Dangit!

Two realizations i had this morning that made me growl, both concerning my return to work and 4 weeks or so in a cast, maybe even longer total time on crutches.  


The first: What if the elevators aren't working? Thankfully I am only on the 3rd floor, but what a pain in the tookus. 

The 2nd: I will not be able to carry my lunch from the kitchen area back to my office. Basically this will require some thinking about how to accomplish putting my food in my backpack to make it back to my desk. I realize people have to deal with much bigger challenges in their lives, it's just these stupid inconveniences that keep popping up and making me frown a bit in anticipation. Seriously, I think my treat to myself after this ordeal is over should be to replace my roller skates I (stupidly) threw out before I moved to OR......These are cute!

2 Weeks and counting

The surgery is 2 weeks from today. I have anxiety about the pain, but I know I will be on meds and will manage it somehow. My real anxiety is the recovery, and I am trying not to over think it and obsess. I am just so dang independent that even the prospect of having to rely on anyone else stresses me out. The other night I kept myself awake just worrying about what a hassle it is going to be just going to the restroom in the middle of the night. I am so happy for my small, single story home right now!

I am so incredibly fortunate to have a bf who loves me and is willing to do whatever it takes to support me and help out however needed. Still, I hate to have to rely on him (ANYONE!) and to make his life hell for a few weeks...or longer. He's currently the only follower of my blog, but this rant is really for me and for other peroneal tendon surgery sufferers, not him :-) I continue to look for ways to prepare and make for the most of my comfort and ease of functioning for both of us during this period. A woman on Runner's World said she bought a pillow at a med supply store that helped keep her foot elevated and in place in bed. I remember when I had my hand surgery I had one of those microbead pillows and loved it...then donated to my cat when I was finished with it! I think I'll look for one of those this weekend, it should come in handy just around the house and in bed, and presumably at work when I have to go back.I'm also thinking maybe some big socks or cover, in case I need to sleep with my foot outside of the covers. I sure can't go shopping after the surgery, so may as well obsess and cover my bases now :-}

Now, if I can just build up significant upper body strength in the next 2 weeks to help out with those damn crutches.......

Pre-op prep

OK, so this is where proof positive that I am crazy comes out. Not only do I border on OCD when it comes to planning ahead, but the anxiety about the surgery makes me just want to grab hold of what I am able to control and over-do/over think it all. But hey, better to be prepared than wishing i was and whining about it :-}

One of my first concerns was showering. Only other cast i ever had was on my forearm and that was relatively easy to navigate. Being a big fan of Amazon, I went online and found myself a shower bench, cast cover, safety handle and a suction cup wall mount so i could move the shower nozzle to a comfortable level. A vision of things to come 30 years from now danced through my head...ok, so it's practice! I also looked through posts on the Runner's World Forum and at the other blog on here and got some great tips. Since making Adam my personal servant for 2 weeks is pretty much out of the question, I needed tips on how to be self sufficient and self entertained for a couple of weeks.

• Loaded up the instant queue on Netflix. I asked friends and family for recommendations of movies and TV shows. Thankfully I have some odd friends and family, so got some awesome and quirky suggestions!
• Made sure I have a couple of good books on hand.
• Attempting to build up some upper body strength for those evil crutches. Ya......I'm gonna need another couple of months....
• Meal planning. Well, thank goodness Adam is a great cook, but don't want him to have to do it all for 2 weeks+. I'm exploring what can be pre-made , maybe frozen. Will make sure I have easy sandwich fixins and some Lean Cuisines on hand for the days I am home alone for lunch. 
• A few recommendations I picked up from people on the Runner'sWorld forum:
• Keep an ice chest nearby with food, drinks and extra ice packs for your leg. Apparently even putting them under the knee helps.
•   Have a safety plan for when you are home alone, at least the 1st week. One woman's advice was that she would text her husband when she got up for anything, including bathroom trips. If she didn't text back in appx 5 mins he would call, if she didn't answer he'd be there w/in 15 mins. My concern is that the KLUTZ I am i could fall over and bonk my head, so i:'m definitely going to do this.
• Keep the doctor's number handy, don't be a hero and if in pain WHINE. So, EVERYONE who knows me knows this will be a mega challenge. I am independent, hate to ask for help and can make the most stubborn bull seem like a push-over.
• For at least the 1st 3-4 days take the pain meds regularly as prescribed. Apparently day 4 is the worst, but after a week it is manageable

