Update from 2/1/2017: It's been 3 and a half months and I still have pain in the heal, but I am able to walk almost normal, I am starting to do a light and very short jog and can use an eliptical without pain.
I recently had surgery on the heal of my right foot to remove a Bone Spur (Calcaneal Enthesophyte). The procedure involved splitting my Achilles Tendon and according to the doctor he used a hammer and a chisel to remove a bone Spur and smooth out the heal. The DR said it was worse than he thought it was going to be. He then reattached the tendon. Sewed it back together. Drove a titanium nail through it to secure it and stitched me up with staples. He used staples cause he didn't trust me with stitches. The back of my heal looks like a zipper now.
This post isn't intended to talk you out of this surgery but rather to help you become mentally prepared. It's too soon for me to say if it is worth it but I have heard others have said it is worth it. The 1st couple weeks were tough and I had serious reservations about having the second Surgery on the left foot. Below is a day by day experience that I wanted to share in case anyone wondered what it was like and to help them decide if they should go through with the surgery. My goal is to be able to play soccer without the pain caused by the spurs or give up Soccer and deal with some pain for the rest of my life.
Summary of things you need to know:
- You will need someone to drive you everywhere for a couple months and longer if you drive a stick or have surgery on the right foot like I did.
- No weight bearing allowed on the foot for 6 weeks.
- Must keep the foot elevated at or above your heart to keep the swelling down most of the day every day for 6 weeks.
- Buy a Knee Scooter. It is mandatory in my opinion.
- If you live in a two Story house plan on sleeping on the Lazy-boy, couch or spare bedroom downstairs.
- Remember, you only have one leg to stand on for 6 weeks so things are a bit more challenging but don't let that stop you from getting out and around. I still put the trash out, feed the animals, get the mail, feed myself. You get the picture.
Day 1: Surgery day. You can relax about the Surgery. The Surgery is the easy part. I didn't sleep much. The level of pain was surprising light and in an unexpected spot. It's on the top of the ankle which I thought was odd at the time.
Day 2: Still not bad. I was told the DR injected the heal with a long lasting pain reliever. Supposed
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| New 2017 Hobie Pro Angler 14 Collecting Dust :( |
to last 2 to 3 days. I even worked some on my laptop from the lazy boy. In fact I felt good enough to have my wife drive me to the Sunrise Mountain Sports to pick up my Hobie Pro Angler 14 that finally showed up about three weeks late. More about that in another post to come in the future. Had a small spell of pain again in the evening at the top of my ankle. By now I have had several meds on and off to manage pain and swelling. Not all at one time of course and nothing really very strong. Aleve, Advil, Tramadol(didn't seem to do much and only took maybe three times) and Lorazapan at night to help me sleep. Still didn't sleep well though.
Day 3: Wife calls the doctor to see if there is some they can give me to help me get through the night. They prescribed Alprazolam which worked but I did not like how I felt the next day so I have not taken it since. I put pillows under my leg for much of the night. Slept better.
Day 4: I have not had a bowel movement since the day before the surgery. Apparently every med I am taking causes constipation. I would rather deal with some pain in my foot then this. Ugh! Either something I ate or the constipation med I took caused me extreme discomfort. It was serious enough that I had the wife go to the pharmacy to find a remedy. I was expecting her to return with an enema bag but instead came home with something that I was supposed to stick in my butt. Luckily I gave it another try the natural way and things finally started to move. After several trips things were looking up. Slept better that night.
Day 5: It's been rough and I still have a long way to go. Still feeling the effects of the day before but it wasn't nearly as bad. No pain in the foot really. Just keeping elevated and taking two Aleve per day. Felt a little feverish but not enough to bother taking my temperature. Toes are tingly when I wiggle them and I have asked the wife to look at the to make sure they still have color. Woke up at night in a pool of sweat but that means I was sleeping good right.
Day 6 and 7: Its Monday so I actually have to work. Good thing I work from home on a computer. Most jobs could not be done and you would have to take a leave of absence. Remember, no weight on the foot and it has to be elevated all day. I tried working from the lazy boy but it was not comfortable. Weight of the laptop on my legs gets to you after a while. I tried working from my desk a little, but ultimately ended up on the bed. It's not fun trying to work lying down. Everything I do takes longer and staying comfortable is a constant battle. I miss having an ergonomically correct work space with two large monitors. Still surprisingly little pain and sleeping better now. Still only taking Aleve twice a day and a sleep aide at night.
Day 8: 1st post op appointment with the doctor. Did I mention you can't drive so you need a good partner by your side to help you get through this. Doctor removes the bandage and I am surprised to see the metal staples. I guess he thought I might try to be too active based on some things my wife told him so he took extra precautions. For some reason after the Surgery I start feeling some minor pain or twinges at the area of the incision. Perhaps it is how he re-wrapped the bandage. I felt like there was less padding now at the heal so staying comfortable is a bit more challenging.
