bag we had taken that had held my clothes at the hospital.)  Later, talking to the physician's assistant, it sounded like it was a reaction to the pain meds.  In recovery they had given me a choice of several things to eat.  I wasn't hungry at all but chose some apple sauce since it seemed like it would go done easiest.  That was, in retrospect, a mistake.  I really needed something starchy like crackers to offset the pain meds.  Once I got lunch and dinner on my stomach yesterday, I haven't had an issue with the stomach ache.

I was able to hobble around a little at home but definitely felt more comfortable on the crutches.  Spent the afternoon and evening on the sofa with my leg propped up on a couple of pillows.  Iced it for about 30 minutes every couple of hours.  They had me ice the rear of my leg just above the ankle since the foot was wrapped up.  Or they said I could ice behind my knee.  They said either would cool down the blood going to the foot which I guess is a good thing.  I was doing a couple of pain pills every 4 hours which was enough to take the edge off the pain and allow me to sleep. (Had only gotten a couple of hours a sleep the night before.)


Day 1

Spent the night in the guest bedroom since trying to keep my foot propped up and get the covers seemed too difficult with my husband in bed next to me.  Plus, I was scared that if he thrashed around, it would be easy for him to accidentally bump my foot.  Got a good six hours of sleep before the pain woke me up.  But took some pain pills and was able to doze off again.  Was awoken by soaked bedding under my leg and foot and realized the ice bag they had given me at the hospital and which I had put on when I was up earlier, had sprung a leak.  Luckily the dressing on my foot stayed dry.

For some reason, my foot seems more sore trying to walk on the boot today than yesterday so have been mostly using the crutches for getting around.  The pain meds (I think) are making me feel a little light headed although that may just be from lying down with my foot elevated. (How else do you get your foot higher than your heart?)  Have been taking advantage of the situation by catching up on emails and starting this blog. (Okay, and at times napping.)  Minimal pain as long as I take the meds every four hours and stay off my foot.

Was able to make my own lunch today including hobbling around to collect the ingredients although let my husband do the bigger tasks like unloading the dishwasher and taking care of drying out everything that got soaked with the melted and leaky ice pack.


Background/history 
I am a 60 year old female.  Average height and weight.  In good physical shape. No major medical issues although my left foot is quite flat and does have a longitudinal tear in a tibial tendon which is a whole other issue.

Since I was in my early 20's, I worked in jobs that required I be in professional dress which at least for me meant wearing heels.  I kept the heel height to about 2 1/2" which didn't seem to cause me any problems, at least at first.  As I got into my 40's I started to notice a burning sensation wrapping around the inside of my foot just to the rear of the ball of my foot.  It would come and go and although it was uncomfortable, it was never so debilitating to force me to look into it.  I was a walker with flat feet who was quite used to having sore feet a lot of the time.  At times the joint at the base of my big toe would be achy but I had just chalked it up to the high heels. And I never connected the burning sensation to joint issues.

 In my early 50's I left the corporate world and since I now worked at home, rarely needed to be in heels. The pain for the most part when I was walking went away.  What I started to notice at this time though was that a lot of dressier shoes both heels and flats were cut in a way that rubbed over the joint of the big toe which was quite painful. I addressed it by buying new shoes that didn't do this.  It wasn't until 2012 when I was having issues with a torn tibial tendon on that foot, that I learned I had a rather severe bone spur and arthritic condition on that big toe joint.  But at that time, other than certain shoes causing pain, I wasn't having any issues with that toe.  If I were barefoot or in my walking shoes my toe was fine.  At that time I was more concerned about the tendon tear and whether the pain from it would resolve on its own or whether I would need to do the rather extensive surgery and long recovery associated with that.

Fast forward to spring 2015.  My tendon issue resolved.  I'm back to walking about 3 miles a day and doing yoga a couple of times a week.  Then one day doing a downward dog in yoga, I could feel something kind of crunch in the joint of the big toe and the pain immediately hit.  Walking was painful.  Anything on my toes in yoga was out.  But the hardest part was finding shoes that didn't debilitate me just trying to get them on and off much less while walking.  Even the slightest pressure on that joint caused tremendous pain.  Luckily, it was unusually warm here and I was able to wear some loose sandals.

 During this time I went in for my annual physical and my internist pointed out that I could only bend my big toe about 10 degrees on my left foot while my right toe could bend the normal 90 degrees.  She explained that the condition was called hallux rigidus and suggested that I have it corrected since it can be very limiting to someone leading an active life.  She recommended an orthopedic surgeon (who I had already seen years ago for the tendon issue) and who has an outstanding reputation for fixing foot and ankle issues.  It was the end of July before I could get into see him but I decided it was worth the wait since he seemed to have done more of these surgeries than anyone else around.  Of course by the time my appointment rolled around my toe was feeling better although the burning sensation was still there when I walked and the achiness would come and go.

He explained the surgery which seemed quite straight forward.  Said it was a very common condition especially in people who were physically active.  (I truly think mine was caused or at least initiated by the beating that joint takes from wearing heels.) Although at that time since I wasn't having a lot of pain, he didn't feel surgery was in order.  He suggested I try a carbon fiber plate in my shoe to keep my toe from bending and then to push myself to do the things I wanted to do.  And then, if I starting having pain have the surgery.  At that moment, that seemed logical.

 I bought the  $70 carbon fiber insole.  But when I put it in my walking shoes under my custom orthotic (which I need for my torn tendon) my toe joint was pressed so tight against the top of the shoe that the pain was awful.  I put in my thinner orthotic for my dressier shoes and it was tolerable.  But during my walk that night, I blistered both big and little toes since the edge of the carbon fiber plate was "reading" through the softer, thinner front portion of the orthotic.  And now, the joint was sore again to boot.  So much for the carbon fiber plate.

My husband had been on my case to get this fixed for some time.  He's recently retired and we've got a lot of travel coming up.  Neither one of us wanted to waste a big trip if the pain started up while we were far away and I ended up not being able to walk or at least walk in the shoes I had with me.  I started to look at our travel schedule for the next couple of years and realized that if I was going to have a window to recover from surgery, it was now.  I was tired of never knowing when this issue was going to flare up.  Even more tired of having lots of beautiful shoes (low heeled) shoes that I couldn't wear any more.

I got on line and stumbled into a blog about cheilectomy written by a 40 some year old male.  It was quite helpful as were many of the comments made by women as well as men.  Didn't see anything that made me think that surgery wasn't the right thing to do.  So the very next day, I called the surgeon and luckily got an appointment for surgery just 10 days later.  Was just enough time to take care of things that needed me to physically move around, plus get a temporary handicapped parking permit (you'll need a letter from your surgeon), a waterproof cover in order to take a shower with my wrapped foot in its boot (I'll give a review on mine once I've tried it) , load up on library books, etc. without giving me too much time to second guess.  And so here I am writing about my surgery and post op experiences.