I also plan to do what I can on the Wii, like boxing, bowling, tennis etc. I figure that should help keep my blood pumping and get a little exercise so I don't plump up while I'm forced to be horizontal. I am not really a video gamer, tho my awesome friend Bryan swears I should take this opportunity to become addicted to World of Warcraft :-) I'm thinking not....but wish there were some Lego Video Games I hadn't gotten to yet!

I'm guessing the most important prep is repeatedly apologizing to Adam now for what a grumpy, whiney pain in the butt I am going to be! I already foresee myself making him drive me around just so I can get out of the house....just need to find a chauffeurs hat for him...seeing as how I'll have to be in the back seat with my foot up.

The injury, and the long road to the surgery decision

In December of 2008, during a rare snowstorm in Portland OR, I injured my peroneal tendon simply by stomping through 10" of snow that was covered with a thin layer of ice. I basically rolled my heel inside of my custom fit sneakers and didn't think much of it since there were no immediate signs of injury.

I am not sure exactly when the symptoms started, but I think the first time I noticed it was when I stretched way across our bed to give the cat some attention. There was a  snap, much like a rubber band popping in the outside base of my foot, below the ankle bone. It was extremely painful, and after a few times of this happening I knew I must have done something to my foot when I lost my footing in the snow. I waited until late January to finally see my Primary Doc and she referred me to a Podiatrist. Long story short, I NOW know that snap should have been an obvious clue to the podiatrist that it might be the Peroneal tendon, but it took advice from my sister in New York who works for a Podiatrist to push for an MRI which finally revealed the tear. I went through several months of Physical therapy and about 2 months in a boot. There was some improvement, no more snapping, but I am sure part of that is my own avoidance of anything that causes that snapping. Surgery was mentioned, I staunchly refused, that's just how I am....I will always try all the conservative methods first.

About a year ago I went to see an Orthopedist who came highly recommended by several Physical Therapists and my own PCP. He told me that everything that could be done short of surgery had been done, except cortisone injuections, which are not advisable for this injury for may reasons. If you are considering those, please do some research! I do not recall all the details, but do know it can make it worse. He described surgery and the recovery process in great detail and assured me I did not have to make the decisions right away. I'm not sure why no rush, perhaps because I am not an athlete and not at risk of doing further injury by running etc. The description of the recovery process frightened me so much, than in spite of loving this Ortho, I said, "Thank you very much, no." and went on my merry way.

I may not be the most athletic, but I am active, love to walk on the beach, hike, entertain, dance etc. The injury has interfered significantly with my normal activities, just because standing or walking too long or walking on soft beach sand hurts like hell and causes massive swelling. I also miss high heels =) Dansko makes cute stuff, and I am not looking for stilettos, but I'd like to put on some pretty shoes again!

I spent about 4 months pondering the idea of surgery (I wasn't about to do it during the summer!) and finally decided to go back to the ortho last week. Prior to going, I did as much internet research as I could find. If you are considering this surgery, you MUST go to this site, http://www.runnersworld.com/community/forums/injury-prevention/injuries/just-surgery-peroneal-tendon/.0
to say that site has been helpful is a huge understatement....it has been and still is a great resource for me. There is also another blog on here ,http://howisurvivedmyperonealtendonsurgery.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2010-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-05%3A00&updated-max=2011-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-05%3A00&max-results=25 that I found very helpful.

Anyhow, I walked into the doc's office pretty convinced I would be getting the surgery, but of course had to revisit with the pro. We agreed to do it and now the surgery is scheduled for November 5th. I am extremely anxious, because the recovery will definitely be a long, painful and arduous process, and let's face it, crutches are evil. That said, all the forums and blogs I have found all have this one theme in common, "It's is really, really painful and recovery is difficult, but I'm really glad I did it." So here I go..........