Day 9 and 10: More working from home but Friday was a very busy day. Ended up working the final hours from my desk with my leg propped up on a stool under the desk. It was necessary as I really needed to be efficient for the final hours of they day. Swelling of the foot felt pretty low or so I thought.
Day 11: I attended my daughters Soccer game. It was good to get out of the house. The drive was not super comfortable though. Almost crashed on my knee scooter in front of the parents and players. While trying to get situated in the car I guess I straightened my leg while bending forward too much and felt a sharp pain in the heel. I will try to avoid that again for sure. We went to a sporting goods store and believe it or not went shopping at Costco. I can get around pretty good on the scooter but my knee started to bother me towards the end.
Day 12: Watched my wife and older daughter play soccer on the team we are on. Fun but I miss being on the field. They won so I guess they didn't need me this week. Went home for my youngest daughters 11th b-day and watched the Oakland Raiders beat the Jaguars. Booyaa! Took the boot off for a bit to let it air out, and had the wife fix the wrap so it covers the heel better. Turns out the swelling had not gone down as I had thought so I took an Aleve. Spent the remainder of the day in the lazy boy recliner. I wish the days could go by faster and look forward to having these staples removed. They are starting to bug.
Day 13, 14 and 15: Back to work. Long and busy days on the computer. Not fun with a leg propped up on your desk. Worked non stop from my desk all day in various positions none of which were very comfortable but it is better than laying on the bed with the Laptop. Feeling some heal pain but not enough to warrant pain meds. Going to the bathroom with only one leg is not fun. Wife is urging me to make sure I go through with this same surgery on my left foot. I am on the fence as to whether or not it would be worth it. Maybe if I give up soccer the heal pain would be tolerable.
Day 16: 2nd Post op surgery appointment. DR says no to removing the staples. Says he will take them out next week. Better safe than sorry. He was impressed with the lack of swelling. Only the toes are still puffy but he says that is because they don't get used much, so there is very little circulation. It doesn't help that they are wrapped up 24/7 either. We talked about having the other foot done in March but he wants to see how physical therapy goes before scheduling. I have to have full use of my right leg before I can render the left one useless for 6 weeks. It should be easier the second time around. Didn't sleep well, but that might have been due to the open window and the Rain pouring down last night.
Day 17: I was able to sit at my desk all day with leg propped up on a stool.
Day 18 and 19: I crashed my on my knee scooter. Do not underestimate small cracks in the cement and never take your eyes off the road when on the scooter. I ended up hopping on my right foot a couple times, yes, the one I had surgery on and then I fell to the ground. It was a natural reaction to use my foot to try and break my fall. I hope I have not done any damage. We shall see next weds. Other than a few aftershocks I am not feeling any worse off after the fall. We attended my daughters soccer tournament. Three games. I sat in a folding chair and propped my my leg on the scooter. Almost crashed a second time. Good thing the Dr didn't take the staples out yet. Swelling of the toes is more then it was the last time I checked. I need to keep taking Aleve and elivate more to get the swelling back down.
Day 20 and 21: Swelling is still an issue. Taking two Aleve and elevating a large portion of the day but it must not be enough. I worked at my desk and for a large portion of the day with my foot was on a stool about a foot lower than my heart. I am feeling some pain at times at the incision most likely due to the staples digging in. i have tingling pain on the palm of my feet just behind the toes.
Day 22: Half way until I can start walking on my foot again. The Dr removed the staples today. He stuck me four times with numbing medication which was very painful. Painful enough to make me a little woozy. The Dr didn't like that my foot was not being held in an L shape so he recommended a different boot. It was painful to push my foot all the way in so that my heel was touching the back and bottom of the boot. In fact with the new boot in place I can no longer straighten out my leg. Any movement that caused too much of a stretch on the tendon causes a sharp pain at the base of my heal. I had a hard time sleeping and had to make sure I kept my knee bent all night.
Day 23 and 24: I am allowed to shower without the boot on now. It takes me twice as long to get ready in the morning. Still can't straighten my leg without feeling a sharp pain. I have a feeling this pain might last a while but I am praying it gets easier each day. I really feel like I should elevate my leg 24/7. Seems it only takes an hour or two and my foot feels like it swells up a bit. It's really getting old. Ugh!
Day 25 and 26: It's the weekend. I watched my youngest daughter score a goal on Saturday and watched my 20 year old daughter score a goal on Sunday and the Raiders beet Denver Sunday night so I have lots to be happy about. It's a pain trying to use the scooter on grass but I look at it as exercise. I find it interesting how many people strike up a conversation when they see me in a boot on a scooter. Everyone is curious or has a story of their own to share. Still feeling the effects of the new boot, but things are improving little by little.
