Week 11- Day 78 SURGERY DAY!

The day has finally arrived! Removal of my external fixator was yesterday and I was scheduled for surgery at 3:30pm.

Waiting almost half of the day to go in was pretty nerve wrecking, not to mention I was STARVING (You are not allowed to eat after midnight the day prior). Before I knew it, the moment had arrived and I was taken into the operating room.

I woke up in a fair amount of pain but was immediately given medication to make me feel more at ease. I was also forced to walk my first steps across the room with a cane which was pretty emotional considering the fact that I haven't walked in almost 3 whole months.

Unfortunately, once I got home, the anesthesia began to wear off and the pain along my incision line started coming right back. I was prescribed percosets and anti inflammatory pills; however, although it seems to calm the pain down, it still resides. I am taking my time with the weight bearing because although Dr. D gave me permission to walk, I am afraid I will irritate my fresh womb. Sometimes I'll use the cane to walk, other times I'll use my crutches. I am trying not to over do it.

I believe my follow up appointment is in one week in which the magic reveal will occur. Hopefully I will be able to supply some photos of my after. SO RELIEVED TO BE CLOSE TO THE FINISH LINE!

Week 9- Day 60

Pretty shitty day yesterday. Went to my follow up appointment and was told I had ANOTHER 2 more weeks to go. My foot is looking great (which I should be thankful for), and my bone growth is definitely progressing but Dr. D would feel a lot more comfortable if I grew a little more to prevent losing any length once the fixator is removed.

To say I was disappointed and upset is an understatement, but I know the decision was made with my best interest in mind. Well, March 24th is now my new scheduled surgery date. Here's to hoping for a quick 17 days!

Week 8- Day 58

Well, an entire month has passed and I've been making more and more progress every day. My days are subjective. Some are good, others are bad. I find that if I am off my feet , I have a much better day than those where I am walking (better yet, CRUTCHING) all around the house and/or office. This is where I stress how incredibly important it is to keep your foot elevated as often as possible. If I leave my foot down for too long, I am instantly incredibly swollen by mid to the end of the day. After my last infection, I was prescribed a different antibiotic (which worked), but unfortunately about a week or 2 later, it came back. This one was probably one of the worst ones I've had since surgery. I actually was swollen more than ever, and thick yellow puss as well as blood was seeping out. The pain was one of the worst, and I began to get really worried.

I was prescribed once again, a stronger antibiotic and the infection went away within the following 2-3 days. During my next followup, Dr. D cleaned up a lot of the dry crust from the infection (gross, I know. It also hurt when he was cleaning the scab off). He then proceeded to apply a purple antibiotic which would help heal and continue to fight the infection off. 

Only downside was my last X-ray which showed little to no bone growth. I was praying to have this thing off by now considering that the surgery is considered to be an 8 week process, but I was told by my Doctor that another 2 weeks was needed with the fixator to ensure my foot was ready to have the device removed. Needless to say, the ride home was NOT a good one; however, I have been making it a point to use my bone simulator as FREQUENTLY as possible. I have also been extremely on top of taking my calcium vitamins and I am even drinking milk way more than I usually do. LOL. I am so desperate at this point, I will do almost anything.

I guess you could say I am at the home stretch, and as exciting as that is...it is taking an EXTREME mental toll on me. At work, I am restricted because I am still on crutches. At home, I am restricted because I am still on crutches. My social life has pretty much become non existent, because I am on crutches. I feel like a prisoner in my own body and it is driving me insane. After the infection cleared up, I woke up one day feeling like I could try and apply weight on my foot. To my surprise, I felt little to no pain and was able to take my first steps in 3 months. I became a little overwhelmed with emotion, because I had missed walking so much. It was literally as though I was learning how to walk all over again, because the muscles in my leg are completely limp from not being used for such a long period of time. This weekend I took another shower in which I thoroughly focused on cleaning my foot and incision area very well. A lot of my scabbing peeled right off and I was able to take some dry blood, purple ointment residue, and dry puss right off. 

my foot is beginning to look almost normal again

much of the scabbing from the incision on my toe has come off leaving little to no scarring (thank God)

A normal 5 straight toed foot!!

As frustrating as this process has been, being able to look down and seeing a normal foot is so exhilarating. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine the day would come. Unfortunately, I have to do this ALL OVER again for my right foot, but seeing the final product on my left one will surely give me the boost to do the 2nd. My next follow up appointment is tomorrow morning. I will be advised on when the fixator will be removed. I am PRAYING SO BADLY for it to be next week. I want to get back to my life again.