Trust me, I have asked. My doctors simply smile and shake their heads when I request amputation. There are days when I would much rather deal with steel and springs. Still, they tell me that I wouldn't be happy. Try me.
Until today, I was treating this as no big deal. Today however, as I was in the shower putting my razor back on the shelf, I got nervous. Per the request of the surgical nurse I am no longer on
NSAIDS. Sure, I can walk and I am doing my best to not alter my gait but trust me, this thing hurts. It really hurts! Per the nurse I am not to shave my legs for 10 days prior to surgery. Yes...I cheated. I stopped at day 9. I truly hope it does not make a difference.
Here's the ordeal.
I was born a little bow legged. I am also an over
supinator. While this is normally not an issue in most people and was never an issue for most of my life, it has become one now. Typically people with this design are fast runners. Somewhere along the lines I didn't hone that talent. Oh well. So my feet basically fight with my shoes. I can break down the foundation of a shoe in a matter of 4 months (not running, mind you). I am sure part of this is due to the weight I have accumulated over the years but the other part is simply the way I was created. My arches are so high that I am prone to roll my ankles. Now there's a skill I have developed! I have rolled my ankles so many times that I no longer feel it taking place! There are some very specific events that I can recall where I have torn bone pieces, ruptured ligaments and now a tendon.
During the last two years specifically I have gone from a partial
peroneal brevis tear to a complete rupture. The outside of my foot at the base of the 5
th metatarsal would (and still does) flare up in a sharp searing pain. Depressing the clutch on my jeep has become rather problematic at times but I have just functioned through the pain. I have to...I have two young boys and a dog at home. I am often alone with them and have really limited time to take care of any personal problems.
The dog has to be walked outside and the boys are not strong enough to control him when he pulls. For a 20 pound Jack Russell, he has quite a bit of pull. He is the reason I had a mishap two winters ago where I tore all of the internal stitches from my lateral release and
plica removal.
Just call me Danger Prone Daphne.
I had a knee scope done to correct my knee cap placement and clean out the joint a bit. I also had a meniscus tear to deal with. My husband was busy with football and left me alone.
Scotty the dog was not taken outside before Mike left and well...now it was up to me.
I had never seen so much swelling in my life. Sure, it was just a few days post op and I was still wearing a cold water cuff and my knee immobilizer wouldn't close all the way from the bulk. It was November and we had ice and snow on the ground. I know where the patches of ice are but couldn't avoid them all. My dog decided to chase a raven and pulled me hard. I had his leash in my hand along with my crutch. He took the crutch right out from under me and I ended up stepping and bending my knee. OUCH! I felt things tear.
I got nervous and called the doctor. During my impromptu visit, he reassured me that I may not have done too much damage but I needed to be off of that leg as much as possible.
Ok...as long as people stop knocking on the door or the dog holds his bladder...I can do that. Oh...I had Thanksgiving dinner to cook for about 30 people in a few days....yeah...I'll stay off my leg!
In the 6 weeks I was out of work I ended up doing very well in therapy. I gained my range of motion back, I still had pain where the anchor is holding a piece of my
cartilage to the bone but that went away in about six more months. Things are fine now but my issues in the same leg have moved south. Onto this ankle.
Seems the lack of attached ligaments and now the tendon rupture have made my ankle so unstable that the doctor will not do the soft tissue repairs alone. He has decided to slice a wedge of bone from the side of my heel in order to
stabilize my ankle. I opted for no bone removal and he said that he cannot effectively repair the damage without addressing the problem (well, he said it in more words than that). Fine...when do we do this?
On July 28
th I will be in the hands of my orthopaedic surgeon. He has done this procedure before and promises to give me back full function. I will be able to wear heels again!!!! I hate that my shoe options have been one inch or less. Anything higher and my leg will pretty much slide over my ankle bones. NOT the most comfortable feeling in the world. It also happens when I go down stairs and point my toe to reach the next step. I haven't run down stairs in two full years now. I can live without THAT action...but the heels...I so badly want to wear them again. I miss them..they just sit in boxes.
So...once I am in post op status I will continue this blog. I will also be tracking my weight loss progress as I figure out ways to remove fat without the use of my left lower extremity. I refuse to gain more weight! In the meantime...I'm really nervous. I don't think I have felt this nervous since I learned my youngest child was breach. I cried while scheduling my c-section. I am not quite sure why I'm so nervous right now...but it is what it is I guess.
I am hoping to put up pics of my MRI for all to see...in case you're interested. I'm sure I'll be posting on here before my surgery date.
Best wishes to you all!!! Thanks for reading me.