Day 27 and 28: Back to work. Still frustrating to have to work in a laid back position. It's a struggle to lift my leg up onto my desk and shove pillows under it. I have to be very careful to avoid a sharp pain that occurs if I overstretch the leg. I am still taking two Aleve per day. I wonder if I should stop taking Aleve but am worried about the swelling. This morning after my shower I noticed my foot didn't look to good. It was a darker color than the other foot. I found by massaging it a little that the color seemed to improve. My callouses from playing soccer are coming off and skin is peeling slightly as I rub the bottom of the foot.
Day 29, 30 and 31: Two weeks until I can start walking on two feet. Doc is happy with progress and says I can skip next weeks appointment. My leg is shrinking which is concerning but I am sure it will bounce back once I start physical therapy. Days are are a little easier. Less pain and daily life starts to become more normal as I become accustomed to the new life with only one functional leg.
Day 32 and 33: It's the weekend. Instead of playing I watched my Soccer team play in a tournament. Point is, I am not sitting in my lazy boy recliner all day. Riding my knee scooter out to the soccer field is somewhat of a workout. It's hard to use the scooter on grass and takes extra effort but it was worth it.
Day 34 and 35 I look forward to my morning shower. It's the only time of day I get to take my foot out of the boot. I am testing it a bit by letting my bare foot rest on the floor and pressing down very lightly. Not sure I could stand on it yet even if the doc asked me to try. I still feel like if I stretched too far or put too much pressure that it would hurt. I am feeling some light pain in my heal similar to what I felt before the bone Spur was removed. There is pain if I press around the center of the incision. Similar to what you would feel if you pressed on a bruise. It hurts as I type when my heal presses on the boot. I'll try to find a position where the heal is not being pressured as I try to go to sleep in a few. 6 more days till my last appointment and I am expecting he will ask me to walk on it. Can't wait.
Day 36, 37 and 38: My calf muscle has shrunk to half its size and is starting to cramp up at night or when I try to straighten my leg too much. I am back to taking one Aleve at night. I think I sleep better and it helps a little with the swelling and in theory should help the healing process.
Day 39 and 40: It's Sat. I enjoyed watching my 12 year play soccer. It's good to get out of the house. I started to think about all the chores that are piling up. I tried to put more weight on my foot and am starting to realize that I might not be walking as soon as I thought. 2 more days till I see the Doctor. I wonder what he will say. Calf is still cramping up. I have been eating bananas and I increased my water intake but so far it has not helped.
Day 41: I saw the Dr today. He says I can walk if I want to so I gave it a try but it hurts to walk. I am feeling pain in the heel. My skin at the incision has split for the entire length of it. It is a the thick layer of old skin from years of sports. Imagine a long blister that has been cut. Also imagine some scabbing From the staples and a line of black Permanent marker that has not warn off. Good news is I can sleep without the boot now.
Day 42: Yesterday afternoon and today I walked with a single crutch. I worked on my Kayak. I installed the depth sounder and the Boonedox landing gear. Now it is ready to go. Apparently I over did it though. That evening when I removed my boot and realized that my foot had swollen up pretty good and the color near the heal was not good.
Day 43: I thought after 6 weeks I would be walking, but I decided I would not try to walk today, took some Aleve and elevated my foot for a good part of the day. That evening my foot was still swollen so I iced it while watching TV and it seemed to help.
Day 44: Happy Thanksgiving. I am walking again and the pain is a little less than it was a couple days ago. I could almost go without the crutch but I am using a crutch to be safe. I still wear the boot and will elivated it for a good part of the day.
Day 45: Felt good enough to go fishing. See my next post for the details. I think I am on the home stretch now. I can walk with a limp very slowly and had no trouble peddling a Kayak all day. I even drove my Truck. Probably could not have done that yet if it were my left foot since I have a stick shift. Next week I start physical therapy.
If there is anything noteworthy I will update this Blog Post but I think this will do it for now. I plan to provide an update later. I still have to do the same thing on the left foot so I still have a long road ahead of me. In the end I think what everyone wants to know is, "Was it worth it?". Too soon to tell. As I look back in my mind it doesn't seem so bad, but the first few weeks I know were brutal and it felt like it would be an eternity. I am sure the bad memories will fade as usual and I will look back and it will be a small step towards a better future. We shall see. Hope you found this helpful.
I have the Lowrance Structure Scan transducer installed with the Total Scan Transducer mounting plate. As a result the large PVC pipe is a must to prevent doing damage to the Transducer.
